Trucks started off in the motoring world as practical workhorses, designed to take care of business that a traditional car was incapable of doing. After a few years of manful toil, they would be consigned to the big scrapyard in the sky, their usefulness spent. Over the years this basic premise has evolved to the point that today’s trucks can be had in any guise from a simple load-lugger to a luxurious tech-laden family vehicle with the performance of a sportscar. The common thread that connects them all is their ability to do serious truck things when required, and that is what Rtech Fabrications say that their stunning retromod GM trucks are all about too.
Rtech Fabrications specializes in frame-off restorations on 1960s and ’70s GM trucks. While they are happy to build you a fully custom show truck, what they really like to do is create a bespoke vehicle that is still fully capable of tackling the toughest tasks you could throw at it. Their latest creation is the 1966 Chevy Ponderosa, the first in their custom-line of 1964-1966 Chevy trucks, which adds a crew cab and an extra set of doors to this classic shape.
It may never have been offered in this body style from the factory but the finished product may fool onlookers into thinking that it had. Aside from the additional space in the cab, customers can also choose from a huge range of drivetrain and interior options. This truck has been fitted with an extreme off-road setup including 37-inch Nitto Trail Grappler tires, heavy-duty Bilstein shocks and Dana 60/70 axles. The motor is another option that was not offered on the original, being a 5.9-liter Cummins diesel as used in a 1996 Ram truck. It features fully upgraded internals and now pushes out around 550hp and a serious 1300lb-ft of torque. Putting that power to those massive wheels is a four-speed manual transmission.
Standing at 8 feet high and 20 feet long, the Ponderosa comes standard with serious overtaking presence. The interior has also been artfully upgraded to retain its classic styling while still incorporating a custom-designed Bluetooth compatible head unit. The center console is also a bespoke design by Rtech although they have retained the period dashboard and instrumentation and the vinyl/cloth seats have been made to resemble the original fabrics used.
The loadbed features ash wood finishes and the standard looking headlights incorporate discrete LED bars. The starting price for the Ponderosa is $150,000; it may be one pricey truck but as long as your garage and the roads you use it on can accommodate it, you can safely get rid of every other car you own. This truck is a classic, off-road, daily-driver family vehicle all rolled into one.
Images courtesy of Rtech Fabrications
