Carmakers sell millions of vehicles every year. Thus, it is no wonder that new cars roam the roads, laden with new features and technologies meant to make the journey from one point to another a more meaningful. Nonetheless, not all cars on the road are new, others are just ancient.
Some of these old have gone beyond the usual vehicle life cycle and managed to stay healthy and drivable. Interestingly, quite a number of vehicles remained alive for decades, with people dubbing them as classic cars.
Because these cars are too old, they may not be suitable enough to take their acts to the road. They may need to overhaul or swap their engines, as well as refurbish or restore both the exterior and the interior. Some of these classics were able to go beyond just refurbishment, thanks to resourceful gearheads.
This 1968 Chevrolet C10 is one of these classic vehicles that went beyond the typical restoration. After all, Rustomod Garage transformed it into an all-wheel drive 750-hp sleeper car while still retaining its classic appearance. This isn’t a simple feat, and yet someone managed to get it done.
Resurrecting A Dead Classic Truck As An AWD Sleeper
Based in Southern Maryland, Rustomod deviates from the usual and costly classic car restorations. In fact, it created its 1968 Chevrolet C10 AWD sleeper without using new parts. Somehow, these guys don’t love making their creations look brand new. Instead, they combine high-end restomods style builds and original-style patina cars – thus the name “Rustomod.”
Rustomod’s classic American sleeper is a product of reusing factory-engineered parts. The 54-year classic vehicle did need a lot of work and resources to bring back to life, and yet the entire project didn’t cost much since it wasn’t created from a custom chassis or high-end body work. Instead, the garage employed existing parts from dead vehicles to resurrect this rusted classic.
This C10 AWD sleeper isn’t the garage’s first project. Its previous projects were as interesting, such an old worn-out 1961 Rambler now featuring the suspension of an undesirable year Chevy C5 Corvette and an LS1 engine swap. Rustomod’s YouTube channel is essentially a chronicle of what it has been doing. The garage had built 1965 Ford F100 with a Cummins Diesel swap, which YouTuber That Dude In Blue once featured on his channel.
Starting A New Chevy Chassis Swap Project
Following the success of the previous C5 Corvette chassis swap, Rustomod decided it would be better to do another. However, following a debate among them, the garage decided not to pursue another Corvette chassis swap and try another build. Ken Block’s Hoonitruck gave them some inspiration, and the garage decided to do a turbo LS Chevy version for their 1968 Chevrolet C10.
Before proceeding with swap, the garage opted to do some homework first. They did some research and tried to find which chassis would perfectly fit under the C10. They chose a 2007 Cadillac Escalade as the best donor for the chassis, especially after finding out that the wheelbase of the Escalade is only an inch longer than that of the original short bed C10.
Thanks to their experience in doing chassis swaps, Rustomod completed the entire process in just a few weekends. They didn’t have major issues even when placing the C10 cab onto the frame of the Escalade. Nevertheless, the garage faced some challenges, so they could complete their build. For instance, Rustomod had to fabricate its own turbo kit, which took longer than swapping the C10 body onto the Escalade frame.
Once Rustomod completed turbo kit, everything else after were smooth sailing. The garage built the entire LS3 engine to prepare for the boost. To ensure that the transmission can better handle the increased power, the garage upgraded the unit to a 4l80e transmission.
A Sleeper C10 With More Power Than A Ram 1500 TRX
To give the Chevrolet C10 an AWD character, the garage employed a 2500 Silverado transfer case and left it in 4WD. In addition, the garage had to improve the safety of the C10 build, especially when the truck has become a 750-hp sleeper. To achieve this, they installed a full roll cage.
Moreover, the garage had to install aftermarket parts to solve a common issue in this kind of swaps. Lowering the C10 resulted in a very aggressive front camber, so the garage installed aftermarket control arms, which thankfully completely fixed the problems.
Rustomod regards this newly completed C10 project as one of the best vehicles they have ever built. After all, they managed to create a 750-hp AWD C10 from a rusty abandoned Chevy truck and a clapped-out junkyard Escalade chassis.
The garage has a number of projects on the line. It is a 1950 Willys Wagon with a Jeep Wrangler chassis swap and a VW Tdi engine. They are also planning to a 1959 Ford F250 “Sasquatch” Truck with Ford High Boy chassis and a 5.0 Coyote engine. Also on the horizon is a 1940s Dodge Power Wagon crew cab with H1 Humvee frame.
Source: Rustomod Garage