Out back, the fall to the earth was a little more complicated. Air Ride manufactures a bolt-on four-link system, known as the Air Bar, that replaces the factory leaf springs. Having perfected their skills on countless other factory suspensions, the folks at Air Ride Technologies decided to tackle the task of creating a similar four-link system for the popular Sport Trac.

    Out back, a three-link system was developed using two bottom bars that mount up to the OEM leaf spring hangers and one upper-link bar that is bolted to a bracket on the axlehousing and a bracket that rests on the frame crossmember. A bolt-on Panhard bar maintains rear differential placement, while upper and lower bag mounts were fabricated to house the Shockwave airbag and shock combination. A sensational 11-inch slam is realized when the bags are starved of their air supply. The beauty of the whole air suspension arrangement is that the Sport Trac has attitude laying on the ground and performing through the corners. Serving to set off the intense suspension slam are Billet Specialties Hollowpoint billet wheels smothered in BFGoodrich Comp T/A rubber. The front end is blessed with 17x8-inch Hollowpoints covered in 255/45-17 Comp T/A tires, while the rear wears 18x9.5-inch Hollowpoints clad in 295/45-18 skins.

After the installation of the air suspension was complete and the Sport Trac's height was no longer so aesthetically embarrassing, Bret and his staff took a look at the truck's factory body characteristics to determine how they could reshape it.

One of Air Ride's technicians, Todd Hartwick, just happened to have vast experience in the art of bodywork. So, without hesitation, his skills were put to work on the Sport Trac's untouched surfaces. Todd, with the help of Andy Leach and Dennis Niehaus, began smoothing and shaving until the factory tie-down hooks, the roof rack, the keyless entry keypad, and the tailgate handle were retired from service.

The rear bumper was given a shot put toward the trash can, and in its place now resides a custom roll pan, designed and built by Terry Delong at Pro Glass. The plastic panels that originally occupied the tops of the bedrails and the underside of the rocker panels were, removed to achieve a higher level of smooth . Replacing the annoying factory plastic rocker panel guards are custom reshaped rocker panels reworked from raw metal. The factory roor rack was removed, and the holes were smoothed and filled to allow the roof line to flow with the rest of the body.

Finally, the front of the bed was dropped down 2 inches to allow it to contour better to the back of the cab. The nose was then treated to a Pro Glass carbon-fiber Shaker hood for a little muscle-car flavoring, and a Trenz billet grille for a modern high-tech touch.

After Todd Hartwick, Andy Leach, and Dennis Niehaus finished the body sculpting, Todd rolled the Sport Trac into the paint booth and began spraying the House of Kolor Black over Tangerine Orange. The unique two-tone combination gives the Sport Trac a simple and classy appearance, making it a timeless piece of contemporary custom truck art.

Now that the Air Ride Technologies team was on the custom home stretch, it was time to spice up the factory interior and toss in some powerful audio components for cruising entertainment. Carbon-fiber dash and door panel trim enhancement pieces from Dashboards Plus were installed to complememt the factory leather seats. The factory audio capabilities were enhanced by a Kicker Impulse five-channel amplifier, Kicker 5x7 replacement door speakers, and a Kicker 8-inch subwoofer. The last audio wire was connected hours before the Sport Trac was loaded into the trailer and pulled to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas where it won the coveted Ford Design Award. The Sport Trac is an instant hit with everyone who turns his or her head in its direction. Word on the street is that Bret and his crew at Air Ride Technologies are already cooking up plans for the next year's SEMA project vehicle. All we can say is, look out!