2002 Dodge Ram

Dennis Phillips' motivation for building this spectacular sport truck is that he wanted to be one of the first to build a custom new-generation Dodge Ram 1500. Well, he did it. And he did it well. Kudos to this Stonewall, Mississippi-based sport trucker for going to the extremes required for the creation of this wild custom.

The frame-laying street presence comes from a full air suspension from Ekstensive Metalworks in Houston, Texas, and 22x9.5-inch Vision wheels fitted with 265/35R22 Pirelli tires. The truck floats on Firestone 'bags front and rear, with a two-link suspension design replacing the stock rear leaf-spring suspension. The system uses a 7-gallon air tank with 3/8-inch air lines and a compressor rated to 100 percent duty cycle. The air ride suspension is controllable via a remote.

Inside, Phillips and Sean Norcross built a custom console as part of an extensive redesign and mobile entertainment system. The system consists of an Alpine CVA 1005 head and CD-changer with a 500-watt Alpine MRV amplifier pushing the sound through a set of Alpine speakers and a JL Audio subwoofer as well as pair of headrest-mounted SAAV monitors for the visuals. The interior is finished with red- and gray-tweed vinyl with a Billet Specialties steering wheel topping the column.

Phillips, being the accomplished autobody and paint man that he is, reworked the shell of the Dodge. He shaved the gas door, the antenna, and the tailgate handle. Then he molded in a metal roll pan before squirting the whole shebang in a House of Kolor and Dupont Red, Silver, Yellow, and Orange tribal-flamed design.

As with all truly difficult projects, our hero sport truck builder had a lot of people helping him who deserve mention and thanks. Certainly his boss merits a thank you for the use of his shop, as well as his father for helping out. But surely the most important member of his team is his fiance Amanda, who was on the front lines and didn't complain about the hours and hours it takes to build a custom truck. With that level of commitment, she deserves more than a thank you, Dennis, she deserves her own custom truck.