At noon of the Hot Car Era (as opposed to the dawn, which is so far back in history that no one remembers it), the hop-up was all about how much clout the motor had. Nobody gave a hoot if the chassis, brakes, or tires could handle the power. Dessert plate-sized drums all around, manual steering (and the 53 turns lock-to-lock that went with it), the painfully thin front anti-sway bar (if there was one at all), and those wonderful bias-plies rightly created a gasoline-bomb on wheels. The concept of a total or balanced engine/chassis package was yet to be implemented or even imagined. Shazam! 450 hp and no way to control it.
Ignorance was not bliss. The federal government and the insurance company gargoyles put an end to the fun in '72, and it only took about 10 more years for Detroit to embrace the efficiency of a balanced package. The light-duty truck? It was still pretty much of a crowbar. It hauled or towed, and that was basically the end of it. No creature comforts to speak of (unless you were a hay bale) and a very un-car-like ride.
Now, light-duty pickups will easily out-handle those sport coupes we thought were so nimble. Since they are still trucks and are still meant for carrying and hauling, they still go together with a leaf-spring rear suspension (buckboard stuff that was excised from passenger cars years ago). We're not calling a 2 1/2-ton truck light on its feet, but there is some small cause for celebration.
Happily, every aftermarket suspension maker so inclined has the Silverado in its crosshairs. Last month we installed and tested a Hotchkis Total Vehicle Suspension system, tempered it with Bilstein dampers specific to the package, applied some fat Goodyears to Weld Evo wheels, and experienced pleasing, if not downright amazing, reactions. Handling and ride quality improved markedly. Ride comfort remained as gentle and as fluid as it was with the stock suspension. And empirical data revealed the following improvements: 600-foot slalom: 54.3 mph to 62.4 mph; 200-foot skidpad: 0.79g to 0.84g (nearly as tight as a Fourth-Gen Camaro).
This month's focus is on the Red Dog's braking. Baseline testing showed the system (albeit with the lowered suspension and wider wheels and tires) was excellent, something that isn't readily apparent during normal driving. To discover the advantage of the Stainless Steel Force 10 Tri-Power 14-inch-diameter front and rear brakes, and if they are worth the fuss, turn the page.