Custom billet grilles are very popular on C1500 pickups like this black beauty owned by Anton Norac. The front bumper received a smooth cover. The 6/8 drop works great with the somewhat uncommon 18-inch wheels. The wheels are 8 inches wide in front and 10 inches wide in back. Tires sizes are 235/40R18 and 295/35R18. |
Most regularly driven street trucks seem to work best with 17-inch-or-smaller wheels and tires. Eric Fifer has a 7/9 drop on his 1995 Chevy. The Boyds wheels are 17x8 with BFG 255/40ZR17 tires in front and 17x9.5 with 315/35ZR17 out back. The rear drop involves the use of dropped shackles, de-arched leaf springs, a C-notch, an axle flip kit, and custom airbags. |
Extended Cab pickups are extremely popular and command premium prices. Paint jobs on show trucks can be incredibly wild like the multicolor candy flame graphics over a lime-green base on Clint Petree&8217s 1993 Chevy C1500. The truck runs 20x8.5 Niche wheels on 45/40R20 and 285/35R20 Comp T/A tires. Every trick in the suspension book, including airbags, was used to obtain an 11/13 drop. |
It doesn&8217t take a lot of radical modifications to turn an 1988-1998 Chevy or GMC C1500 series pickup into an awesome ride. The right stance, wheels, and tires are key elements of a successful truck. Travis Noack nailed the combo on his 1990 GMC with a 6/8 drop, 17-inch American Racing Torque Thrust II wheels and Falken tires. A billet grille and bright red paint add to the visual appeal. |
Even a modest 3/4 drop with custom wheels and tires can make a huge improvement in a truck&8217s appearance. The Colorado Custom wheels are 17x8 with a 5-inch backspacing. All four corners use the same 255/50R17 tires. |
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Rear drops greater than 4 inches require a C-notch kit and a flip kit. The notch allows adequate axle clearance, and the flip kit moves the axle from below the leaf springs to above them. Lowered shocks must also be used. |
Typical components for a mild 3/4 drop include 2-inch-dropped spindles and 1-inch-dropped coil springs for the front. A 4-inch shackle and hanger kit was used in the rear. Lowered shock absorbers would be a good addition. |
The latest rage in radical lowering is to use airbags or air springs. The heavy-duty rubber bladders allow 4-6 inches of suspension travel. An onboard mini compressor supplies the air. |
To install a C-notch kit, you must cut out the notched section of the frame. This is an operation best left to an experienced chassis shop. A plasma cutter was used here for a clean, straight cut. |
Lowering a C1500 will improve its handling, but for optimum cornering, install a set of performance sway bars. The trucks didn&8217t come with a rear bar, so this 1-inch Belltech bar will help reduce body roll. The factory front bar should be replaced with the bigger 1-3/8-inch Belltech bar. |
Exhaust headers used with high-performance exhaust pipes and mufflers are a tried-and-true method of substantially increasing power. Systems that are designed for sport trucks take into consideration the trucks low stance. You dont want components hanging down where they can hit speed bumps. |
One variation on the C1500 body styles is whats known as a phantom dualie. An Extended Cab longbed truck, like this 1989 Chevy belonging to Siegfried Montaro Jr., gets 1-ton dualie rear fenders (or a complete box swap). Instead of the 1-tons dual wheels, phantom trucks use super-wide Pro Street tires. These 21.5x15 Mickey Thompson Sportsman tires are mounted on 18-inch-wide Budnik wheels. Its easier to get a 1/2-ton pickup super low than a true 1-ton. |
Maybe the '88 Chevrolet/GMC fullsize 1/2-ton pickups didn't launch the sport truck phenomenon, but they sure ignited the afterburners.
If any one truck can be credited with solidifying America's fascination with modified pickups, it's the '88 Chevy/GMC C/K series. The totally redesigned trucks were a major improvement over the previous generation of GM trucks. The '87-and-earlier trucks were refined versions of the truck that first appeared in 1973. A lot had happened during the intervening years. Competition was strong for trucks that could be driven like cars, and Chevrolet was falling behind Ford in the quality and comfort categories, but the new truck quickly put Chevy back at the head of the pack.
Consumer response to the new trucks was very strong. Aftermarket manufacturers were behind '88 GM pickups from the very start. The ready availability of suspension, performance, and cosmetic parts was a win-win situation. Truck owners had lots of great parts for turning nice factory trucks into great sport trucks. Manufacturers had an enthusiastic customer base that improved business and led them to offer even more parts.
All this Chevy truck activity was a boon to Sport Truck magazine. A red '88 Chevy C1500 Sportside pickup was the cover truck of Sport Truck's premiere issue in November 1988. It was apparent to the decision makers at Petersen Publishing that the '88 C1500 had tremendous potential. Fullsize '88-'99 C/K GM pickups have appeared on more covers of this magazine than any other truck. These trucks appear so frequently because they're incredibly popular. The trucks have provided lots of great editorial copy and attracted plenty of advertisers eager to reach truck owners.
As great as the '88-'99 C/K pickups were and are, the new '99 Silverado pickups are even better. That's great news for everyone. People who can afford a brand-new Silverado will be very pleased with the improved engines, brakes, comfort, quality, and safety. Buyers of used '88-'99 C/K trucks should get better prices because of all the advancements, but we don't expect prices to drop drastically. Tremendous popularity and the increasing prices of the new trucks will keep used-truck prices pretty constant.
Some excellent news for people looking to buy relatively new C/K trucks with reasonable miles and good care is the availability of lease-return trucks. Due to mileage and damage penalties, there are lots of well-equipped, well-maintained trucks (usually with less than 50,000 miles) coming in off three-year leases. These trucks are still in excellent condition, but they're being traded in for new trucks. Chevy and GMC used mostly similar nomenclature with a few differences. Basically, there were three series: 1500 (1/2-ton), 2500 (3/4-ton), and 3500 (1-ton). Two-wheel-drive models (in all series) use the "C" prefix and four-wheel-drive models use the "K" designation.
Trucks with flared rear fenders and which were previously known as Stepsides are called Sportside trucks by Chevrolet and Wideside trucks by GMC. In ascending order of luxury, the three Chevy trim levels are called Cheyenne, Scottsdale, and Silverado.
This guide is a good starting point for learning more about '88-'99 C1500 pickups. Looking through a stack of back issues will provide you with a gold mine of ideas and technical information. A subscription to Sport Truck is the best way to keep learning about these all-star trucks.