If you worked at one of the most widely known custom wheel companies you probably wouldn’t drive an ordinary vehicle. Rick Jimenez shares that philosophy and daily drives a 1989 Chevrolet K30 which is far from stock. Working in the marketing department for American Force Wheels he sees custom vehicles every day making a truck with stock wheels abnormal.

Rick purchased the truck from Leon Matlock with the Duramax engine and Allison transmission already swapped with a lot of the upgrades. Originally it had a classic southern mud truck type of theme with a six-inch suspension lift and a three-inch body lift riding on 16×10 Mickey Thompson wheels wrapped in 38.5-inch mud boggers.

Even though it’s a very sought after square body Chevy he wanted the look to be his own. The three-inch body lift was removed and a new set of wheels and tires were installed. To match the classic lines of the truck and not go over the top he went with 22×14 American Force Legend SS8 and 375/45R22 Nitto Trail Grappler tires. Going to a smaller tire will also make towing duties much easier.

The engine has basic performance upgrades including a K&N air intake, MBRP three-inch downpipe and five-inch exhaust, EFILive tuning from PPEI, and an Airdog 165 4G fuel pump. Rick’s future performance plans include a compound turbo setup, Suncoast transmission, and a built engine with quality internals to support the power.

A painted roll pan helps smooth out the rear of the truck.

The front differential was swapped with a Dana 60 and lockers in the front and rear. A custom set of traction bars were also installed to keep things in place under hard acceleration as well as a transfer case brace from Merchant Automotive.

A lot has changed to improve seating comfort since 1989 and a set of front and rear seats from a 2006 Silverado were installed making long hauls to events and shows less back breaking. The dash looks original, but it’s actually from the same era truck and is fully functional.

The front end was blacked out for a cleaner look and keeping chrome to a minimum.

The A pillar is loaded up with a set of Glow Shift gauges to monitor temperatures when towing. Rather than keeping the stock shifter Fleece Performance supplied their tap shifter to give the driver full control of the transmission and allowing the engine to be in its power range when needed.

All of the exterior lighting was replaced, but the biggest improvement was bringing the headlights into the 21st century with a set of LED lights from Rigid Industries that are tucked behind a phantom grill. A large four-inch cowl hood allows hot engine bay air to escape and lower temps, but also adds a pretty mean look.

Overall this truck is very well built and should provide Rick with years of reliable transportation. Even though it has mud tires it’s doubtful you’ll see it running wide open in mud pits, but with a body this straight and mirror like black paint it’s understandable!