Jerry McMullan’s Love for Chevy

Jerry McMullan is a long-time Chevy fan, and when he wanted to find a cool daily driver, he knew two things. The first was that the vehicle would be a Chevy, and the second was that he knew it had to be black.

Choosing the Right Chevy Model

Having been the proud owner of a couple of previous ’67-’72 Chevys (a ’70 Chevelle SS and a ’70 El Camino SS), he knew that the style suited him, so he thought that a pickup from those years would be just right for what he had in mind. After a little searching, he came across this ’71 Chevy Cheyenne. McMullan says that the truck was in fair condition when he purchased it (for the now-reasonable, though still hard to believe, price of $11,000), and thus began his three-year odyssey of building his perfect pickup.

Modifying the Frame

The frame has been given the usual treatment, which means that it has been equipped with 2-inch dropped spindles as well as a C-notched rearend. A set of airbags was added to really give the Chevy a case of the lows, and a pair of Classic Performance Products anti-sway bars drastically improves the cornering characteristics. One piece of this puzzle seen on only a small number of trucks is that the Cheyenne has been equipped with a Cadillac third member. Caged from a ’79-edition Seville, it not only gives the truck a heavy-duty rearend, but it also provides the factory rear disc brakes that are used for stopping a much heavier vehicle than the truck.

Classic Torq-Thrust II Wheels

The Torq-Thrust II wheels from American Racing Products are seen on many trucks and hot rods. Sized a healthy 20×10 inches in the rear with 18x8s up front, the five-spoke design is classic and gives this Chevy the perfect look. Adding high-quality BFGoodrich rubber to the mix gives the Chevy a chance to utilize the suspension upgrades, and the low-profile tires also do their share to infuse it with style. 

Power and Reliability with the ZZ4 Engine

The ZZ4 engine that resides in the Cheyenne provides heaps of horsepower. The Chevy crate engines really give the vintage truck owner the opportunity to add not only easy horsepower, but also the reliability that only a factory-built engine can provide. Reliability is also the hallmark of the current crop of EFI systems, and McMullan figured that a Holley throttle-body system would add reliability regardless of the current altitude, and it would also improve fuel mileage. Aiding in both performance and increased fuel mileage are the Doug Thorley tri-Y headers and GM HEI ignition. A K&N air filter has been installed, and you all know how well they work.

Upgrading the Transmission

In another effort to add modern technology to the vintage Chevy, McMullan installed a 700R4 transmission to the package. He figured that he would be rolling at highway speeds and wanted to pass as many gas stations as he could, so the overdrive tranny was the perfect choice. Of course, the driveshaft had to be shortened, so he had the crew at Driveshaft Specialists in Ontario, California, remove the excess steel and balance the stick while they were at it.

Enhancing the Interior

As McMullan wanted the Chevy to be factory in appearance—but taken to the max—he also made a few changes to the interior. Gone is the less-than-comfortable bench seat, and in its place McMullan installed a set of Cerullo bucket seats. The new units provide McMullan with not only a much racier look, but also with six-way power adjustment, so there is no way that the Chevy won’t be a comfortable ride, even on the longest drives. A Chevy center console also provides him with plenty of space to stash the things that everyday life in the Chevy necessitates having. And nothing is more of a necessity in a daily driver than a good stereo, so a fully capable Kenwood stereo unit (AM/FM and a six-disc CD) has been installed, as was a Pioneer XM unit. The units and their accompanying speakers were installed at Speaker Works of Orange, California. And to provide a little flash, a billet steering wheel and electric one-piece windows have also been installed. The rest of the interior consists of re-pop stock door panels, headliner and carpeting (all in black, of course) that were installed by the crew at Roman’s Upholstery of Basset, California.

Exterior Enhancements

And that brings us to the exterior. McMullan loves the way the Cheyenne looked as it came from the factory, right down to the moldings that run along its side. He did buy this model, after all, and didn’t have any plans to radically alter the way the Chevy looked, but he did have to do a little dent-pounding to get the body back to looking as he wanted it to. The one area where McMullan did deviate from the norm was installing a forward-tilting hood. Once ready, though, he applied the same black that originally adorned the Cheyenne.

A Tribute to GM Pickups

There is no denying that these model-year GM pickups are hugely popular, and those drawn to them are some of the most rabid fans of vintage trucking. The bodylines are no-nonsense, and they indicate the dividing line between the old and new schools of thought in how the factories looked at trucks. As for Jerry McMullan, he just wanted to have a daily driver that would be cool to drive, and he wanted it to be black.