In order to keep mini-truck enthusiasts up to date on the myriad things happening in our sport from month to month on an inside angle, we present Inside Out. This forum is directly aimed at keeping our readers informed about items pertaining to the aftermarket as well as providing a vital link to what's happening at World Mini Truckin' Headquarters. This way, you'll know a little more of what's happening in our sport from an angle seldom seen.
Mini Truckin's Project Update
Recently, we informed you of a '02 Nissan Frontier Desert Runner Supercharged V-6 buildup that we'd be beginning here in the pages of Mini Truckin'. True to our word, you'll be able to find the first two articles on the action we're taking to lay the 4x4-chassied truck on the ground and show you some of the most radical tricks ever performed on a brand-new ride. As of now, we have named the truck Project Desert Dragger. From now until we're ready to take the truck to the 2003 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, you'll be the captive audience of everything we do to transform the truck. Special thanks at this early stage in the buildup goes to Suspension Dimension, Mac's Springs, Intro Wheels, Chassis Tech, and Viair Corporation. You don't want to miss a single installment of our buildup of this never-done-before truck, so make sure you don't miss a single issue. For more information, check out the first article on Project Desert Dragger that entails the removal and replacement of the truck's front frame clip with an '87 Hardbody section. Further into this issue, you'll find another installment that shows the best way to 'bag a Hardbody, but we're actually laying out the Frontier's swapped front clip. Find the sources listed in each article to find out more about the products and services we're using to make the radical transformations and improvements to Nissan's newest mini-truck.
Un Ranger Con Cuatro Puertas
People in South and Central America have long known that crew cab compact pickups make more sense than regular and extended-cab models - they've been driving them for decades. Now on sale in Mexico is the new-for-'02 Ranger Crew Cab. It's not all that new, since this Argentinean-built four-door Ranger has been on sale in that country as the Doble for years, but it is the first crew cab Ranger to go on sale in North America. The Mexican version of the Argentinean Ranger Crew Cab comes powered by the same 135hp 2.3L DOHC four that's the base powerplant in U.S. Rangers, a 4x4-appearance package, and LT235/75R15 tires. It's built to be bashed around unfinished roads and get work done. We expect the slow migration of the Ranger Crew Cab to continue into the United States and Canada, but don't expect the it here until Ford builds the body in the U.S. - and that could be a couple years away yet.
Fresh Tacos Anyone?
Recently, we were informed that Brandt Fuqua recently sold his '98 Tacoma (MT June '02, "A Taco Supreme") and is in the process of building another Tacoma. This time around, he is toying (pun intended) with a Tacoma standard cab that, from the looks of his early rendering, should be turning heads and causing whiplash for a lot of onlookers. We'll do our best to keep you up to speed on his progress. For now, we will just drool over his rendering.
www.browsinaround.com.org
www.firstclassauto.com/project/2002-S10.htm Check out First Class Auto's whickety-whack '59-'02 S-10 hybrid. We smell a cover comin' on.
www.macssprings.com Check out the world's largest supplier of airbags, direct from Firestone and other fine manufacturers.
www.tentencustompaint.com Joel Stevens' sick paint styling from Sin City, Las Vegas.
www.mussomotorsports.com Another 'Vegas shop, but Joe and his crew specialize in one-off extreme style. Check it out.
Web Site Of The Month:
www.teamsynergysd.com This group, originally from Ramona, California (San Diego), has been hitting the show scene hard since they were founded in September of 1999. Check out its cool site and give the members the props they deserve.