Here’s a riddle for you: what is a classic commercial truck, has the size of a modern heavy-duty pickup truck, and makes for one of the most standout trucking builds out there? It’s Tanner Riedel’s yellow ’42 Kenworth, of course!
When this contraption occupies the camera frame alone, one might be tempted to mistake it for a regular old-school truck from the 1940s (for the record, we’re not 100% sure of this unit’s 1942 year, since Kenworth was handling WWII vehicle and component production at the time).
However, the way in which the exhaust pipes dwarf the whole thing might raise an eyebrow or two, with this being the main clue towards the outlandish nature of the vehicle.
Enter Mini Big Rig land
However, once a person or another vehicle goes next to the machine, it quickly becomes obvious that this is a radical build. You see, the full-size Kenworth cab now sits on a custom frame, hence the size of the thing and its “mini big rig” label.
The owner turned to Arizona-based Pickett Custom Trucks for the build, with the process having started a few years ago (the truck keeps getting updates and we’ll get back to that later on in the story).
The said custom frame features a pair of GM 1-ton axles at the back, which also sport hydraulic disc brakes. As for the number of driven axles, we can see the truck pulling a burnout in one of the pictures below, with only the rear axle appearing to do the work.
However, we can’t keep you waiting anymore, so here’s what’s hiding in the old-school nose of the machine: this truck is powered by a 12V Cummins. And the straight-six, whose stock displacement sits at 359 ci (5.9L), now features two turbos that deliver compound boost.
The resulting big power is mandatory, since the build is used to towing at times, having pulled a variety of trailers since it was completed (have you seen these 3,000 HP trucks drag racing with 120,000 lbs trailers attached?). The Air Lift Performance suspension means the truck gets to lay frame, while riding on super-sized Alcoa wheels that make their low-profile tires appear more like rubber bands.
It packs an automatic!
The cabin maintains the classic look, albeit with a clean modern treatment in terms of fit and finish. Oh, and while this is no tight fit by any margin, there’s no room for the usual commercial truck clutch in there (here’s a restomodded 1987 Kenworth K100 with a story like no other). That’s because this bad boy features an automatic transmission supplied by Allison.
As with many standout projects out there, the yellow 42 Kenworth keeps evolving. So, the images in the gallery below, which come from the owner’s Instagram, show the truck in various stages of development. As for the YouTube clip (lens tip to Krookid Photography), this presents the vehicle as it was in 2019.
Regardless, the mix of patina and chrome on this diminutive big rig is the kind that can have you staring at it endlessly, so don’t feel guilty if this also happens to you.
