Steve's 1952 Chevy Truck
One of the coolest parts of a patina hot rod is the visible history. The scars and oxidized paint that come from a long life well lived are on full display. Combine that with the obvious worry-free nature of an already imperfect paint job and it’s not hard to understand why cars and trucks like Steve Silva’s ’52 Chevy are so popular.
For Steve, there’s a lot of personal history visible on this truck in addition to the sun-baked perfection on the outside. To really understand all the neat and unexpected details, we have to start with Steve. His dad was a hard-working mechanic who could fix anything. His shop, Mac’s Garage, was the destination for anyone in need of a repair, whether it was an engine that wasn’t running right, an automatic transmission in need of a rebuild, or even a busted washing machine. He was even known for helping out the neighborhood kids with repairs to their bicycles. Steve and his brothers grew up in the shop and learned how to turn wrenches from their dad. Steve would go on to take over the business in the late 70’s and continued his dad’s legacy of treating people right and fixing anything that needed it. See that lettering on the doors of Steve’s truck? That’s no fictional shop, it’s a multi-generational family business.
Mac’s Garage also ran a wrecker service, dragging in roadside casualties from nearby Route 66. This led to a surplus of early iron that provided Steve and his brothers plenty of candidates for their teenage hot rods and customs. One particularly memorable creation belonged to Steve’s brother Joe. He put together a ’54 Ford with a dual quad 392 Hemi that made for one mean hot rod. You might not expect to see an early Hemi in a Chevy truck, but Steve never forgot that swapped Ford from his youth, so he sought one out for his truck. This one is a 325-incher from a ’56 Dodge. Steve rebuilt it and topped it with two Holley 4-barrels, just like brother Joe’s wicked Ford from all those years ago.
Decades spent working in the shop has made Steve into a pretty remarkable builder. In fact, his friends call him “Mr. Gadget” because he can figure out how to fix or fabricate anything. Check out that dashboard. It’s out of a ’61 Imperial and has been sliced and diced to fit. But that’s not the amazing part. Steve made the stock push-button transmission controls work with the truck’s 4L60 transmission. How cool is that?
Steve’s fabrication skills were also applied to the truck’s original chassis. A Nova front clip was welded up and the 9-inch rear hangs from a triangulated 4-link built by Steve. RideTech airbags handle the stance, and it rolls on 17-inch Torq Thrust II’s from American Racing. Steve even made up his own disc brake kit for the front using 12-inch rotors from a Cadillac and calipers from a Ford Expedition.
One of our favorite details on Steve’s truck are the ’49-’50 Oldsmobile turn signal bezels tucked under the headlights. Like everything else on this truck, there’s a story here. When he was a little kid, Steve remembers being at a football game and seeing a truck in the parking lot that had been modified by the local custom shop. It had those neat Oldsmobile turn signal bezels under the headlights and Steve never forgot it. Years later, he hunted down a set to use on his own truck.
Remarkably, Steve’s truck has been on the road for 16 years now. He’s been everywhere in it, logging over 50,000 trouble free miles. After we shot these photos at the Goodguys Southwest Nationals in Scottsdale, Steve and his daughter took the scenic route home to New Mexico and swung by the Grand Canyon on the way. Steve’s not afraid to drive this thing anywhere and has made too many road trips to Goodguys and NSRA shows to even count. He’s driven it to Bonneville and on Power Tour and Americruise. Even when Steve isn't out on the road with his truck, his road warrior is still in the public eye at good friends James Bozo and Anna Cordova's Route 66 Auto Museum in Santa Rosa, New Mexico.
There’s plenty of history visible in this truck’s funky exterior. There’s even more personal history baked into it by one thoughtful and talented builder. And it’s making more history every day, as Steve continues to roll on the miles and add to the story of his one-of-a-kind hot rod pickup.