Classic Meets Custom: Jordan Espinoza’s Rad Red Nissan Frontier

A Rad Red Nissan Sled

Mini-trucks have been around since the late 1950s, with most acknowledging the ’59 Datsun 221 as the United States’ first exposure to these tiny-but-mighty trucks. The West Coast seemed to adopt them more readily than other parts of the country, and it wasn’t until the introduction of the 520 in 1966 that they really caught on. Eventually, someone got the bright idea to lower one some time in the early 1970s, and the rest is history!

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What we’re trying to say here is that mini-trucks have been a part of our collective lives for about six and a half decades now, and their influence in car culture can’t be denied. But, there’s one style of mini-truck in particular that turned the custom truck world upside down—the “Cali Style” mini-truck (we don’t call it that here in California, but we’re outnumbered, so it is what it is). Big wheels, laying frame (or body), and bright colors with insane graphics—we did that. Westsiiiiide!

What we’re trying to say here is that mini-trucks have been a part of our collective lives for about six and a half decades now, and their influence in car culture can’t be denied.

Jordan Espinoza is a product of Bakersfield, California,—the Mecca of West Coast style custom trucks—but he’s also a product of his father, a custom car and truck guy in his own right. His dad is a founding member of Syndicate, one of the most prolific clubs to come out of Kern County, so for Jordan, who grew up going to shows, becoming a mini-trucker was a natural progression and a rite of passage. And so, Jordan got to mini-truckin’!

Starting out with a 2000 Nissan Frontier that was already ‘bagged and bodied, Jordan definitely had a good head start on his project. That being said, the truck had some issues that needed serious attention after going through multiple owners and shops. But GMK Fab set him up by fixing any problems, as well as welding up a custom backhalf to tidy up the, uh, back half of the Frontier, as well as welding in some custom wheeltubs up front.

The truck had been passed around so much locally that it was pretty recognizable to anyone who had been in the scene for a while, so the only way to really make the truck his was to change the color. And if you’re going to change the color of a truck, you might as well do some body mods! Jordan mostly wanted to clean things up a bit to make his Frontier more sleek, so he kept it simple by shaving the third brake light and the keyholes, installing a GrantFab smooth wiper cowl, and molding on a GrantFab roll pan.

The graphics wrap flawlessly from the hood to the dash.

Jordan had the truck painted red and happily drove the truck as it was for a while, but he had an ace up his sleeve that he would soon play. His dad has been friends with legendary custom painter Kyle “K-Daddy” Gann for quite a few years, so when he had enough cash set aside to pull the trigger, he called K-Daddy up to get on his waiting list. As you can see, he definitely delivered! Using House of Kolors’ finest pigments, Kyle spent hours upon hours taping off his designs, then sprayed pink, blue, yellow, orange, and silver onto the truck, including the dashboard. Some might call it peak old school, but we think it’s prime 2024—time for everyone else to catch up!

Add some fresh 20-inch Billet Specialties Phantom wheels and a completely custom interior stitched up by Ricky Shepard, topped off with a Colorado Custom Slater steering wheel, and Jordan’s Nissan was ready to hit the streets of Bako in finished form! As a member of the Bakersfield chapter of No Regrets, Jordan is in good company when it comes to keeping mini-truckin’ alive and well in Southern California!

TRUCK SPECS

OWNER

Jordan Espinoza