This SEMA Build Breaks All the Rules

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU’VE ALREADY BUILT TWO FEATURE TRUCKS, A COVER TRUCK, A FULL CUSTOM MERC AND ARE A MEMBER OF ONE OF THE BADDEST TRUCK CLUBS ON THE PLANET? IF YOU’RE MARK ZARATE, YOU BUILD A FULL-CUSTOM SEMA TRUCK #BREAKTHEINTERNET, BUT WE’LL GET TO THAT IN A BIT. Like many of us, Mark is fueled by people telling him “you can’t”: you can’t put an LS engine in a Tacoma, you can’t build a full SEMA truck in your garage, and of course, all of these “you can’ts” only fueled the fire and led to something bigger and better than Mark ever thought possible.

Mark and Crystal Zarate are no strangers to the custom truck world and hard work, as mentioned, Mark already has quite a few memorable build notches on his belt. One thing he takes a ton of pride in is the fact that almost every inch of each build is performed in his home garage with his own two hands, and the occasional helping hand from club buddies and close friends. The hard work poured into each of these builds is undeniable, and the dedication that it takes to undertake a full-custom build from scratch is something that we all deeply admire. Sit back and enjoy as we take you through this whirlwind SEMA build now known as Taco Supreme.

Could you build a full-custom truck in your garage? Possibly, but could you build a full-custom right-hand-drive Tacoma sitting flat over 20-inch Intros with an LS stuffed under the hood, all in a matter of 10 months? Well, that’s the miracle that is Taco Supreme. Mark had always dreamed of building a SEMA truck, and when 2014 rolled around he decided that it would be the year that he would finally make this dream a reality! He’s always wanted to build a Tacoma, and his buddy Adam Cox had one for sale, so the pieces of the puzzle fell into place, and before he knew it, he had a shell sitting in his garage and he started planning his first full SEMA build.

MARK KNEW FROM DAY ONE THAT HE WAS GOING TO DO SOMETHING WITH A BIT OF SHOCK AND AWE AND STUFF AN LS2 UNDER THE HOOD.”

The goal was to take subtle styling cues from all of his past builds—trucks, hot rods and lowriders—and put some these different styles and mods together in one glorious build. Since the timeline was dead set and he only had 10 months to complete the job, there would be many, many, many late nights ahead. Right away Mark gutted the Taco and built a frame for it using a 1993 Toyota front clip, and of course, the truck was set flat on the floor via a full air suspension setup. The body drop and frame were centered on tucking a set of 20-inch Intro Twisted Vistas, but the truck would be sporting 20×12-inch deep-dish rear wheels. To accomplish this, Mark shortened a Ford 9-inch rear and rebuilt the Tacoma bed to accommodate the wide wheel. Why, you might ask? Because Texas.

With the frame and suspension knocked out first, the slicing and dicing of the body began. A slew of mods was planned to set this build apart from the rest, including right- hand drive, a suicide right-side door, shaved everything, Kindig It door handles, sunroof cut out of a Cavalier, roll-down back window from a 4-Runner and a custom hood, giving the exterior the ultimate custom look. Massaging the body to perfection was quite a feat with all of these mods, so Mark called in some help and Phillip Gamaz joined the crew to knock out the bodywork. With an exterior and frame/suspension in this custom, there was no turning back.

Mark knew from day one that he was going to do something with a bit of shock and awe and stuff an LS2 under the hood. We can’t say this is the first Tacoma to be LS-powered, but we can definitely say with certainty that it’s the very first to be body- dropped on 20-inch wheels and still have room for the massive V-8. To make this possible, Mark mounted the engine with a clearance firewall, and using a few tricks from MSD, Performance Products, Comp Cams and Sanderson, he made this engine combo fit as if it came from the factory.

The interior was the finishing detail, sort of like the bow on a present. Mark and fellow club member Anthony Pena went to town building a full custom interior suitable for Taco Supreme and highlighting the right-hand drive and full Kicker audio setup. Mark built a custom dash to house the Dakota Digital gauge set and the Colorado Custom Severed Ties steering wheel in a perfect red leather shroud. The custom seats and center console built to accommodate the rest of the Kicker sounds were also wrapped in blood red leather by Jerry Vincent at Jerry’s Custom Upholstery.

While the interior was being built and buttoned up, fellow club member Patrick Reed was working his paint magic designing a front-to- back, full-graphic paint job with Mark to really complement this wild build. Mark’s always been a fan of blue, so DuPont Blue was based, and then Patrick went to town night and day taping off colors and graphics. When we say that SEMA builds of this caliber are completed due to sheer willpower and ’round the clock work, we aren’t exaggerating. Mark called in the troops for final assembly, and the truck was completed in 10 months and four days, just a couple of days before it had to be shipped off to Vegas for the show. A final once-over and it was off to the spotlights at SEMA.

Wowing both the crowds and SEMA staff alike, Taco Supreme was moved to an interior spot more suitable to its station and received a ton of attention at the show. That still wasn’t quite the internet-breaking moment we were referring to, that happened after the show when we took Mark and his Tacoma out to a dry lakebed for this Street Trucks feature shoot. Mark decided that he hadn’t even gotten to drive the truck that he slaved away on all of these months, so he decided to break it in proper and really put the LS2 and his craftsmanship to the test. Who are we to object? So after the photo shoot Mark did the unthinkable and went full Ken Block style out on the lakebed, kicking up dirt and dust storms that could be seen miles away. What did we do? We snapped a few pics to remember that one time when Taco Supreme went hog wild in the desert— memories that will last a lifetime.

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TRUCK SPECS

OWNERS

Mark & Crystal Zarate
1998 Toyota Tacoma
San Antonio, TX Severed Ties

ENGINE

• LS2 mated with a 4L60e trans
• Comp Cams camshaft
• Performance Products polished intake
• MSD ignition coil packs
• PSI conversion LS wiring harness
• Aluminum radiator
• Sanderson headers
• Magnaflow stainless steel exhaust and mufflers
• Vintage Air Frontrunner engine drive system
• Lokar engine and transmission dip sticks
• Ford 9-inch rear narrowed
• Painless performance 18-circuit wire harness
• Kinetic battery
• Performed by the owner

SUSPENSION

• Front: 1993 Toyota pickup front clip
• Rear: Custom-built 4-link with control arms built by Von
• Procomp shocks
• Viair 444 compressors
• Full custom-built frame
• AccuAir e-Level full air management package with Touchpad and iLevel WiFi receiver
• Classic Performance Products big brake kit and booster
• Performed by owner

WHEELS & TIRES

• 20×8.5-inch and 20×12-inch Intro Twisted Vistas with custom airbrushing
• Nitto INVO

BODY & PAINT

• Roll down back window from a Toyota 4-Runner
• Sunroof from a 2003 Chevy Caviler
• Suicide right-side door
• Completely shaved with custom Kindig-It door handles
• Custom one-off Grant Kustoms front bumper
• Grant customs rear skin with LED taillights
• Bushwacker fender flares
• Street Scene mirrors
• Shaved under hood, firewall, bed, all smoothed
• Custom front wheel tubs
• Custom front-end brace
• Sheet metal bed floor
• Performed by owner
• Full DuPont graphics painted by fellow ST club member Patrick Reed

INTERIOR

• Lebaron Bonney custom seat frames
• Custom right hand drive dash built by owner
• Flaming River steering column
• Colorado Customs steering wheel
• Dakota Digital VHX universal gauge cluster
• Vintage Air Gen IV AC unit with billet controls
• Custom center console and full Kicker stereo system
• Interior wrapped by Jerry Vincent at Jerry’s Custom Upholstery
• Kenwood DNN990 head unit
• Kicker Audio mids and highs
• 8-inch Kicker subwoofers built into custom center console
• Kicker amps custom-mounted behind seats
• Dynamat sound deadening material
• Stereo done by Anthony Pena and owner

SPECIAL THANKS FROM THE OWNER: “I would like to thank God first for giving me the mind and ability to pull off something like this. My wife and son Gavin as they’re the only ones who don’t think I’m crazy and have had to put up with a lot through the years. My club Severed Ties for pulling together and helping me get this truck back together in time for SEMA, Anthony Pena for spending countless hours with me, Phillip Gamaz for working through the night on the bodywork, Mike Alexander and Slam’d Mag for getting me a SEMA spot after some other plans fell through, Twisted Chris for documenting the build, Adam Cox for selling me the truck to start, all my friends on social media for all the comments and for following the build since day one, and everyone who sent me messages telling me how they love my work and all the builds—that is what keeps me going, my mom and dad, and of course, all of my awesome sponsors for their support through the whole build: Intro, Kinetik, Kicker, Dakota Digital, Lokar, PSI Wiring, Maganaflow, Vintage Air, Painless Wiring, Dynamat, Kenwood, Sanderson, Kindig It, CPP, Grant Kustoms, Bushwacker, MSD, Colorado Customs, AccuAir, Labaron Bonney and Comp Cams.

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