Chevrolet introduced its new 3100 pickup trucks in the fall of 1941, but like many facets of American manufacturing during the war-torn years that followed, civilian production soon ground to a halt, with only trucks meant to directly support the war efforts continuing to roll off the assembly line. Production resumed in 1945 as the conflict neared its end, however, the early runs of trucks famously shipped with painted grilles and trim rather than the striking chrome that originally came equipped due to material shortages.

While Steve Ballentyne’s 1946 model was not one of those affected “blackout” models, in a way, it visually embodies the spirit of stripped-down automobiles and machines of the WWII era. After all, it is missing its fenders and its running boards, leaving only what looks like a skeleton of the beautiful, classically-styled shell.

The Canadian’s pickup project began as an idea—one ignited by the desire to go faster without compromising the integrity of his other pride and joy, a 1968 Pontiac LeMans. “I got the itch to compete after taking the LeMans to the track,” Steve opens. “But I liked the car too much to turn it into a full race car build.” With that, he set about scrolling through Facebook Marketplace, where he stumbled on the rusted remnants of the 1946 Chevy pickup just two hours from his home in Tillsonburg, Ontario. “I wanted something different, something you don’t see every day at the track,” he recalls. “S10s and full-size Chevys are everywhere, but this ‘46 stood out.”

Steve bought the truck in the summer of 2021 and immediately set to work transforming it in his garage. Over the next two years, it underwent a complete transformation, emerging from the shop as a 1,000-horsepower, twin-turbocharged racing machine with the sole purpose of tearing down the dragstrip. This was a very personal project for Steve, his lifetime intrigue with fast cars poured into one gnarly build. “I didn’t have any formal training for this kind of build,” Steve admits, “But I’ve always believed in figuring things out as you go. You break something, you fix it. That’s how you learn.”

The truck is powered by a stroked 6.0L LS engine that began with a 2007 GM block. Steve turned to Precision Automotive Machine Shop in Niagara Falls, Ontario, to bring his vision to life. The engine now displaces 408 cubic inches, thanks to a Texas Speed forged 4-inch stroke crankshaft, matching TSP forged rods, and Wiseco forged pistons. The compression ratio is a turbo-friendly 10:1, perfect for the pair of VS Racing 70/70 turbos that force-feed the engine lots of boosted air. A TSP Stage 3 hydraulic camshaft with a 231/239 duration and .640/.629 lift gives the engine an aggressive profile, while the factory GM 823 aluminum heads, machined and fitted with Manley valves, keep the airflow optimized.

To manage the massive air and fuel demands, Steve equipped the truck with a Holley Split Port intake manifold, a 102mm Holley throttle body, and twin MagnaFuel 750 fuel pumps feeding FIC 1700cc injectors. A Holley Terminator X ECU ties it all together, giving Steve complete control over the engine’s tuning. Ignition is handled by Granatelli coils and Dragon Fire 10mm wires, sparking NGK BR7EF plugs. Cooling the charged air is a Frozen Boost air-to-water intercooler, which ensures intake temperatures stay in check during hard passes.

All of this translates into serious performance on the dyno: 1,000 horsepower and 850 lb-ft of torque. On the track, the truck has run a best quarter-mile time of 9.46 seconds at 145 mph, with a blistering 60-foot launch of 1.36 seconds.

Transferring that power to the ground is a built 4L80E transmission from Transmission Experts in Hamilton, Ontario. It’s fitted with a J&K 10-inch triple-disc torque converter, which stalls at 3,600 RPM, and features a transbrake for dragstrip launches. From there, a 3-inch chrome-moly driveshaft transmits to a Ford 9-inch rearend equipped with a Yukon spool, 3.70 gears, and 35-spline Quick Performance axles. Steve built the driveline to be bulletproof for his combination to handle the forces generated by the turbocharged LS powerplant.

Steve didn’t stop at just the powertrain, as he knew the chassis and suspension would need to match the engine’s capabilities. The truck’s front suspension retains a nostalgic feel with a solid axle and mono-leaf spring setup, a nod to its 1940s origins. In the rear, modern design takes over with a Bears Performance 4-link system, Strange double-adjustable shocks, and 125-pound springs. A Rhodes anti-roll bar ensures the truck stays planted under power, allowing Steve to put every bit of the engine’s output to the ground. Stopping duties are handled by Wilwood Duralite brakes up front and Ford Explorer discs in the rear, providing reliable performance when it’s time to slow things down.

On its exterior, the truck is as striking as it is functional. Originally a rusty orange weathered by time, it now wears a sleek battleship gray paint job that Steve applied himself. The fenders were removed for a more aggressive, race-ready look, and a Chevy Colorado roll pan was welded into the bed. The result is a truck that’s both menacing and minimalist, turning heads whether it’s staged at the starting line or sitting in the pits. Inside, the truck features Kirkey race seats, a full 8.50-cert roll cage, and a Holley Pro Dash, which displays all the critical data Steve needs when running down the ‘strip.

Steve’s racing journey began with his LeMans, but strict Ontario street-racing laws pushed him to take it to the track. “The laws here are no joke. You get caught doing 50 kilometers over the speed limit, and they’ll impound your car and suspend your license,” he explains. “I wasn’t willing to risk losing my car, so I started going to the track. Once I saw what other guys were doing with street car events, I knew I wanted to compete.”

That desire to chase speed on the track is what led to the ’46 Chevy project. And while he does take the pickup out on the street on a regular basis, it’s purely for cruising these days. “I try to get it out for a drive every week during the warmer months,” he notes.

Along with itching his competitive spirit, this project was about Steve proving something to himself. “What I love most about this truck is that I built it in my garage. I didn’t have experience building a chassis or anything of this level, but I dove in and figured it out. And when I take it to the track and it works, there’s no better feeling,” he says. The project wasn’t without its challenges, but Steve embraced every setback as an opportunity to learn something new. “It’s a lot of trial and error, but that’s what makes it rewarding.”

The truck’s history adds another layer of intrigue. When Steve registered it, he discovered it had been a one-owner vehicle for 76 years before he found it—a rare feat for a vehicle of its age. “It’s funny to think about — this truck probably spent decades as a farmer’s workhorse, and now it’s running nines at the dragstrip. I doubt the original owner could have imagined this,” he quips.

Steve has no plans to slow down — while the truck currently runs in local truck classes, he’s constantly refining the build and exploring new opportunities to compete. For now, the focus is on maximizing performance and enjoying the fruits of his labor. “I didn’t build this truck to blend in, I built it to stand out and to go fast.” Drag-and-drive events are also on the docket. “When I built the chassis, I welded a trailer hitch behind the fold down license plate. I’m actually on the wait list for Sick Summer, and I was thinking of doing Drag Week in the future.”

From its humble beginnings as a rusted-out relic to its makeover into a 1,000-horsepower powerhouse, Steve’s pickup embodies the spirit of do-it-yourself engineering and the passion that drives enthusiasts to keep pushing the limits of what’s possible.