BIG BLOCK ADDICT
One enthusiast’s love affair with the “Truck from Hell”
THE YEAR WAS 1990. With the sport truck craze in full swing, GM decided to offer a factory fast/performance pedigree pickup to the public to appeal to the enthusiast with a heavy right foot and a need to haul and tow. The
454 SS was born and filled a niche with a power packed ½ ton, short wheel base truck that hadn’t exited GM assembly lines since the 70s.
Its rounded, modern day body lines, 454 SS badging and graphic package, distinctive and sinister egg crate grille and chrome sport wheels combined with the torque monster under the hood made the “Truck from Hell” a force to be reckoned with. Production ran from 1990-1993 with just a mere 17,000 trucks hitting the streets across the country. Fast forward 28 years, and the 454 SS trucks are rarely seen and highly collectible with price tags that warrant a double take.
Sriyantha Weerasuria from Austin, Texas, has developed a love affair with the 454 SS trucks and currently has three in his collection preceded by approximately 20 over the years. Like most gearheads, Sriyantha’s cam shaft thumping passion came from his father who introduced him to the world of power and speed at the ripe young age of 14. Today Sriyantha is the owner and operator of Elite Motorsports in Austin, Texas, and turned the tire frying passion of his youth into a successful business where he spends his days buying and selling high-end exotic cars such as Porsches, Lamborghinis, Ferraris and BMWS. With more than 30 years in business, Sriyantha has been able to live his passion fueled by a lifetime of experience behind the wheel of everything from Trans Am’s to exotics and of course his coveted 454 SS trucks.
SRIYANTHA WEERASURIA HAS SUCCESSFULLY ASSEMBLED THE ULTIMATE TRIFECTA OF 454 SS PICKUPS. THE “TRUCK FROM HELL” MADE HISTORY WHEN GM INTRODUCED IT TO THE PUBLIC NEARLY 30 YEARS AGO.”
transmission with a 2500 Stall speed converter hooked to an aluminum driveshaft delivers the
648 horsepower and 610 ft-lbs of torque to the factory 14-bolt rear end loaded with 4.10:1 gears. Griffin Metal Shaping in Austin set the truck down right with a 4/6 drop complete with a flip kit and C-notch out back and Belltech drop spindles and QA1 coil-overs up front. Setting off the slam are 20x8-inch front and 20x10-inch rear American Racing Grey Spoke Torque Thrust II wheels mounted on P245/40ZR20 front and P295/40ZR20 rear Yokohama skins.
For cruising tunes Sriyantha went with an
Alpine head unit, JL Audio 1000-watt amplifier, MB Quartz speakers in the factory locations and two 10-inch subwoofers behind the seat. Friend Nathan Gonzales installed the spine tickling beats in the SS’ cabin.