Ever wanted a slice of Southern car culture from the US of A? Well look no further than this wild Chevy Silverado 3500 Dually that’s been slammed to the ground for… reasons. This style of truck is rare at the best of times in Australia because they were never sold here and only a handful were ever imported. How exactly this truck ended up here I don’t know but that’s irrelevant because seeing a modified dually with a full dual-cab chassis decked out like a modern luxury SUV ala Chevy Tahoe or Cadillac Escalade is unchartered territory for Motor Ex. Let’s talk about it.
I haven’t seen anything like this before and I honestly don’t know if I should love it or hate it. This style of truck in general, especially the single cab 454 SS version, is my favourite but this one straddles the line between tasteful and questionable. The big chrome wheels are actually quite conventional in their design, which I don’t mind, but holy hell do those thin strips of rubber concern me. The risk of kerbing the wheels or getting a puncture would be extremely high, so you have to ask – is it worth the trouble? What’s more confounding is that the owner wants to use it as a truck – putting stuff in the back and towing trailers with who knows what inside. Good luck with that mate.
One thing I absolutely cannot fault is the quality of the interior. It makes the standard truck look extremely cheap and highly dated. Chevy interiors of the 90s weren’t renown for their quality, looking more like something from a Fisher-Price toy car than a full-size automobile, so this upgrade was more than necessary. It really does look cosy and the tan leather seats combined with a dark military green work well. Some people go stupid when it comes to interiors but this one is rather inviting and by no means gharish. The dashboard is based on the original unit, so you still know you’re in a ’90s Silverado and not some modern SUV with “mood lighting” and an idiotic centre screen.
So what about the body colour? Does that send out the right message? OK well for starters it is not a factory colour, but that wouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. What does come as a surprise is the depth and flakes hidden within it. In no way does it seem offensive or sacrilegious towards the truck as a platform because it doesn’t scream “look at me, I’m important”. Dark green is a perfectly acceptable colour for a big truck like this and along with the various dashes of chrome, I don’t get a message of arrogance or brashful ignorance like that of a wannabe rap god. I also have to admit that the exhaust pipes out the side of the right arch flare is a neat touch.
Now at this point you’re probably wondering about the mechanicals of this beast – but does that really matter? No, because this truck isn’t about performance numbers. It’s not pretending to be something that it isn’t, which is more admirable than the effort put into this behemoth’s upgrade and restoration. Yes, I said restoration because this car was pretty much cooked in the beginning. Going from a wrecker to a total showstopper is quite the glow-up, thus ensuring that the chassis doesn’t rot and subsequently bite the dust. I cannot hate the truck for this reason, so it very much earns a pass in my eyes.
DevMacCars 