This ’67 Toyota Was Love at First Sight

Some believe in love at first sight, and that was the case for Branda Stuart and her ‘67 Toyota Stout.  The  imported classic mini was brought into her husband Jim’s shop, Stone Cold Customs, by a customer for a simple ‘bag job. She fell in love with its unique look and style and knew it had to be hers. Shortly after, the couple bought the Toyota and Jim got to work restoring it to its former glory. They decided on a color scheme and tossed around a few ideas about creating a resto-mod-style mini that kept the Japanese heritage of the classic but brought it into the modern age. Customer trucks trumped work on the project, though, and the Stone Cold Customs crew set it on the back burner for a while. Then one day, to Branda’s surprise, she was brought to the shop, and with her friends and family all around her, she was presented with a completed Toyota Stout.

As with most custom trucks, the suspension and chassis were the first items on the checklist. The factory frame was boxed in, notched and powder-coated tan by Jim Stuart and Chance Aebi at Stone Cold Customs. They also did a 4-inch body drop. The rearend was outfitted with a 2-link setup, Monroe shocks and ‘bags before it was completely smoothed and painted. The front control arms were turned upside down and swapped in order to provide more travel and better ball joint angles. A set of 18 x 7-inch Centerline Smoothies outfitted with Nitto 225/40 tires finish things off.

The factory 20R four-cylinder was saddled into custom motor mounts built to lower the engine. A smaller custom air intake from LC Engineering clears the factory hood. The engine and exhaust were painted to match and the valve covers were powder coated tan to match the frame. The factory bedsides on the Stout don’t line up with the cab rockers, so new bedsides were created at Ben Bland Customs. They extend down 3 inches to match the cab, and the crew made a smooth tailgate as well. The bed floor was raised and covered in Al’s Bed Liner. Finally, Ben sprayed the Stout in PPG Honey Bronze Pearl Metallic and Jimmy Marker topped it off with some pinstriping. The interior was kept simple, staying with the classic look. Jack’s Seat Covers replaced the worn seat with leather, and Ben Bland Customs created the headliner.

Branda loves her beauty even more now that it’s complete, and the family takes their creations to as many shows as possible. The Stout wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the work of Jim Stuart, Chance Aebi, Jimmy Marker, Richard, Skaggs, Ben Bland and the Stuart family, including their kids Dalton Lee and Kinzie Jo. ST

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BRANDA STUART
1967 TOYOTA STOUT
ENID, OK
NEGATIVE CAMBER

TRUCK SPECS

ENGINE

• 1967 TOYOTA 20R FOUR-CYLINDER
• LC ENGINEERING AIR INTAKE

SUSPENSION

• 4-INCH BODY DROP
• 2-LINK SETUP
• FLIPPED CONTROL ARMS
• POWDER-COATED FRAME

BODY

• 3-INCH EXTENDED BED SIDES
• CUSTOM TAILGATE
• RAISED BED FLOOR
• PPG HONEY BRONZE PEARL METALLIC

WHEELS

• 18X7-INCH CENTERLINE SMOOTHIE WHEELS
• 225/40 NITTO TIRES

INTERIOR

• JACK’S SEAT COVERS LEATHER
• CUSTOM HEADLINER

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