Hot in the Lot
Calder Billhardt's Chevy Tahoe
NEIRAD enilno editionWhile Chevy’s trademark Tahoe SUV may be the perfect All-American vehicle for the average suburban family, make no mistake in thinking your typical high school teenage boy would be bored with this ride. Although it took a lot of work, senior Calder Billhardt transformed a comfortable 2005 nine-passenger sport utility vehicle into a serious beat-dropping machine capable of ruining anyone’s Saturday afternoon picnic. This SUV isn’t a soccer mom’s way of transporting her tribe of children. (well anymore anyway) No it is a powerful, stylish, ride that packs a knockout of a punch when cruising down the street.
Instead of lugging around six kids and two dogs, Calder equipped his 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe with a 600-watt Kenwood dual channel amplifier and two 10-inch JBL subwoofers.
So what does that mean? This thing can scream a whole lot louder than any cranky two year-old. Calder’s audio revamp drastically improved the car’s stereo sound and gave this family SUV a good amount of much needed street credit. This thing thumps. Check out the video as we observe the consequences of placing a camera in Calder’s trunk.
To fully understand, or moreover have respect for the hardware in this Tahoe’s trunk, one must realize the essential components to any audio system. Power goes from the head unit to the component speakers (four main, each with three components). However, in order to get the desired volume out of a radio, an amplifier is needed to amplify the sound frequencies and waves. In terms of sound waves, bigger equals louder.
However it is also important to realize the range of frequencies that emerge from most stereo songs. High frequencies are best represented by component speakers, or in Calder’s case, the Bose component speakers in his Tahoe. Low frequencies on the other hand, or bass, is more accurately replicated by large semi-rigid speakers, or the subwoofers. In all, Calder’s stereo system is optimized to replicate sound to the closest of its full potential, consisting of a powerful amp to power large subwoofers.
The system is LOUD to say the least. It bumps, thumps, and vibrates nearly anything in a 20-foot radius. While going for a short ride, the vibrations from the subs were enough to knock a screw out from the overhead compartment!
But an audio upgrade is not the only thing Calder has done to his Tahoe, Calder added HID low beams and fog lights, inserted 12,000k neon ambient lighting around the interior, and blacked out the taillights, front side markers, and front Chevy emblem.
Calder’s Chevy Tahoe got a whole new look when he smoked out his tail lights, front turn signals, and parts of the headlights. There are two common ways to smoke lights, tinting, or spraying. The tinting method, which Calder opted for, is done in a similar manner to window tints or vinyl applications where a thin film is laid over and formed to the contours to the light assembly. Spraying the lights with a high gloss transparent charcoal paint is also common but is permanent. Typically local law enforcement frowns upon any obstruction of light communication with other traffic, but Calder can always peel off the film if he gets in any trouble. Calder then focused on blacking out the front Chevy logo by coating it in a high gloss paint to keep with the theme. Shortly after, he popped in 10,000k HID low beam headlights and 10,000k fog lights from DDM tuning to give it a final aggressive look.
When you take a step into the interior you will be impressed by shades of neon blue throughout the cabin. Calder wired up five 12,000k street glow neon tubes in the interior, which gives the Tahoe a custom look.
Calder started with a semi-blank slate when he took over driving the Tahoe once he got his license in the summer. I say semi-blank slate because Chevrolet did a good job of taking care of all the performance a 17 yr old would ever ask for when they packed 295 horsepower out of a 5.3 liter Vortec V8. Despite being a heavy SUV with a curb weight of 5,192lbs, the engine pushes the Tahoe quicker than one might expect with an astounding 335 ft/lbs of torque, meaning that all Calder had to do was make it look (and sound) as mean as it really was.
Although the SUV has come a long way since Calder’s parents bought their Chevy Tahoe Z71 five years ago, there is no denying it was an impressive truck in the first place. Chevy gained its crown for safe, reliable, family friendly, SUV’s because of amazing feats like the Tahoe. The Tahoe has a four-wheel drive system that gives the driver incredible control off-road and in snowy slippery conditions. The ride height is substantial, which gives the driver unobstructed visibility, allowing them to make better decision on the road. Overall, this SUV is the perfect choice for a family with two children readily acquiring their licenses.
Before Calder, his older sister, Colby, drove the Tahoe for two years. Little brother snagged it once he got his license and Colby left for UConn this past fall. Colby’s in for a big surprise when she comes home on holiday break to see what lil’ bro’s done to the family ride.
