Ah, the great state of Iowa. Known for its great, um ... corn? Well, they have great professional sports teams. In fact, I can't think of anything interesting in Iowa, except for Cody Paulus' '89 Mazda. Putting the King of Pop to shame, Cody has reworked this dawg four different times with three different 'bag setups since high school.
With two other Mazda projects and three facelifts done to this truck alone, Cody decided to go all out and picked this one to finish. For his third go around on the suspension, Cody and his friends gave the rear suspension a "semi-makeover" by giving the haters something to cry over. Instead of your standard twin 'bag setup, a single 'bag was borrowed from an actual semi to bring this dawg down to Earth. Cody told us that "With twin shocks in the rear, it rides just like any other 'bagged truck I've ridden in, with virtually no body roll." Complementing the new suspension is a set of 17-inch Bonspeeds to give the Dawg some well-deserved shine.
OWNER: Cody Paulus
RIDE: '89 Mazda B2200 X-Cab
HOMETOWN: Ottumwa, Iowa
CLUB: Twisted Koncepts
Tackling the body mods as well, Cody completely shaved the truck within an inch of its life. He eliminated such factory annoyances as door handles and wiper vents. With the bodywork coming together, a stock front end just wasn't going to make the cut. Finally seeing the light, Cody borrowed some headlights from the Mazda's not so distant cousin, an '05 Ford Ranger, then blended them into the grille with ease. Because of the 3-1/2-inch body-drop, a custom hood was fabricated with the stock hood and one from an '84 Toyota, which solved any previous clearance issues. With the body blocked to perfection, Casey McCoy sprayed the Prowler Orange and Cool Vanilla for that show-winning finish.
Moving to the inside, Cody and Jason (who also known as the Crazy Asian), went to work making sure the interior was as clean as its counterpart. While Cody was busy covering the entire interior with tan tweed, Jason wired up the Pioneer head unit and the Power Acoustic speakers. From the addition of a custom stainless steering wheel and custom console, Iowa Famous was born.
Despite being the only famous, rolling landmark in Iowa, perhaps Cody's Mazda will spark the interest of more than just the local law enforcement and give wannabe minitruckers the urge to step up their game. In the meantime, here's a big thumbs down to the haters, 'cause Iowa Famous is here to stay.
The Lowdown
Rolling Attire
Rims (Front/Rear): 17x7-inch Bonspeed Lagunas
Tires (Front/Rear): Hankook Ventus 205/40R17
Chassis Modifications
Suspension type: Air
Suspension (Front/Rear): Torsion bar, 'bag setup, and reverse four-link with custom bridge and 'bag over axle
Airbag type and size: (Front): Firestone 2500 (Rear): Firestone 1T semi 'bag
Valves: Eight 1/2-inch SMC
Compressors: 3/4-horse by Chassistech
Air line: 3/8-inch hard line
Air accessories: Two switches were custom mounted into the center console, 8-gallon air tank
Frame mods: Step-notched
Performed by: Owner Cody Paulus and Jeremy Barker
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Body Modifications
Shaved: Tailgate, wiper cowl, and door handlesBody-dropped: 3-1/2 inches
Front end: '05 Ford Ranger headlights, 4x4 fenders
Back end: 4x4 bed, roll pan
Exterior bolt-ons: Billet two-piece grille, '97 Toyota Tacoma 4x4 bumper and valence, and custom license-plate bracket
Misc.: 40x40-inch sliding rag top, sheetmetal inner bed sides, and floor
Performed by: Owner Cody Paulus
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Paint
Brand and colors: Sherwin Williams Prowler Orange and Cool Vanilla
Style: Two-tone
Performed by: Casey McCoy
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Interior
Seats: Modified stock seats
Material: Tan tweed
Dash: Top half was painted and the bottom half was wrapped in tan tweed
Door panels: Tan tweed and top rail was painted
Center console: Custom console
Flooring: Tan carpet
Headliner: Tan tweed
Gauges: White-faced gauges
Misc.: Custom kick panels for the speakers, billet window cranks, custom stainless steel steering wheel
Performed by: Owner Cody Paulus
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Stereo
Head unit: Pioneer
Mids and highs: Power Acoustic seperates
Subwoofers: 10-inch Power Acoustic
Amplifier for subwoofers: 1,000-watt Sony Xplod
Custom fabrication: Custom-made sub enclosure
Performed by: Jason aka Crazy Asian
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Engine/Performance
Header/exhaust: Header wrap, Dynomax muffler
Battery: Optima RedTop
Performed by: Owner Cody Paulus
City/state: Ottumwa, Iowa
Special Thanks By Owner:
Mom, Grandpa, Kassidy Kirkpatrick, Jeremy Barker, Casey McCoy, Twisted Koncepts, Weasel, Rusty Townsend, and anyone else who has helped with the truck throughout the years.