As the owner of GM Truck Center in Burbank, California, Henrik Halrapetian wanted a rig that could show what his shop could do, but also something he could hit the trails in. He didn't need an all-out rockcrawler or a fancy show truck, just something simple and strong with a clean look. But with Henrik's '73 GMC Jimmy being such a nice example of a rig that started out as the same rig tons of you readers own, we thought this might help get you motivated to get in the garage and start wrenching, and maybe even give you a few ideas to steal.
Since Henrik makes a living finding rust-free GM trucks in various states of disrepair across the Southwest, cleaning them up, and then selling them to folks all across the country, he quickly came across this old Jimmy in need of a few upgrades when he was ready to start a project of his own. The upgrades he included were a GM 502 crate motor, with a supercharger, a burly four-speed tranny, and a 205. Underneath are some 1-ton axles, and they all spin 35-inch rubber. The whole truck has been a work of passion by Henrik and his crew to show off their skills, and now they are ready to go play.
Can you say, "Vroom Vroom?" You could if you had a GM 502 crate motor with a Weiand 4-71 blower bolted on top. It breathes in through a steel cowl-induction hood, pumps the stink through Thorley headers, and then spins the power through a Centerforce 2 heavy-duty clutch. Oh yeah, big-blocks will never go out of style. | 
How about a nice aluminum dash with a full set of Auto Meter gauges? Henrik did a really clean and simple job on the interior of the truck as well, by adding a LeCarra steering wheel and coating the whole floor with Line-X. From the passenger doorway you can see where the driver sits in Flofit seats and controls the bulletproof SM465 transmission, bombproof NP205 transfer case, and rollproof dual line locks for the front and rear brakes. | 
From the back you see the tube work that, along with a set of Filler safety harnesses, protects the occupants. The complete cage has been powdercoated along with the rear bumper. The bumper also acts as an air tank and a carrier for the Hi-Lift Jack, spare tire, and fuel. It's hard to tell, but both the front and rear wheelwell openings have been enlarged 8 inches for the bigger tires. To the untrained eye it all looks factory. |
Up front is the venerable Dana 60 with a Powr-Lok limited-slip and Warn hubs. It is barely bothered by the Boggers, and directed with a crossover steering setup. The finned aluminum diff cover is protected with a bolt-on guard, and dual King racing shocks control each side in the front. | 
The flames on the logo give a hint to the fire-breathing blown 502 monster that lurks behind the grille. | 
Underneath it's all business for serious fun. The 14-bolt full-floating rearend is stuffed with a Detroit Locker and 4.56 gears, stopped with disc brakes, and slung under 6-inch Alcan springs and 212-inch King racing shocks. A custom antiwrap setup helps keep the 35x16x16.5 Super Swamper Boggers on 16.5x12 Weld Stone Crushers from hopping. |