Usually, when you see a full-custom truck, the owner is more likely to stick it up on a trailer before he's ever willing to drag his pride and joy down the street to throw a few sparks. Of course, that isn't the case with all truck owners. Brian Brubaker from Heiskell, Tennessee, breaks the mold and isn't one to back down from any challenge, especially if it involves railing his truck. Over the last 16 years, he's owned several trucks, including a body-dropped '94 Ford Splash that turned more than a few heads almost 10 years ago.
Back when Brian bought the Toyota in July of 2002, it already had quite a bit of work done to it. The previous owner, Martin Terry, had taken it to The Drop Shop in Pikeville, Kentucky, to get the truck 'bagged as well as complete a 2-3/4-inch body drop. Each of the doors were pulled off at Kustomwerks in Memphis and suicided. The first thing Brian wanted to change, though, was the wheels. With the help of his friend John Yoakum, the firewall was tubbed and the clutch master cylinder was relocated in order for the truck to lay out on a new set of 18-inch Enkei LM1s.
 The door handles, emblems,...  The door handles, emblems, antenna, hood squirters, and corner lights on the 4x4 front fenders were shaved and both doors were suicided by Kustomwerks in Memphis. |  |  In the engine bay of the truck,...  In the engine bay of the truck, a painted K&N filter system and TRD ceramic-coated headers provide a few extra horses while the Cool Flex upper and lower radiator hoses provide a little shine. A Hayden fan makes sure the truck stays cool as well. The factory battery location was moved and now houses an Optima Red Top. The 2-1/2-inch exhaust was raised and reworked for clearance by Brad Johnson at Muffler Pro in Clinton, Tennessee. |
Next, the attention was focused on the body of the truck. The gas door was shaved and relocated to the inside of the bed, while the entire bed received a custom-molded look. The tailgate was permanently welded up and a Cal Combo from Grant was added to clean up the rear end a little bit.
Once all of the bodywork was done, it was off to Gary's Body Shop in Clinton, Tennessee, to get the final touches worked out before the custom-mixed paint was sprayed. The paint was originally named Slut Red, but has become known as Arrest Me Red. As soon as the paint had dried, it was buffed to a shine, and the 4x4 front bumper, Trenz billet grille, and taillights from an '03 Tacoma were bolted on.
To rework the interior, Brian stripped out the already-tweeded dash and reinstalled a smoothed and painted one, complete with a shaved passenger airbag. The door panels, headliner, and rest of the interior pieces were also reupholstered, this time with bone Italian leather and a few accents in oatmeal tweed. The stock 'Yota seats were scrapped for a set of Saturn buckets that also received plenty of the bone leather.
Brian wants to point out that none of the work to his truck would be possible without the help of John and Heather Yoakum, Chris Covington, Dave and Dan at Machine Fab, Matt and Eric at Kustomwerks, Gary's Body Shop, L.A. Dave, Kevin Strunk, Darryl Ayers, and, of course, all his boys in Negative Camber.