Truck Trend: Project Rolling Thunder, part 5

After installing a Paxton Supercharger, StopTech six-pot brakes, 17-inch SVT wheels, Goodyear Eagle F-1 tires, JBA headers, Tokico shocks, Eibach Springs, Hotchkis anti-roll bars, K&N Filtercharger, and a Borla cat-back exhaust system, the once sedate, mild-mannered '98 Ford Expedition, also known as Project Thunder, is beyond just extreme--it's a menace to the pavement, a threat to all things civil, and a downright blast to drive.

Now that all these extreme performance enhancements have taken place, what's next? What could possibly up the ante on our green beast? Alpine Electronics stepped to the plate with a complete entertainment system: in-dash DVD/CD player replete with flip-up LCD monitor, rear overhead video console with LCD monitor and independent head set jacks, GPS unit, and Alpine 5x7 direct-replacement coaxial speakers for pure, crisp sound delivery.

To make it all work, however, the existing aftermarket console had to be addressed. A mere excuse of a seat splitter, it was once home to an abandoned navigation system. The computer was subtle, hidden beneath the confines of the otherwise large unit. But the flip-up doors weren't impressively flipping anymore, and the unit was taking up useful space. A new console was needed; one that would be sharp, well built, and match the tan color of the interior. Cerullo of Pomona, California, was contacted for an opinion.

Makers of various custom interiors, Cerullo yanked the hideous console and custom made a compact unit with leather that matched the original seats, something the computerized version didn't exactly do. The Cerullo unit would also act as a third seat/cupholder. And, in the interest of being a usable seat, it was mounted on a slide track that could move forward and back like the two factory front buckets.

The Turn-by-Turn GPS unit is obviously satellite controlled. The small black box atop the dash is the communication port.

One thing the old console did was hide the wires controlling the data system, which were now protruding through the underside of the dash. The small size of the Cerullo unit didn't effectively hide them. Another problem, we later discovered, was that the compact size prevented (or so we thought would prevent) the installation of the Alpine CD changer. Disappointments in hand, we began a search for a stock, full-size Expedition console or even one from a Navigator. For this part, we turned to Mike Minasian of Rainbow Auto Dismantling.