About two years ago, Joseph Benne found an itch he needed to scratch. He soon realized the only way he could satiate his irritation was to build a custom Mitsubishi. Soon, he had an '88 Mitsubishi Macro Cab to play with and found the results of his labors immediately soothing. As everyone who's into minis knows well, finding a Macro Cab in any sort of decent shape is almost impossible, and Joseph knew it, too. After building a '91 GMC Sonoma, he was prepared to build a truck with flair and would be able to bypass much of what most customizers struggle with during their buildup process. Over the course of the next two years, Joseph built one of the finest Mitsubishis this magazine staff has ever laid eyes on. From the truck's phantom billet grille to its molded tailgate skin and roll pan and all points in between, this is one mini you have to see to fully appreciate. Follow along and check out this Jalapeno Green beauty. We only hope we've captured enough of its badness to do it justice!
Owner: Joseph Benne
Ride: '88 Mitsubishi Mighty Max Macro Cab
Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Club: Negative Camber
The Lowdown
Wheels/Tires Front 17x7-inch Boyd Coddington Harm 6 billet wheels / 6-1/2-inch backspacing / 205/40R17 tires/ rear 18x8-inch Boyd Coddington Harm 6 billet wheels / 6-1/2-inch backspacing / 225/40R18 tires
Suspension Front Belltech shocks / Firestone airbags / SMC valves / rear Custom two-link / adjustable wishbone link / Firestone airbags / SMC valves / Belltech shocks / bridge notch / work performed by Konfused Customs in Mississippi
Chassis Detailed and painted / body dropped 4-1/2 inches
Body Modifications Shaved door handles / shaved bed seams / shaved taillights / shaved tailgate handle / shaved third brake light / shaved antenna / shaved interior back cab wall / shaved body lines in hood / smoothed and tubbed bed floor / recessed fuel filler in bed / Hagan 6-inch LED taillights / molded tailgate skin / molded steel roll pan / molded Mitsubishi Eclipse hood bubble / Toyota 4x4 front bumper and molded lower valance / polished phantom billet grille / polished billet bumper insert / work performed by Westport Customs in St. Louis, Missouri
Paint DuPont Jalapeno Green Base / House of Kolors Orion Silver flames / painted by owner and Steve's Custom Paint of St. Louis, Missouri
Interior '95 Grand Am bucket seats / smoothed and painted dash / gray tweed and gray leather seats / tweed headliner / Auto Meter gauges / smoothed dash vents / color-matched interior items / Interior by O.P.K. and Allen Callender
Engine/Performances Rebuilt 2.6L '88 four-cylinder / Weber Outlaw carburetor / ceramic-coated PaceSetter header / polished valve cover / miscellaneous polished items / handmade brackets / Optima battery
Special Thanks Westport Customs / Florrisant Auto Paints / The NC Brotherhood / Joseph's girlfriend Kim