From Farm Truck to True Gold

FROM THE TRUE CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION THE MINI- TRUCKIN’ SCENE HAS BROUGHT TO THE INDUSTRY THROUGHOUT THE PAST FEW DECADES TO THE SIGNIFICANT FAMILY-STYLE BOND THAT COMES FROM BEING IN THE SCENE EVEN TODAY, ONE THING IS CERTAIN: ONCE YOU’RE A MINI-TRUCKER, YOU’LL ALWAYS BE A MINI-TRUCKER. Nothing rings more true for Germain Smeyres, who you could say has been a customizer in his own right from a very young age. It was with that customization mindset and plenty of skills developed along the way that 36-year-old Smeyres decided to show off his roots through his ultimate mini-truck build in the form of this ’86 Toyota pickup named Goldy Lox.

While this Toyota may look like a glorious show-and-shine ride now, it wasn’t always that way. In fact, Smeyres picked up the truck for just $300 back in the day after it had been used as a farm truck for a number of years by one of his shop clients. Once in his hands, the truck quickly changed roles. It was ’bagged, painted and crafted into a sweet shop truck for Smeyres’ business. Unfortunately, he ended up closing shop, but the truck stayed on as a continuous project.

AFTER 10 YEARS OF OWNERSHIP, SMEYRES CAN NOW SAY THE LITTLE TOYOTA IS THE MINI-TRUCK HE’S ALWAYS ENVISIONED.”

After selling his completed Toyota Tacoma awhile back, Smeyres got even more serious about the neglected mini-truck build, adding custom touches all while continuing to use the truck as his daily driver. After 10 years of ownership, Smeyres can now say the little Toyota is the mini-truck he’s always envisioned. One of the biggest modifications that makes this truck what it is today is the airride and body drop, which give it that infamous mini-truck stance. Thanks to airbags, custom ’bag and shock mounts and a 2.5-inch body drop, Smeyres’ Toyota lays flat on the ground, just the way Mother Nature intended. This gives the Jesse James .44 mag wheels and Toyo Proxes tires a nice tucked stance, while maintaining the truck’s overall drivability.

In addition to the super- slammed stance, Smeyres incorporated a few custom body mods to make the truck one-of-a-kind, including a front-end swap from a 1988 Toyota 4Runner with 4WD sheet metal and a Grant Kustoms tailgate skin. You won’t find many bolt-ons here because Smeyres shaved everything from the hood squirters to the antenna.

Under the hood, Smeyres’ Toyota sports the original four-cylinder 22R with a few upgrades, such as a K&N intake, 16-inch SPAL cooling fan and a custom exhaust complete with Borla mufflers.

Finished in House of Kolor Solar Gold with a buckskin leather/tan suede interior, the fittingly named Goldy Lox is all around the perfect cruiser, show-goer and classic mini-truck example, proving that it’s still cool to mini-truck!

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TRUCK SPECS

OWNER

Germain Smeyres
1986 Toyota Pickup
Escondido, CA
Xtreme Lowz

ENGINE

• Toyota 22R four-cylinder
• 16-inch SPAL cooling fan
• K&N air intake
• Custom exhaust with Borla mufflers

SUSPENSION

• 2.5-inch body drop
• ’Bagged all the way around
• Custom shock and ’bag mounts
• Belltech drop spindles
• Custom cantilever 4-link
• Slotted and cross-drilled CNC front brakes
• Performed by owner

WHEELS & TIRES

• 18×8-inch Jesse James .44 mags in chrome finish
• 225/35/18 Toyo Proxes FZ4

BODY & PAINT

• 1988 Toyota 4Runner grille
• 1988 Toyota 4WD pickup front bumper and fenders
• Grant Kustoms roll pan and tailgate skin
• Custom bead-rolled inner bed floor panels
• Shaved/molded inner fenders and bodylines along the bed
• Shaved door handles, gas filler, windshield squirters, cowl, antenna, emblems and mirrors
• House of Kolor Solar Gold paint
• Bodywork performed by owner
• Paint performed by Joel “Gromit” Saddenwasser and Edward “Mooksta” Cruz of Extreme Audio and Kustoms

INTERIOR

• Buckskin leather/tan suede upholstery
• Chopped Chevy S-10 seats
• Smoothed and wrapped dashboard
• Budnik Trilogy steering wheel
• Chrome two-point, latch- style seat belts
• Alpine head unit
• Polk MOMO speakers
• Coustic subs in custom blow- through box
• Phoenix Gold amps
• Accumat sound deadening material
• Upholstery by Ricky at North County Upholstery
• Alpine amplifiers

SPECIAL THANKS FROM THE OWNER: “My wife Athena and our family for letting me pretty much do what I want when it comes to my rides. My mom and dad for not getting on me for tearing into my first car before I was approved for financing. My crew XTREME Lowz, Marley Marvelous, Alex Anderson, Devaron Jeffery, Joel “Gromit” Sadenwasser, Adam Espinoza, Keith at All American Window Tinting, Dan Gilliland, Doug and HDS Auto Parts, Dave Marzano at CNC Brakes, Conrad James, Cody Williams, Ricky at North County Upholstery, Mike Alexander, Mark Bedney, JD Lusardi and mini- truckers worldwide for keeping the $#!t I love alive and kicking.”

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