1971 C10 Week To Wicked: Building a Short Bed Chevy To Die For

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Transforming a tired truck into a true hot rod in 5 days is not the way most builds go. But for the 1971 C10 Week To Wicked, things are different. Come July 22nd, the staff of Classic Trucks and a helping hand from Classic Performance Products (CPP), is going to do just that on the 1971 C10 Week To Wicked! Starting with a solid ’71 Chevy, the crew will be blasting through the suspension, brakes, and drivetrain. They are upgrading the stock components with performance-minded equipment. Big brakes, power steering, and improved suspension components will come courtesy of CPP.

Day One

(See day one story here)

Day 1 started off as usual—wrenches and sparks flying. The 1971 Chevy C10 was stripped of its stock underpinnings in preparation for the installation of all the Classic Performance Products upgrades. That list includes CPP’s Totally Tubular Control Arms and Trailing Arms. Also, fully adjustable Coil-over system front and rear Performance Big Brakes. Finally, a complete power steering system featuring a 14:1 sport-ratio 500 Series power steering box.

Day Two

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Day 2 of the 1971 C10 Week To Wicked ends with the majority of the CPP components installed. Nearly an entire chassis upgrade in less than 48 hours. The C10 is now fully equipped with CPP’s all-new Pro-Series Performance Big Brake package. (6-piston 14-inch front/4-piston 13-inch rear) Also, HydraStop Street Beast hydraulic-assist, 500 Series C10 power steering box. Even the new X10 Extreme Modular 2.5″ drop spindles would be installed. New high-clearance pro-touring sway bars would keep the truck level. Finally, a 4-corner Dual-Adjustable Coil-Over conversion system featuring Totally Tubular Control Arms and Trailing arms.

Day Three

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Day 3 presented miscellaneous to-do’s needed to be tackled simultaneously. The ZZ6 350 small-block and 700-R4 transmission were mated to the 9-inch rearend. Then progress on completing the drivetrain veered off track a bit. The build team focused on other areas such as wiring, bed floor fuel filler. Tjhey incorporating a cargo light tripling as a courtesy and third brake light, digital gauge instrumentation. A/C and radiator installation were next alongside continued plumbing and bleeding the CPP Pro-Series Performance Big Brakes and HydraStop Hydraulic Assist Systems.

Day Four

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Day 4 motors along with attention to the engine bay. The ZZ6 350 ci small-block and 700-R4 transmission were installed using CPP Engine Mounts and a Totally Tubular Transmission Crossmember. The engine was fitted with a dual-quad throttle body EFI system. The fuel system was fed by a new CPP Aluminum Fuel Tank under the bed. Finally, the crew got to some wiring, hanging headers, and assembling the rest of the exhaust.

Day Five

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(See part two story here)

Day 5 of the 1971 C10 Week To Wicked began with 90-percent of the build crossed off the list. The most important task of all was next: firing and tuning the C10’s ZZ6 small-block. The engine came to life on first crank with a round of applause early on. That left the rest of the day to finish up other odds and ends. LED lighting components got installed while the interior was treated to some fresh carpet, door panels, bucket seats, and a blue-tooth optioned stereo system. 18-inch Racers from American Legend Wheels were dropped off. The tires were already mounted so they could get the C10 down on all fours in preparation of its first test drive later in the day. Stay tuned while the crew finds an appropriate time and place to fulfill the obligatory burnout!