David Drew’s SalinasBoys Customs–Built K10
By Rob Fortier – Photography by Tim Sutton
To say vintage 4x4s/SUVs are a new trend would be kind of naïve … but then again, if you’ve been following any of the larger auctions the last year or so, well, I digress! So, to be fair, let’s just say they’re a new trend to CTP!
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This one in particular, David Drew’s ’72 K10, came to be after its owner, unimpressed with all the lowered C10s he’d been seeing, sought out an individual by the name of Cole Foster, local to him in Salinas, California, to go the opposite direction—up!
Given new life by Foster’s SalinasBoys Customs back in 2021, the 11-month (to the day) project is a perfect example of Foster’s attention to fine details and craftsmanship complemented by daily driver attributes, if that makes sense (if not, look closer at the photos!), resulting in a concours-quality 4×4 David can, and does, put some serious miles on. This is not an auction-block piece of art, to say the least—it’s the perfect example of form equaling function.
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In January 2021, Foster was tasked with putting the SalinasBoys’ touch on David’s Chevy. Before New Year’s that same year, the black-on-black, LS-powered Chevy was hitting the streets—paved and unpaved—of Central California in absolute style. But Foster didn’t go it alone: along for the short ride was his longtime sidekick Job Stevens, who’s been a vital part of SalinasBoys Customs since day one, as well as David and Steve Drew. For paint, Unique Auto Body was commissioned to handle the House of Kolor black, while Howard’s Upholstery (both local Salinas businesses) took care of the full black leather interior.
Obviously, the K10 is no restoration, as the previously mentioned (and Holley-inducted) LS/4L80E suggest. The addition of 20-inch Weld wheels wrapped in 35-inch Toyos, Fox 2.0 Series piggyback shocks, Wilwood brakes with Hydratech Hydroboost system, Classic Instruments retrofit gauges, and Vintage Air (both wired by Shaun Liddy) further attest to that fact as well. Once again, form equaling function in a gorgeous 4×4 package!
