Slide 1

Brand-new super-off-roaders are available from a variety of manufacturers these days, boasting acres of ground clearance, sophisticated 4-wheel-drive systems, and trail-ready suspension right from the factory. But keeping them going through tough, untested terrain for days at a time is another story. That’s where the adventure begins for Summit Racing’s Project Silverado—our vision of the ultimate overlanding rig.

Slide 2

Our goal with the build was to turn this everyday pickup into a trail-smashing beast without totally compromising its ability to be driven every day. To do that, we upfitted our 2021 Chevrolet Silverado RST Z71 with rugged tires, storage boxes, equipment racks, LED lights, a rooftop tent, and more: this bowtie-wearing beast packs all the capability needed to ditch the beaten path in the name of adventure.

Slide 3

Standard all-weather tires aren’t going to cut it when you’re slogging through a washed-out trail, so we swapped the Chevy’s factory shoes for a set of Maxxis RAZR MT 34" tires. These meaty grabbers don’t just keep us moving over slippery rocks and soft surfaces; they also provide an extra inch of ground clearance over stock. The best part? No obnoxious drone on the way to the trail. A set of fifteen52 Turbomac HD wheels helps keep the unsprung weight under control while serving up a rugged look.

Slide 4

The importance of upgraded suspension cannot be overstated, especially when it’s (literally) carrying you through the middle of nowhere. Beefed up shocks and control arms help this truck take a beating without sacrificing road manners. Knowing this, we swapped our Chevy’s existing suspension in favor of an ICON Vehicle Dynamics Stage 2 lift kit to raise our rig an additional 3" for improved clearance over uncertain terrain. A set of ProRYDE 3-N-1 SuperBLOK leaf spring blocks keeps our rig level.

Slide 5

Now that our Silverado is ready to run through the wilderness, we can focus our attention on the exterior of the truck. A beefy set of bumpers are always a great idea for a rig like this, and typically allow for extra accessory mounting as well. For this build, we dropped the plain-Jane factory equipment in favor of Stealth front and Stealth Fighter rear bumper upgrades from Addictive Desert Designs. These promise to keep our truck protected from hard bumps and bruises and give us recovery mounting options on the occasions where Mother Nature gets the upper hand.

Slide 6

With bumper protection tackled, we added a set of attractive Raptor Magnum RT Gen 2 step bars. These don’t just look good; they’re a quality-of-life improvement! With four inches of added lift, a drop step is a huge help for climbing in and out of the truck, especially if you’re carrying tools or gear with you.

We’ve also installed a pair of Husky Liner wheel well guards into the rear inner fenders of our truck. These clean up the look of the underside of our pickup, and protect against damage and corrosion. Plus, they make cleanup a breeze; a quick hosing off, and our truck looks like it never left the pavement!

Slide 7

All these upgrades and equipment are great, but they do bring about a weight penalty. Not to worry, though—we can add a few more horses to our wagon to keep it moving right along.

Keeping the intake charge cool is a sure way to extract more power from our 5.3L Vortec engine, so we started by bolting on a Corsa DryTech 3-D cold air intake system. The filter is washable and reusable as well, providing a long service life even in the dustiest and dirtiest conditions. Behind the engine, we installed a stainless steel Corsa Performance Sport exhaust system to keep the power flowing. The result of these simple upgrades? More power and that oh-so-sweet rumble we all love.

Slide 8

We didn’t want a little darkness to put an end to our adventure, so we installed some Rigid Industries E-Series PRO and D-Series Dually D2 LED lights. The 20" E-Series bar mounts perfectly in the center of the front bumper, and the D-Series cube lights tuck neatly into integrated pockets of both bumpers. This arrangement of LEDs gives us a huge boost in visibility over the regular headlights, fully illuminating the trail and making obstacles easier to spot.

Slide 9

To keep our installation neat and tidy, we also opted for a Garmin PowerSwitch. This device is simple to install and features numerous outputs for controlling accessories like our LED lights. This means we have room for expansion as well, and with the PowerSwitch in place, the new wiring is simple. It also can be controlled from a Garmin device in the cab (more on that later).

Slide 10

Why does it seem like you never realize your gear is lost or damaged until you need it most? Anticipating this, we’ve equipped our Silverado with some pretty trick storage solutions to keep our stuff safe and exactly where we want it. UnderCover’s SwingCase mounts to the inside panels of the bed, providing the perfect place to store smaller tools and gear without restricting access to the bed.

Slide 11

For the larger equipment, we’ve installed a pair of Putco MOLLE racks. They provide simple, rugged mounting locations for all kinds of gear: tow straps, axes, fire extinguishers, you name it. And to protect our truck’s bed from dents and scratches (and our muddy boots), a WeatherTech TechLiner bed liner stands strong against repeated use and abuse.

Slide 12

Suspension, performance, storage; this truck is ready for anything. All we need now to conquer the unknown are some tools and accessories to help guide our way. With tons of upfitting options, where do you even start? For us, the answer was simple, and probably the most recognizable piece of any overlanding build...

Slide 13

...the ubiquitous bed/roof rack! One of our requirements for this build was the ability to continue using our truck for regular hauling duty. That meant bolting on an ADD-Lander Overlanding rack from Addictive Desert Designs. By using an elevated rack, our bed remains accessible for hauling or storage on the trail. This rack provides a mounting base so strong, you’re only limited by the strength of your bedsides when choosing what to mount on top.

Slide 14

With camping as an essential pillar of the overlanding experience, what better to toss up top than a tent? We decided on a Thule Tepui Explorer Series Kukenam 3 rooftop mount tent to give us our own space out in the wilderness, allowing us to rest easy and recharge for the next day’s adventure.

Slide 15

With a solid eight hours of rooftop rest, we know we’ll be ready to take on any challenge. But it never hurts to have a little help getting where you’re going. That’s why we brought along a Garmin Overlander GPS. This little technological wonder provides us with all sorts of navigational goodies, like topographic and trail maps, and it even integrates with the PowerSwitch to control our lights from inside the cab. Perhaps more importantly, we also opted to pack up a Dometic CFX3 powered cooler full of our favorite fireside drinks and snacks.

Slide 16

Rocks, mud, sand, streams; there’s nothing this truck can’t conquer. We’ve got everything we need to take us anywhere we want to go. But the adventure doesn’t stop there! If we ever need to upgrade our rig, we can dive back in thanks to Summit’s extensive inventory of parts and accessories.

If you’re thinking about an overlanding build yourself, head over to SummitRacing.com/Truck to browse parts and gear for your rig. And if you want to learn even more about overlanding, visit us at OnAllCylinders.com to check out our buyer's guides and tech articles to help you plan your own adventure! 

For more photos and installation videos, visit our Project Silverado page at SummitRacing.com!