A Lifelong Promise Made Good

The third-generation K5 Chevy Blazer was the last generation, as Chevy discontinued the K5 in 1994. The Blazer was one of the most popular Chevy SUVs in the long brand history. In 2005, Kevin Schroeder owned a 1992 Chevy K5 Blazer that he jacked up and was looking to have rebuilt. Kevin’s father had recently been diagnosed with cancer, so his timetable was to have it completely rebuilt before his father passed. Kevin enlisted Jason Watts from DJ Customs in Cedar Park, Texas, for a full rebuild.

Jason knocked it out of the park for Kevin, bagging the lifted 4×4, rebuilding the entire motor and transmission, and completing all the bodywork and paint. Unfortunately, the timely task wasn’t completed before Kevin’s father lost his battle. Kevin was devastated and just lost interest in the K5 and stored it in a garage. It became a lost project for a little over a decade. In 2016, the worst thing possible happened—Kevin was diagnosed with cancer himself. He began selling off things. including the Blazer that was once a huge part of his life.

Jason approached Kevin, and although at the time he couldn’t afford to buy it, he made a promise, a pinky promise, that one day he would find the Blazer and finish it in his honor. In 2017, Kevin lost his battle with cancer, and Jason decided it was time to find the Chevy. Looking far and wide, he couldn’t locate who had purchased it or where it was. In late 2017, Jason was heading to purchase a car hauler for one of his vehicles, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the K5 sitting outside a stereo shop. After inquiring with the owner, he found out that it was indeed for sale. Jason immediately broke into tears and purchased the memorial truck.

As you can imagine, the paint, body, and internals were quite dilapidated from sitting for over a decade. If anyone knew how to rebuild this K5, it was going to be the person who originally built it. “It was in pretty bad shape,” Jason says. “Honestly, the only things that were usable were the front seat belts.” After loading it on a tow truck and getting it to his shop, Jason began rebuilding the body back to its golden days. A new roll pan was molded to the rear, the front-end panels were all replaced, and every dent and scratch was repaired.

Jason’s wife requested that the paint be her decision, and Jason obliged. She picked out a cotton candy paint color that she guaranteed wouldn’t be “too girly.” Jason added the PPG paint, covering it with so much clear that it wouldn’t fade again. Master painter Pat Maxwell was brought in to add show-stopping graphics in custom-mixed PPG paint. Now that the exterior was perfect, Jason went to work on the suspension, removing all four air bags and replacing them with Air Lift bags. An Accuair CVT compressor and tank combo was installed for better air management.

With paint and suspension completed, it was time for something that would be the standout feature on the K5. The Chevy was brought to Christopher Pate at Mobile Toys Inc. for what can only be described as a neck-breaking interior upgrade. Chris added a full custom interior, including a one-off dash, console, seats, door panels, and headliner, with blue LED lights illuminating everything inside. Chris added the full stereo system consisting of an Alpine in-dash navigation unit with three Alpine subwoofers built into a custom enclosure in the rear.

The last step on the memorial Chevy was making sure that the engine was up to par. The motor that Jason had originally built for Kevin was removed and painted to match the exterior with the help of his wife, Michelle, and their son, Donovan. Summit ceramic-coated headers were installed, as well as billet accessories. A few unnecessary items under the hood were deleted, and the Chevy 350 was rewired and loomed to clean it up. The motor was reinstalled, and electric fans were added for better cooling.

Jason not only pinky swore to Kevin he would rebuild the Chevy K5 in his honor, but now he pinky swears that this Blazer will never leave his possession. Jason has owned quite a few show vehicles over the years, and every time he builds something new, he keeps it as his own, with Michelle looking on. After his last full build, he promised Michelle that the next thing he built would be for her. Although this SUV was important to him, he fulfilled his promise and gave the finished product to his wife. Being that Michelle chose the exterior color, it seems fitting that Pinky Swear would be a lady-driven Chevy.

Special Thanks

My husband Jason Watts, our son Donovan Watts, Scott Ritchie, Pat Maxwell, Chris Pate at Mobile Toys, Kevin Schroeder (RIP), and our club Acrophobia for allowing us to be part of such an amazing club.

Truck Specs

Owner

Michelle Watts
1992 Chevrolet K5 Blazer
Cedar Park, TX
Acrophobia

ENGINE & DRIVETRAIN

Chevy 350 painted to match
TSP billet front pulley system
Billet Specialties valve covers and air cleaner
Summit Racing ceramic-coated headers, electric fans
700R4 transmission
Rear narrowed 3 ½ ½-inches
Chevy 10-bolt
3.73 gears

CHASSIS & SUSPENSION

Nfamus upper and lower control arms
Belltech drop spindles
KYB shocks
Air Lift Dominator D2600 bags
3-link wishbone

WHEELS & TIRES

22×9 and 22×12 Billet Specialties Blvd 84 wheels
255/30ZR22 and 295/30ZR22 Lexani tires

BODY & PAINT

PPG Crystallance Cotton Candy by Jason Watts at DJ Customs
PPG custom-mixed paint for graphics by Pat Maxwell at Maxwell Auto Designs
2-inch cowl induction hood
Molded roll pan
Shaved handles, roof rack, and antenna
LMC smooth front bumper

INTERIOR & STEREO

Custom dashboard
Intellitronix analog dash gauges
Billet Specialties Blvd 84 steering wheel, pedals, column, shifter, and dress-up kit
Wool carpet kit
Colorado Customs rearview mirror with Acrophobia logo
Custom center console with billet aluminum switches for windows and doors
Billet cup holders
Custom door panels, suede headliner, and overhead console with laser-etched plexiglass
Custom leather seats with pink diamond-stitched suede inserts
Blue LED lighting
Custom seat belts by Mobile Toys Inc., College Station, TX
Alpine 8-inch navigation head unit, mids and highs, three 12-inch R-W12d2 subwoofers, and four 4-channel amps
Mosconi 8to12 aerospace processor