2001 Chevy Silverado - The Awakening

Waking up under the cold, stale lights of a hospital room may have been the last thing that Pat McGonigal wanted to do. For his wife and children, however, it was not only heaven-sent, it was a day they had looked forward to for several long months. For the previous eight weeks, doctors had tried to stay optimistic as Pat lay quietly under the dark fog of an accident-induced coma. None of them were quite sure of how long he would remain in that state, but when his eyes finally began to open, they knew that the worst was behind them. As family members filtered through with smiles and words of love, Pat's brother came with an additional present. Excitedly, he moved a glossy picture of a 'bagged and body-dropped Chevy past the racks of IVs and into the hands of his recovering brother. Pat stared at the image, trying to put the pieces together, and with a slightly perplexed look, he asked, "What is it?" The answer was simple and sincere: "Pat, it's your truck. MIC finished it. It's all done and sitting at SEMA."

Ten months prior, Pat had dropped his '01 Chevy Silverado off at Master Image Customs in Mission Viejo, California, for a complete overhaul. The truck had previously been lowered with a static drop and shaved by Juan and the crew at All Body in his hometown of Bakersfield, but Pat and MIC had lower plans for his truck.

MIC started by performing a stock-floor body drop, which allowed the rockers to sit 3-1/4 inches lower. The next step was to remove the stock spindles and springs up front. A set of Firestone 'bags replaced the springs, and DJM spindles were used to connect the control arms together on each side. Out back, the leaf springs were removed and a KP Components four-link was bolted on. A bridge was welded up above the rear axle, and Firestone 'bags and shocks were mounted to each side. To allow the rear to suck up properly, an MIC 8-inch step notch replaced a portion of the rear framerails, and the bed floor was measured and cut. The 'bags were plumbed using 1/2-inch line through SMC valves and filled via two MIC compressors that were mounted in the bed. A staggered set of 20- and 22-inch Lexani Slate wheels were wrapped in Nitto rubber and bolted onto each corner to finish it off.

To give the truck some added horsepower a trio of performance accessories was installed. The stock intake was removed and replaced with a K&N intake and filter. Below the truck, a custom 3-inch exhaust was bent up and stuffed with Flowmaster mufflers. To improve the engine tune, a Hypertech Power Programmer was hooked up to the OBDII plug and allowed to run its course. To brighten up the engine compartment, a Trenz billet dress-up kit was added along with a little color, thanks to a new Optima battery.