The Louque Family Double Cab Toyota Tacoma

There are many reasons why the true mini-truck we ONCE knew and loved didn’t survive to see our current state of available pickup options. Long gone are the days of production compact trucks from Mazda, Nissan, Toyota, and GM, just to name a few. Replacing these cult favorite minis are today’s Chevy Colorado and 3rd-gen Tacoma, which are really just midsize pickups … which is fine. We’ve all gotten used to the extra cab and bed space these slightly larger pickups have to offer. However—let’s just be honest.

While today’s “smaller” truck offerings do deliver increased legroom and cargo space compared to their predecessors, they just don’t have that same appeal that made the classic models so popular—not to mention being more accessible and affordable. While we will most likely never see a presence of mini-trucks at dealer lots like the old days, diehard mini-truck fans will continue to customize extinct models to fit their changing interests and lifestyles.

Chad Louque of Gonzales, Louisiana, currently walks the fine line between his love of classic mini-trucks and the convenience of modern midsize pickups. For the same amount of money that could’ve bought him a brand new, fully loaded, full-size truck today, Chad felt that money would be better spent to alter his ’03 Toyota Tacoma to meet all of his needs. Hey, the heart wants what it wants, and his was dead set on building his older mini-truck around his growing family.

“I needed a truck with more room,” Chad says about his dilemma regarding his truck’s simple lack of space. “To take care of that issue, I figured out the perfect way to keep my 20-year-old Toyota truck while still being able to pack up the entire family for a cruise.”

Chad’s vision was simple yet effective (not to mention pretty damn cool). He basically planned to ditch his Tacoma’s single cab for a much roomier double cab to create the space the Louque tribe so desperately needed. Sourcing the double cab didn’t prove to be too be much of a problem, but before he begun any work on the exterior, Chad first focused on updating the chassis.

While today’s ‘smaller’ truck offerings do deliver on increased legroom and cargo space than their predecessors, they just don’t have that same appeal that made the classic models so popular—not to mention more accessible and affordable.

Utilizing a ’97 Toyota frame, Chad and his pal Jeremie LeBlanc jumped right into performing a mid-section stock floor body drop (OEM front and rear clips) and then proceeded to machine a set of custom spindle spacers before ‘bagging the front on Air Lift Dominator 2500 ‘bags. Out back, the guys installed a Pete and Jake triangulated 4-link setup complete with the same ‘bags as the front, Monroe shocks as well as an Air Lift 3H air management system and a total of four Viair black compressors.

A custom two-piece driveshaft with carrier bearing and Spicer U-joint were brought in to put the Tacoma in motion, as was an ’82 Toyota factory rearend that was shortened 5 inches. LC Engineering cross-drilled rotors were then added to the front while a Little Shop rear disc brake kit with e-brake was included at the rear end. Brand new calipers were smoothed and painted, and a Lokar e-brake cable was brought in to complete the upgraded list of braking components. Rounding off the heavily modified chassis, Chad selected a set of 20×8.5-inch Bonspeed Huntington billet wheels and Nitto NT555 rubber to cover them in.

Next, Chad began reworking a ’97 Toyota 2.4L engine to stuff underneath the hood. The fuel-efficient 4-banger power plant was given the TLC that is deserved before it was outfitted with performance add-ons in the way of LC Engineering headers, a Magnaflow exhaust system, a custom cold air intake from Volant, as well as dressup products like powerdercoated pulleys, Hose Candy hose wraps, not to mention a fully smoothed and painted engine bay.

In what seemed like no time at all, Chad was then finally able to start work on the Toyota’s exterior. Even though the double cab was the exact size he wanted, Chad still saw some room for improvement. To get it looking the way he envisioned, the corner hood squirters and handles were shaved clean off, as was the doorjamb seams and the entire back cab wall. Cadillac taillights were frenched into the bed and a roll pan replaced the rear bumper to give the Tacoma’s posterior a true custom touch.

Now, one of the most important phases in the entire build process Chad needed to get right was the paint job. He wanted to see his truck in a modern base color with a very colorful splash of graphics reminiscent of the golden era of mini-truckin’. To make this happen, he reached out to John Booth and Joel Cangiolosi to spray the 2018 Ford Leadfoot gray paint and the multi-color work of art that spans the entire length of the driver side, tailgate, and passenger side as well. A throwback mural of this magnitude requires a crazy amount of labor, but the result is always worth it in the end. There’s no better way to capture the eye of bystanders and judges alike, that’s for sure.

Moving to the interior, color was still a big factor Chad wanted to see included inside of the new double cab. To make this happen, the dash, seats, center console, and door panels were either treated to a blue hue paintjob or suede and leather wrapping to create a vibrant vibe inside the Tacoma’s confines. The interior was most definitely treated to a true hot rod inspired redesign complete with all the billet accessories and one-off touches boot. Chad even went so far as to enlist of the help of Chris Rawlings to wire up a full sound system worthy of a classic mini-truck build.

In just under two years, Chad was able to pull off his family friendly double-cab Toyota build smack dab in the middle of the COVID pandemic.

“Getting parts was a pain during this time, but luckily, I had friends offering to help building the parts I needed on their plasma tables,” he says.

Once the dust settled, Chad and family can comfortably pile into the Tacoma and hit the road in search of a different show to hit. This refreshing build has reassured any doubters that the interest in mini trucks is not dead—especially in this particular Toyota. So far, Chad has racked up Best Of awards at the ’21 Mini Truckin’ Nats, Scrapin’ The Coast, The Sparks Show, and many others—not to mention the trophies he is bound to wrangle up during the ‘22 show season and beyond.

 

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 TRUCK SPECS

 Owner

Chad Louque
Gonzales, LA
2003 Toyota Tacoma
Negative Camber

Engine

• 1997 Toyota 2.4L four-banger
• 1997 Toyota transmission
• OEM port and polished intake manifold
• LC Engineering 1.75-inch headers
• Magnaflow exhaust and muffler
• Powdercoated pulleys and valve covers
• Smoothed and painted engine bay
• Hose Candy hose wraps throughout
• Volant custom cold air intake
• Custom-2-piece driveshaft w/ carrier bearing, Spicer U-joints and custom slip yoke
• Rear differential by Driveline Specialties
• 1982 Toyota rearend factory shortened five inches

Chassis & Suspension

• 1997 Toyota frame modified by Chad Louque and Jeremie LeBlanc
• Mid-section stock floor body dropped (OEM front clip and rear clip)
• Custom machined spindle spacers
• Air Lift Dominator 2500 ‘bags and 3H air management system
• Monroe shocks smoothed and painted
• Pete and Jake triangulated rear 4-link
• Four Viair 444 black compressors
• Toyota steering box

Wheels, Tires & Brakes

• 20×8.5 Bonspeed Huntington
• 225/30/20 Nitto NT 555 tires
• Little Shop rear disc brake kit w/ e-brake
• LC Engineering cross-drilled and slotted rotors
• Smoothed and painted calipers
• Lokar universal e-brake cables

Exterior

• 2018 Ford Leadfoot gray and various colors for graphics
• Paint by John Booth, New Orleans, LA and Joel Cangiolosi, Gonzales, LA
• Shaved corner lights, hood squirters, handles, back cab wall, rear body line on bed, door jamb seams
• Caddy taillights recessed
• Single cab cab corners graphed in double cab corners
• Rear door corner skin replaced with front door corner skin
• Custom bead rolled sheetmetal bed

Interior

• Headrests shaved from front and rear bucket seats
• Blue leather and suede upholstery by Fredrick’s Upholstery, Gonzales, LA
• Billet seat medallions
• Leather wrapped dash
• Custom center console w/ window switches and storage behind sliding door
• Suede wrapped headliner
• Smoothed and painted plastic throughout
• Billet trim in all door panels
• Billet Specialties steering wheel
• Pioneer double-DIN head unit
•  JL Audio amps, highs, mids and lows
• Custom door speaker pods by Chris Rawlings
• Hand-fabricated rear door tops
• Custom one-off hot rod inspired interior
• Clayton Machine door handles
• ACC blue carpet
• the fuel-efficient power plant got the TLC it deserved before it received some awesome add-ons.