There is absolutely nothing normal about Las Vegas. Thus, it's only natural that the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show is held there, because there's nothing normal about the SEMA show, either. Well, unless you call donning your Sunday best and walking through 41 miles of aftermarket vendors normal. Of course, one of the most fascinating aspects of SEMA is the radical four-wheel-drive vehicles that are on display. Most often, these vehicles represent the latest in cutting-edge design and components. Some are visually bold, like a Vegas showgirl, while some are more docile, like a focused businesswoman in a business suit. In each case, though, they wouldn't be in Vegas if they weren't the Best of the Best.
Holding down the carpet at the Full Throttle Suspension booth was this tastefully done '03 Silverado. Under the hood, the 4.8L engine has been topped with a Whipple twin-screw supercharger that helps it produce a dyno-proven 408 hp at 5,400 rpm and 427 lb-ft of torque at 3,200 rpm. Up front, a Dana 44 axle replaces the stock IFS, and it's supported, like the rear, by a Full Throttle 18-inch four-link suspension system. King 14-inch-travel, remote-reservoir coilover shocks are mounted to custom shock hoops. Both axles are stuffed with Detroit Lockers and 4.88:1 Precision Gears. Further, the rear axle has been treated to a Full Throttle Suspension factory disc-brake conversion. The truck rides on 39x16.5-18 Mickey Thompson Baja Belted tires mounted on 16.5x14 Weld Mountain Crusher wheels.
Rock buggies had a strong presence at the show, and one of them was at the Nitto Tire exhibit. It's a Poison Spyder creation that is powered by a 740hp General Motors ZL engine. This 454ci engine is topped with a Speed Marine 502 intake and features multi-port fuel injection. The engine is mated to a heavily modified Turbo 400 transmission and an Atlas II transfer case. Custom driveshafts with 1410-series U-joints carry power to Poison Spyder Advantage axles that feature a number of cool upgrades, including custom 40-spline axleshafts. A front Detroit Locker and a rear spool guarantee that all four 40-inch Nitto tires mounted on 22-inch wheels get torque.
Axis Sport Tuning displayed this absolutely awesome Nissan Pathfinder Armada. It features an AEM Brute Force air intake, PIAA fog, driving and pencil-beam lighting, a Twisted Tin external rollcage and front bumper, Warn 9.5ti winch and paint by Wet Works. James Chen, President of Axis, says that the custom suspension lift was created using Bilstein coilover shocks modified with Toyota Tundra-application Eibach ERS springs. The Armada rides on Toyo 325/60-20 Open Country tires on 20x10 Axis Warlock beadlock-style wheels.
One Up Offroad created this insane '99 Super Duty. The truck features an unbelievable number of unique mods, including what builder Dave Hoppert calls a crossmember cradle. This unit mounts to the bottom of the center frame section and provides mounting for the Profab monster truck-style transfer case as well as the front and rear radius arms. The aluminum transfer case not only features quick-change gearsets, but it also lowers the drivelines 12 inches to help eliminate the sharp angles associated with the truck's massive custom lift. Speaking of suspension, the front is comprised of a custom bolt-in three-link system with King coilover shocks that creates more than 12 inches of wheel travel. Much of the rear lift is created by a newly designed patent-pending traction block system that works in conjunction with Superlift 8-inch lift rear leaf springs to improve ride and flexibility. Exterior mods include graphics by Custom Graphic Services in Bend, Oregon and an Offroad Tech Max Duty winch bumper.
Bully Dog Technologies designed this outrageous '03 Ford Super Duty diesel pickup, which they call Bulled Elegance: The Ultimate Tail Gate Party Concept Vehicle. The Alten Company-built truck was the winner of the prestigious Ford Design Award. Some of its most noteworthy features include a custom extended cab, which makes it a six-door Crew Cab, gobs of Bully Dog diesel performance parts--as well as propane and nitrous injection to help it generate 499 hp and 913 lb-ft of torque--and a Kelderman air-ride suspension system. Its most amazing feature is its hydraulically operated fold-down bedsides and tailgate and three-post electric lift tonneau cover, which open to reveal a bed covered in leather, two rear window-mounted 17-inch flat-screen televisions and MTX surround-sound speakers. Finally, it features a swing-out bed-mounted barbeque grill and cooler.
The guys at L&G worked their magic on this righteous new F-150, and it has us drooling. Its long list of specs includes a CST suspension with Sway-A-Way remote-reservoir coilover shocks in front and remote-reservoir shocks in the rear, 37x12.50-17 BFG Baja T/A tires and Walker Evans 17x9.5 beadlock wheels. The front and rear fenders were widened by 4 inches, a Street Scene fiberglass hood, front valance and rollpan were bolted on, and the whole truck was sprayed House of Kolor Yellow. The bed cage/tire carrier, front bumper and interior cage was fabbed by Custom Truck Shop. Finally, the interior was decked out with a full audio/video system, Carullo seats and a GPS unit.
It's not often we see built Rangers, so this one at the MTX Audio booth caught our eye. It's been fitted with a 6-inch Superlift suspension system, custom FST front shock hoops to handle Bilstein long-travel shocks, custom FST through-the-bed shock hoops to handle a pair of long-travel rear Bilstein shocks, 33-inch-diameter BFG Mud-Terrain tires, 15x8 Weld Stonecrusher wheels, FST bumpers and rollbar, Galls lightbar, eight KC lights and a Warn 9500 winch. As you can imagine, it's also a rolling showplace for MTX Audio, and it's packed with a large number of their earth-shaking audio components as well as a number of Icon TV monitors.
Liberty And Functionality For All
Front and center in the Mopar Speedshop was this Common Rail Diesel (CRD)-powered Liberty. This torquey little SUV has been stripped of all girlie stuff, like carpet, leather seating and alloy wheels. Upgrade highlights include a top-of-the-line GPS navigation system, a canvas roof with full-length sliding panel, four vinyl-trimmed bucket seats, 9,000-pound-capacity winch, radical steel bumpers and 16x8-inch cast-aluminum beadlock wheels with 315/75R16 Goodyear Wrangler Mud-Terrain tires.