Older Chevy Suburbans haven't typically been considered great material for attention-getting cruisers until recently. Along with the popularity of modern SUVs, vintage utility haulers are getting their share of what can only be described as a complete makeover. Creative car and truck enthusiast Mike Filion of Santa Ana, California, felt confident that he could turn a 67 Burb into a unique and stylish vintage SUV.
Mike studied the body lines before deciding how this could be accomplished. A plan was formulated long before he picked up a tool to chop and shorten his Burb. The goal was not only to create a cool cruiser, but also to showcase the considerable capabilities of his shop, Pro Design of Santa Ana.
What you see here is the result of a two-year commitment, creating one of the coolest Chevy Suburbans on the planet. Before you make the mistake of thinking that it's merely a tasty looking ride, check out the custom interior details that includes a solid Clarion sound system and an air-adjustable suspension system. These details will keep truck-lovin suburbanites interested to see how well the revitalized people-hauler catches attention moving through traffic.
Specifications
Drivetrain: An Engine Supply (Santa Ana, CA) Chevy 502ci big-block wears a Weiand manifold and blower, with an 850-cfm Holley carb tuned by John at C. J. Engineering. Spark to the 560hp engine is directed by an MSD ignition. Hedman headers evacuate spent gases through HPC-coated tubes. A GM Turbo 400 trans with a Doug Nash two-speed overdrive delivers torque to a Currie Enterprises Track 9 differential.
Chassis: The back half of the shortened chassis is fabricated from 2x5-inch rectangular tubing and designed by Pro Design. A custom fuel cell nestles between custom tubular rear trailing arms, also by Pro Design. Trac 9 disc brakes add the slow and whoa.
Wheels & Tires: Colorado Custom Apex billet mags front (18x8) and rear (20x13), BFGoodrich G-Force P245/40R18, 295/30R20.
Body: The top is chopped 2 inches through the glass and 2-1/2 inches have been taken from the roof crown. Mike "Tex" Wyatt and Mike Filion, a.k.a. the Night Crew, performed the majority of the body mods at Pro Design. The rear section is shortened 10 inches. The door handles, key locks, body moldings, rain gutters, and hood emblems have all been shaved. The hood has a Buick Grand National hoodscoop grafted into the center. The rear wheelwells are re-contoured, and the rear corner has a larger radius to match the area around the custom-fabricated taillamp lenses. The split Dutch doors in the rear were created using Hagan hidden hinges. The front windshield, side glass, and rear hatch glass are flush-mounted. Custom headlight buckets are CNC machined by Pro Design. Custom roll pans are found at the front and rear.
Paint: Elio of Diamond Coats in Santa Ana, California, sprayed the PPG custom-mixed Green and Tan paint. Pinstripes were laid down by Mike Lake from Splash.
Interior: Tan leather by Willis at Bills Auto Interior covers the Glide Engineering bucket seats and interior panels, including a custom headliner. A stretched 8-inch 56 Ford pickup dash holds the instruments and the Clarion stereo unit behind a Colorado Custom steering wheel. In the custom center console, theres also a DVD player and a VCR. The 1000-watt amps are mounted in the rear-most portion of the interior. Vintage Air keeps occupants chillin while cruisin the cool Burb.