2008 Chevy Silverado 1500 2WD - Offroad Trucks

2008 Chevy Silverado 1500 2Wd Chevy Silverado Trucks

Most of us love heading out to the races hoping to catch our favorite off-road hero sailing around the course. The problem is, the races are usually quite a drive and watching all that glorious action makes us want to have some fun of our own. Driving three hours to a race knowing you have the same return trip doesn't leave us with a ton of confidence when it comes time to play in the dirt. A 200-mile tow bill isn't cheap.

2008 Chevy Silverado 1500 2Wd Front Suspension

Aside from a few subtle differences, these two trucks were built identically. The front suspension includes a Mazzulla Off-Road Long-Travel Suspension with custom shock mounts and engine crossover built by Fabrication Unlimited. The Mazzulla kit provides 19 inches of wheel travel using new upper and lower control arms, spindles, 4130 chromoly steering tie-rods and new brake lines. The upper control arms use a 7/8-inch Heim chassis pivot and the lowers use a 1-inch uniball chassis pivot and 1-inch uniball for the spindle pivot.

Aside from a few subtle differences, these two trucks were built identically. The front su

Dave Hill and Rick Bray are the owners and fabricators of Fabrication Unlimited located in Lemoore, California. Their '08 Chevy 1500 Silverado 2WD trucks were built to chase, prerun and transport to and from the races. "It's a lot of fun knowing you can drive the same truck out you want to play with and know its built strong enough to make the trip back home after," said Dave. The days of having five project trucks surrounding the garage are over; people these days often can only afford one toy. Do what Dave and Rick did: Build it right.

Specs [Red Chevy]
Vehicle: '08 Chevy 1500 Silverado 2WD (red)

Owner: Dave Hill

Chassis: Stock with added strength throughout

Engine: 5.3L V-8

Drivetrain: Stock with two-piece driveshaft

Suspension: Mazzulla Off-Road LT kit, Fox Shocks, Fabrication Unlimited

Steering: Mazzulla Off-Road

Brakes: Stock disc

Tires/wheels: 37-inch BFG Baja T/A, 17-inch KMC Enduro bead locks

Interior: Icom V8000 race radio, Lowrance Baja 540c GPS

Other Parts: Custom shackles, rear shock hoop, front shock hoop, custom bumpers and roll pan

2008 Chevy Silverado 1500 2Wd Spare Tire

In the back of Dave's truck (red) we can see the Fab Unlimited shock hoop running Fox 3.0 bypass shocks with Fox 2.5 air bumps located just behind. The low profile design allows plenty of room for a spare tire, tools, cooler and more. With all of the supplies removed, Dave can still fit a motorcycle in the bed.

In the back of Dave's truck (red) we can see the Fab Unlimited shock hoop running Fox 3.0

Specs [Black Chevy]
Vehicle: '08 Chevy 1500 Silverado 2WD (black)

Owner: Rick Bray

Chassis: Stock with added strength throughout

Engine: 5.3L V-8

Drivetrain: Stock with two-piece driveshaft

Suspension: Mazzulla Off-Road LT kit, Fox Shocks, Fabrication Unlimited

Steering: Mazzulla Off-Road

Brakes: Stock disk

Tires/wheels: 20-inch Pro Comp wheels with OMF bead locks, 38.5-inch Toyo Open Country M/T tires

Interior: Stock

Other Parts: Custom shackles, rear shock hoop, front shock hoop, custom front bumper, rear roll pan

The bed in Rick's truck (black) was empty and provided a better view of the design. The rear end moves 20 inches with an almost full bed open to haul. Even the tops of the air bumps protrude as little as possible into the bed. The cross bars between both sides of the shock hoops are removable.
The bed in Rick's truck (black) was empty and provided a better view of the design. The re
Dave and Rick made their own shock hoops to fit Fox 2.5 coilovers, 2.5 bypass shocks and 2.5 air bumps.
Dave and Rick made their own shock hoops to fit Fox 2.5 coilovers, 2.5 bypass shocks and 2
Looking over the outside of the truck is where we see the differences. Dave's truck is running Glassworks Unlimited fiberglass front and rear painted in bright Victory Red. He is also sporting 17-inch KMC Enduro bead lock wheels wrapped in 37-inch BFG Baja T/A tires.
Looking over the outside of the truck is where we see the differences. Dave's truck is run

Rick wanted a different look for his truck so he went with Trailer Products fiberglass that needed to be highly modified to fit his wheels and tires. A big set of 20-inch Pro Comp wheels with OMF beadlock rings were added with 38.5-inch Toyo Open Country M/T tires.
Rick wanted a different look for his truck so he went with Trailer Products fiberglass tha
Holding the truck up and providing all that travel are Deaver Springs C85 spring-under leaf packs. The rear axles on both trucks were removed and rebuilt stronger. Additional plating was added surrounding the axle keeping it from twisting under heavy abuse. 5.13 gears, 35-spline Currie axle shafts and Detroit Lockers were also stuffed into each rear end. A custom two-piece driveshaft was also needed to properly swing the rear without U-joints popping out.
Holding the truck up and providing all that travel are Deaver Springs C85 spring-under lea
Both trucks have custom battery mounts between the rearmost sections of the frame filled with an Odyssey PC 1500 battery. It is easy to get to and transfers more weight to the rear, where it's often needed on prerunner trucks.
Both trucks have custom battery mounts between the rearmost sections of the frame filled w

Rick went a little further with his rear end design. A custom airbrush painter by the name of Kool Hand Luke gave this truck its proper name, The Real Deal. With all that truck and now a hand painted rear end claiming he's on top of the game, we better not find Rick whimpering his way around the dirt anytime soon.
Rick went a little further with his rear end design. A custom airbrush painter by the name
A shock tower support runs directly over the 5.3L V-8 engine as low as possible. There isn't much room under the hood, so as you can see, part of the factory plastic cover was cut to make room for the tower.
A shock tower support runs directly over the 5.3L V-8 engine as low as possible. There isn
The front bumpers on both trucks are similar with Dave's having some trick dimple die plates.
The front bumpers on both trucks are similar with Dave's having some trick dimple die plat

Matching the front of the truck, they built a simple roll pan and rear bumper that fit perfectly with the lines on the truck.
Matching the front of the truck, they built a simple roll pan and rear bumper that fit per
Most of the chassis remained stock on both trucks aside from small sections where extra gusseting was needed. You can see how the rearmost section of the frame has been beefed up and plated in.
Most of the chassis remained stock on both trucks aside from small sections where extra gu