Custom 2001 Nissan Frontier - Something Different

As a child, Bryan Denton of Forney, Texas, had great inspiration in the custom car scene from his grandfather, who introduced him to custom rides at a very young age. By the time Bryan was 16, he had a ride of his own, a fullsize Chevy that had a few minor modifications. Then, one day, a friend of Bryan's started building a Ford Ranger and Bryan's love for minitrucks took off. Life for Bryan would never be the same again.

Bryan first sold his Chevy and replaced it with an Isuzu pickup. But after he began customizing it, he took notice of the Nissan Frontiers and quickly decided it was the ride for him. Shortly thereafter, he replaced the Isuzu with an '01 Frontier and immediately went to work. After taking possession of his new ride, Bryan noticed that someone else in his hometown also had a Frontier. Not wanting to be one-upped by the competition in town, Bryan set out to make sure everyone else in town knew which Frontier was his.

At first, the mods were simple: he lowered it, added a set of 17-inch wheels, and a few bolt-on items. But after noticing a few dents on the hood, a trip to Buster Paint & Body in Forney, Texas, would change that. Buster's repaired the dents, but didn't stop there. They also shaved the body smooth of many items, frenched the front license plate, and laid down a set of one-off, 13-color graphics over the PPG Bright Blue base. Bryan was off to a good start, but he wasn't about to leave well enough alone.

Bryan later returned his Frontier to Buster Paint & Body for the next round of work, which included a fast airbag setup, consisting of eight 3/8-inch Parkers valves, with air constantly being provided to the tank via two Viair 450 compressors, which were mounted underneath the bed. The rear frame section was also rebuilt, and it now is home to a one-off custom bridge and a front bed support. Buster's also ditched the front stock suspension and rear-end, and used models from a '95 Toyota pickup instead.

The customization didn't stop there, as the Hack Shack was called in to handle the interior makeover. Here, one will find charcoal leather seats with China Blue suede inserts, which have been stitched in a basket-weave pattern. A color-matched dash and door inserts, along with a BAD Wraith steering wheel can also be found there. While still in the Hack Shack's hands, Bryan had a custom stereo installed, using a Jensen head unit, which feeds beats to two Kicker 8-inch competition subs, as well as a Pioneer Cross-Fire component set. The entire stereo is powered generously by Kicker amplifiers, which gives everyone notice when Bryan is cruising the streets of Forney.

Finally, the 17-inch wheels were scrapped and replaced with 18x8 Motegi DV5s, wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza rubber. While sometimes stressed during the build, Bryan said that seeing his visions and dream come to life, while building his Frontier, was by far the best experience of the entire process. As Bryan stated, "Customizing your ride can be the most fun and the most stressful thing you can do." By the way his Frontier looks today, the stress was definitely worth it.

THE LOWDOWN

Rolling Attire
Wheels: 18x8 Motegi DV5
Tires: 225/40R18 Bridgestone Potenza

Chassis Modifications
Suspension type: Air
Front suspension: '95 Toyota front clip grafted into frame
Rear suspension: '95 Toyota rear end with chrome triangulated four-link
Airbag/cylinder type and size: 2600 Contitech
Control arms: Stock Toyota
Spindles/springs: Belltech drop spindles
Shocks: Toxic Shocks painted black with blue flake
Valves: Eight 3/8-inch Parkers
Compressors: Two Viair 450s
Air line: 1/2 -inch
Air/hydro accessories: EAI chrome nine-switch box
Frame mods: Triangle step-notch, relocated fuel cell; air tank and compressors custom mounted to the frame
Gas tank: 22-gallon RCI fuel cell
Brakes: Cross-drilled rotars in front
Detail work: Rear frame painted black with blue flake; chrome four-link
Misc.: Custom chrome bridge and front bed support
Performed by: Buster Paint & Body Forney, Texas. All Air Ride parts were provided by Hack Shack, Garland, Texas.

Body Modifications
Shaved: Hood emblems, front license plate, third brake light, gas door, taillights, tailgate, roll pan, hood squirters, and roof rack
Frenched: Front and rear license plates
Front end: Frenched license-plate box
Back end: Fully smoothed out
Taillights: 13-inch LEDs
Exterior bolt-ons: Billet grille insert and bumper inserts, billet license-plate frames
Misc.: Inside of the bed was smoothed out; molded fender well tubs
Performed by: Buster Paint & Body
City/state: Forney, Texas

Paint
Brand and colors: PPG Bright Blue
Style: Graphics
Airbrushing: 13-color graphic layout on the hood
Misc.: Color-matched door handles, windshield wipers, and wiper cowl
Performed By: Buster Paint & Body
City/state: Forney, Texas

Interior
Seats: Charcoal leather with China Blue suede inserts in a basket weave pattern
Material: Leather and suede
Dash: Color-matched a/c and instrument bezels
Door panels: Color-matched inserts
Flooring: Charcoal carpet, installed by Kenneth McCay and Owner Bryan Denton
Headliner: Gray vinyl
Gauges: Indiglow blue with billet panel, installed by Owner Bryan Denton
Misc.: BAD Wraith steering wheel, installed by Owner Bryan Denton
Performed by: Hack Shack
City/state: Garland, Texas

Stereo
Head unit: Jensen VM9020TS Multimedia System
Mids and highs: Pioneer Cross Fire components 5-1/4 in front, 6-1/2 in rear
Amplifier for mids and highs: Kicker
Subwoofers: Two 8-inch Kicker Competition VR
Amplifier for subwoofers: Kicker
Performed by: Mark at Hack Shack
City/state: Garland, Texas

Special Thanks From Owner:
To Big Charles, 'Lil Charles, Uncle Robert, Randy, Bobby and Allan at Buster's; Jay, Matt, Andy, Hector, Mark and Adam at the Hack Shack; "The Geno", C.J., Donald, Dirty Sanchez, everyone from Outlandish Trends, and Kenneth McCay.