Some childhood memories are lost with whatever toy came in the cereal box that month, while others take a place up on a metaphorical brain mantle. For Aaron Metzler, one memory that lingered like a bad fever was his dad's old '71 Chevy truck. As he got older he realized that the only way to cure his fever was to get a Chevy of his own.
Six years ago Aaron turned 16. Just a few months before his birthday he spotted a '69 Chevy truck around the corner from his house. The truck wasn't in the best of shape-it was suffering from an identity crisis due to the fact it was sporting a '67 GMC grille. But the price was right, and Aaron was eager to get started on a project, so the '69 was headed to the Metzler driveway.
First, though, the kinks had to be worked out. At times it seemed as if the truck had an electrical mind of its own, so the first chore was for Aaron and his dad, Eric, to tackle the electrical system and rewire the truck. Next, the tired, old 327 was yanked from the engine bay. Although Eric may have gotten rid of his '71 Chevy years ago, one thing he did have besides memories was the original 350 motor that was in his truck, which he gladly handed over to Aaron. Before the engine was dropped in, Eric and Aaron had the motor bored 0.30 over. Then the two of them assembled the freshly milled block with new 70cc Chamber heads, an Edelbrock Air Gap intake manifold, and an Edelbrock 750-cfm carburetor. They also threw on a K&N air filter, DynoMax headers, and Billet Specialties valve covers. Once complete, the motor was dropped in place. Now the problem was that the rest of the drivetrain wasn't up to par, in terms of keeping up with a 370hp small-block. To correct that, the TH350 tranny was rebuilt by Wilson's Performance Transmission with a B&M converter and a 2,500-stall speed. Then a new PowerTrax 10-bolt with a no-slip differential was installed. Next up, the chassis was due for an upgrade. The stock front suspension was tossed in favor of a donor frontend from an '86 Chevy truck. At this time they also dropped the front end down 4 inches and added a factory front sway bar for those winding roads. At that point things were set. The Chevy became Aaron's mode of transportation.
During Aaron's senior year of high school the truck was hit in the parking lot. Seeing that the old Chevy was going to need a fair amount of work, Aaron decided that this was the time to activate his master plan. The Chevy was taken to Campa Custom Paint and Body in Visalia, California. The first order was to fix the collision work. Then Aaron had them shave the tailgate and mold in a roll pan. Next, he had them shave the front marker lights. Lastly, the truck had to be painted. Aaron had the perfect color in mind: Pontiac Salsa Red.
On the inside, Aaron and his dad made their own instrument cluster out of poplar wood. In the middle of the cluster is an Oakley sunglasses crossbones logo with its eyes drilled out to hold LED turn-signal indicators. The rest of the cluster is comprised of Auto Meter gauges. X-Klusive Customz in Visalia handled the stitching. X-Klusive covered the seats and door panels in black tweed with red-stitched flames. A Billet Specialties wheel and Pioneer sound system make up the rest of the interior. Because Aaron has gone off to college, the truck is no longer his daily driver. But you can be sure that when he's in town the truck gets driven daily!