David’s career is in the automotive field. He makes cars go fast, and at 20 years old, it’s a pretty sweet way to make your living. Being surrounded by rides like that all day long, you’d think that he might drive something with 500-plus horses under the hood and a track-carving suspension, but instead, David wanted to build something different. Inspiration for that project came at the 2014 SEMA Show. Well, not all of the inspiration, we suppose, but we’ll get to that part soon enough.

“It was one of the first of its kind, what with the new body style and all that, and it looked pretty stellar laying on the concrete at the big show.”

Being in the industry himself, getting into the big show as a participant was no big deal. And while he was there, he saw an amazing red crew cab Chevy that was ’bagged on big wheels. It was one of the first of its kind, what with the new body style and all that, and it looked pretty stellar laying on the concrete at the big show. In fact, he liked the truck so much that he struck a deal with the owner, and soon he was taking it back to his home in Scottsdale, Arizona.

That’s when things got a bit complicated. Yes, the truck he bought was super cool, and it already had some cool things done to it. The problem was that it wasn’t all done very well. Now that’s to be expected to a certain point when you’re building the first truck of its kind within a tight deadline, but it wasn’t up to David’s high standards, so he decided it was time to tear it all down and start over.

Truck Specs:
Owner
David Ferrara

2014 Chevrolet Silverado

Scottsdale, Arizona

Engine

• 5.3l Chevrolet V-8
• K&N intake
• Custom exhaust
• Magnaflow mufflers
• Automatic transmission

Suspension

• Shop: Jeremy at Tre 5 Customs, Phoenix, AZ
• Stock floor body drop
• Airlift D2600 ’bags
• Fox RideTech shocks
• Michigan Metal Works spindles
• Michigan Metal Works control arms
• Five-lug conversion
• Bridge notch
• Motor and transmission moved up and back
• Accuair E-level

WHEELS & TIRES:

• 26X10 Intro ID331 billet wheels
• 295/40R26 Lionhart tires

Body & Paint

• Shop: Elite Automotive Finishes, Mesa, AZ
• Custom pearl white paint
• Vinyl graphics
• T-Rex grille
• Shaved gas filler
• Shaved third brake light
• Shaved bed caps
• Shaved front bumper
• Custom roll pan
• Limo tint
• Spyder headlights
• Spyder taillights
• Front tubbed fenders

Interior

• Shop: Unique Upholstery
• Stereo by John Trevino at Total Auto Pros
• Leather and suede upholstery
• Double diamond stitch pattern
• Pioneer head unit
• Hertz speakers
• 12-inch JL W7 subwoofers
• Custom subwoofer enclosure/console
• JL Audio amplifiers

So that’s what he did, and as truck builds go, it was fairly standard fare: ’bag job, body drop—all that good stuff. Between the team at Tre 5 Customs doing their stellar work on the suspension and body drop, plus a great paint job by Elite Automotive Finishes, he was in a good place, and soon he had a laid-out pearl white full-size Chevy that was ’bagged on 26-inch billets and ready for the 2015 SEMA Show. That, as they say, should be that—but it wasn’t.

Along the way, David’s mother, Dawn, was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer, news that devastated their family. Cancer of any kind is difficult to deal with, but stage 3 cancer makes things even more complex. It’s difficult enough to cope with these issues when you’re an adult in your mid-40s, but for someone who was just two years removed from high school, it was just too horrific to handle. How does one cope in that situation? For David, it was pretty straightforward: He would dedicate his truck and the build to his mother.

“Now that the big event is over, David enjoys driving his truck on a regular basis while still thinking of cool new ideas for tweaking it here and there.”

Obviously, this is a delicate subject, and—spoiler alert—as of this writing, David’s mother is doing well and going through treatment. (Fingers crossed; we’re all pulling for you, Dawn.) David decided that before he turned his truck into a rolling monument to his mother he should talk to his dad about things, just to make sure everything was done in such a way that his mother would find it tasteful. His dad was onboard, and they decided to do everything in secret and keep her in the dark about the project. After all, she had more important things to worry about.

They decided that since the truck was pearl white anyway, they had a pretty fresh canvas to work with. After ordering a set of Pink Ribbon/Cancer Awareness custom plates from the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division, they decided to do some vinyl graphics along the side of the truck in a tasteful pink with white lettering that reads “#DOITFORDAWN.” All of this was done within hours of leaving for the 2015 SEMA Show, and when the father and son revealed the secret to David’s mom, she was overcome with emotion. What a great and very public way to show your mother that you support her in her battle.

Now that the big event is over, David is enjoying driving his truck on a regular basis while still thinking of cool new ideas for tweaking it here and there. Sure, it may not be a ¼-mile killer, but it brought a smile to his mother’s face, and that’s all that matters. ST

Special thanks from owner: “18 Fabrication, Tre 5 Customs, Total Auto Pros, Unique Upholstery and Elite Automotive Finishes.”

Editor’s Note: A version of this article first appeared in the June 2016 print issue of Street Trucks.