Custom 1998 Isuzu Hombre - Fun Bags

Senility hits hard when it hits the young. It hits especially hard when you go through all the trouble of finding the owner of a great custom truck, arrange a photo shoot for the truck, make the deal happen, and then misplace the photos for a couple of years. Man, does that hurt. This is one feature truck that has been a long time coming. Sport Truck photographed it back in 2002 but just now found the film and got around to putting it into print. Better late than never, right? We hesitated to even print the photos, since we were so tardy, but changed our minds because the truck is an Isuzu, which is the much cooler and younger brother to the Chevy S-10-and something you don't see every day. Custom Hombres are hard to come by, so why waste a good thing? We tried to contact the truck's owner, Jeff Callahan, but since our information is almost as old as that Vanilla Ice CD we found in the used music bin of our local record store, the digits just didn't work. Oh well, someone will tell him his Hombre is here, even if he doesn't own it anymore. Here are the particulars.

Jeff built this truck for a couple of valid reasons. First off, he knew he could accomplish much of the custom work and fabrication himself, and who wouldn't love the sense of pride that comes with such a monumental accomplishment as putting together a truly custom truck? Second, Jeff is a member of a world-famous custom truck club called Negative Camber, which means that he's been into the custom truck scene long enough to know that driving and dragging a rad ride usually attracts prime examples of the fairer sex. Armed with those two motivating factors, Jeff set out to restyle his Hombre. Much of the work required to make this truck both attractive and functional hinged upon creating just the right stance, whether the truck is parked or throwin' sparks. Jeff accomplished both by tossing the factory front coil springs in the trash and replacing them with Firestone airbags and relocated shocks. The rear suspension was stripped of several leaf springs, Chassis Tech lowering blocks were added to position the axle 4 inches upward, and another set of 'bags was added for adjustability. The result is a suspension that isn't great for burnouts but one that will set the framerails on the ground and tuck a good portion of 20-inch Vision rims.

The rest of the restyling equation leans heavily on the tribal flame paint and custom body mods. Again, Jeff went with the DIY theme by tackling most of the work himself. He crafted the custom bedcover, wrapped the interior in two-tone tweed, and installed a boomin' audio system. Gooby's Body Shop in Tempe, Arizona, was responsible for shaving the exterior and laying down the House of Kolor and PPG paint hues that create the striking graphic package. We think you'll dig the pinup girl smokin' the stogie on the tailgate of Jeff's truck. And just to round out an already impressive list of custom touches, Jeff hopped up the anemic 2.2L four-banger engine with products from STS Specialties, Flowmaster, JET, and Centerforce for a truck that not only looks trick but one that can get to the action in a hurry.

The 411

Owner/hometown: Jeff Callahan / Tempe, Arizona

Year/make/model: '98 Isuzu Hombre

Engine/drivetrain: 2.2L four-cylinder / five-speed manual / STS Specialties air intake tube / Flowmaster 2.5-inch stainless steel exhaust system / STS pulleys / JET Stage 2 computer chip / Centerforce Stage 3 clutch / 3.73 limited slip

Wheels/tires: 20x8.5-inch Vision 528 / 255/35ZR20 Yokohama AVS

Suspension: (Front) Belltech 2-inch drop spindles / Firestone 2500 airbags / (Rear) Chassis Tech 4-inch lowering blocks / Firestone 2500 airbags / Chevy S 10 rear antisway bar / 3/8-inch Norgren solenoid valves

Fabricator: Jeff Callahan

Body Mods: Trenz billet grille / Cal-Vu mirrors / custom-built tonneau cover / AIM Industries roll pan / shaved antenna / tailgate

Bodywork: Gooby's Body Shop, of Tempe, Arizona

Custom Paint: PPG Blue and House of Kolor Platinum Pearl by Camal Gooby

Interior: '95 Honda Civic bucket seats / MOMO steering wheel / dark-gray tweed inserts

Upholsterer: Jeff Callahan

Audio/video: Kenwood KUT-910 CD head unit / 10-disc changer / 6.5-inch in dash monitor / Sony PlayStation game console / Diamond Audio HEX 4.5-inch dash speakers / Diamond Audio 6.5-inch door speakers / four Diamond Audio12-inch subwoofers in a custom bed-mounted enclosure with a blow-through hole into the cab / Kenwood KACX401M and X501F amplifiers / Stinger wiring and circuit breaker

Installer: Jeff Callahan