An Unstoppable Chevy Silverado

I could only dream.

- This straight-axled beast of a Chevy Silverado is the personal plaything of Frank Bertao, owner of Full Throttle Suspension. You might recognize the Full Throttle name because its a company that specializes in fabricating hard-core lift kits for hard-core trucks. The crew at Full Throttle routinely performs straight-axle conversions using its own line of parts, and creating trucks that are not only tall, but capable. Full Throttle is just as adept at building IFS suspensions, although you will not find a hint of the factory IFS on Franks Chevy. Franks personal ride is the epitome of that passion: a standard cab pickup that towers above a set of 40-inch tires and is still agile enough to romp mercilessly through the dirt, crushing everything in its path with the strength of a rhino.

We admit that the first time we saw this truck, we pegged it as just another big, lifted disco truck that would fall on its face the first time it hit the dirt. Boy, were we ever wrong. Frank takes great joy in driving this rig from his hometown of Bakersfield, California, to not-so-nearby Pismo Beach for long weekends of climbing the dunes and running the hills. By the time we finished our photo shoot in Barstow, California, which coincidentally happened near the start/finish line of the MDR racecourse, a notoriously rough section of desert, Frank had proven us wrong by flogging his truck over and over again for our cameras. Credit the clean and well-designed suspension system that his company crafted for the truck's off-road prowess and durability. Let us take a look at how this truck gets it done. The first thing you should know is that this truck is lifted 18 inches front and rear from the factory ride height. This would seem to be an overabundance of lift, making for a gangly vehicle, but it is not. Full Throttle went the extra mile to add things such as antisway bars to keep the truck on all four wheels when roosting around obstacles in the dirt. The factory front and rear suspensions are a thing of the past; they were replaced with new axles, housings, and shocks.

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