Josh, the owner of Vague Industries, owns a monster of a vehicle that he describes as being “scary” and a “weapon”, and it takes less than a quick glance to see why. This 1977 Toyota Hilux was plucked out of the Arizona desert, and has been turned into something insane since. Not only is it heavy modified, it’s also been a very interesting vehicle along the way.
This truck had been abandoned in the desert for 15 years before Josh bought it for $250, and he spent about a week trying to get it to run again. After getting it on the road on the way back to New Hampshire, it developed a wrist pin knock in the four-cylinder engine. He took it to the shop of a friend since it couldn’t make it back to his home, and things spiraled into full blown project mode from there.
The front and rear suspension are from a 2006 Ford Crown Vic and it is powered by a turbocharged 5.3-liter engine that has a 100-shot of nitrous that goes straight into the intake that acts in place of the intercooler. After these heavy modifications, it was back on the road to New Hampshire, but it was not smooth sailing as it took 35 stops to diagnose or fix issues along the way. Josh doesn’t consider the cross-country trip to be a loss, quite the opposite.
Along the way to get the truck home, many people helped donate their time, parts, and just offered the crew a place to sleep or take a shower. The truck is decorated with the signatures of people who helped keep this adventure going and pointed towards home. He had originally planned on finishing/smoothing out the widebody work and painting it an attractive black color, but it’s gained so much notoriety along the way, that Josh has changed his mind and wants to clear coat it to preserve its current state instead.
Elizabeth is hardcore horsepower enthusiast with unmatched intensity for making things faster and louder. She wakes up for power and performance and only sleeps to charge up for the next project that’s heading to the track. From autocross to drag racing, Elizabeth is there with you, so stay tuned for her unique perspective on horsepower news, builds, tech info, and installs — with her, it’ll never be boring!
