Relatable and ready

Brian Bush’s Matte Forest Metallic GMC HD AT4

This month’s Shell Rotella Truck of the Month goes to a regular here, Brian Bush. Brian Bush is no stranger to building cool trucks that are just as ready for real off-road adventures as the biggest car show in the world. He has debuted an impressive array of diesel builds at each of the past five SEMA Shows, all to quite some fanfare.

His 2022 SEMA build might be the least flashy and least built truck he’s ever done, but it also got massive attention, and rightfully so. His 2022 GMC 2500 AT4 Duramax build is not only gorgeous, comfortable, and capable, but the attention to detail and unassuming looks really make it stand out from the crowd.

Bush chalks up the fan fair around this AT4 build to it being a “relatable” build. It has that OEM+ look, a stealthy and luxury-feeling color palate, and at first glance could be mistaken for a basic bolt-on build. Of course, that is far from the real story of this truck, with custom details throughout that truly bring it all together.

Why an HD GMC?

Besides being cool show trucks, Bush also uses his builds regularly for family adventures. His family are big off-road adventure fans, spending weekends camping, dirt biking, mountain biking, fishing, and more. Their most recent hobby is sport bike track days, which requires towing a heavily loaded 20-foot box trailer all over the American southwest. That towing component is what lead Bush to get a Heavy-Duty diesel truck.

The “why” a GMC part is a combination of personal passion/taste and being different from the crowds. There are massive volumes of the big three American trucks at SEMA each year, but only a handful of GMC. Building a GMC has gotten the attention Bush wants for his sponsors over the past five years, and helped separate him from the sea of big truck builds at SEMA.

Last Minute Build

A spot on the show floor at SEMA, in the Truck Hero booth, was only confirmed about 8 weeks before show load in. Bush didn’t even have a truck, no less parts on their way, when he got word that the spot was his. Even worse, he set out on a two-week adventure motorcycle trip along the Continental Divide the morning after hearing the news.

He waffled for those two weeks while spending long days inside his own head looking through his helmet visor. The stress would be high to bring it all together properly for the show, but on the other hand, it was an amazing opportunity to see another one of his build ideas come to life, and not break the now five-year SEMA build tradition.

Finding a Truck

With limited internet and phone service on the motorcycle trip he searched far and wide for a truck. Specifically, a 4WD, crew cab, short bed, Cardinal Red, GMC Sierra 2500 with a 6.6L Duramax. The trim level didn’t really matter, as his build concept and build partners could take even a base model to SEMA show truck levels of custom quality.

With zero luck finding a truck to start the build with in those first two weeks the build outlook was bleak, and Bush had pretty much given up hope of it coming together in time. This was even true after stumbling across a new color that “blew him away,” Forrest Metallic. Red trucks have become part of his signature builds, but this deep metallic green was the one color that could sway him.

Roadside Truck Purchase

The two-week moto ride concluded near the Canadian border, with a long slog of highway to conquer on the return home to Arizona. The idea of throwing the bikes in the back of a new pickup for the return trip was an appealing option all along, and a perfect scenario with the SEMA build deadline looming, but with none found, riding the bikes back was the program, with truck build hopes barely on life support.

Things change quickly though. After refueling the bikes for the next highway push, the motorcyclist rolled past a GMC dealer and Bush noticed a 2022 Forrest Metallic GMC Sierra AT4 on the lot. With his online searches and phone calls producing no availability, it was a long shot, but it couldn’t hurt to ask.

Bush says he; “rode right up to the front door and walked in covered in bugs, dirt, grime, and whatever else had collected on my gear from the last two-week adventure.” Without taking off his helmet, as he figured he was surely wasting time, he asked if the truck was available. With a ”sure is” response from the salesman, Bush didn’t hesitate. “If you can get those two adventure bikes strapped down in the bed, and the paperwork done in an hour or less, I’ll take it.”

Two hours later, after a shower and clean up in the dealership locker room, Bush and his best friend Brian Kozan settled into the cooled, plush leather seats of the AT4 with their bikes strapped down in the truck bed. They tag-teamed the drive back to Arizona in just 20 hours, planning out every detail of the truck build along the way.

SEMA Crunch

With less than six weeks before the truck would be on display at SEMA, Bush had to outsource much of the heavy lifting on the build to get it done on time. The experts at G&M Motorsports handled the suspension, wheels, tires, and alignment. The setup included Fox 2.5 shocks, Superlift leveling kit, Kryptonite steering components, Deaver Springs mini pack, and Air Lift Load Lifter airbags with Wireless EZ Mount compressor. A set of 17-inch Raceline Ryno wheels wrapped in Toyo Open Country RT Trail 37-inch rubber finish off the new stance.

Next up was getting the truck looking perfect and adding all the custom color-matched touches. Tint Cartel handled the detail, window tint, and a full-body matte PPF. When applying matte PPF to a vehicle, you’ll always be left with some exposed gloss-painted surfaces on areas that cannot easily be covered with film. All of these surfaces were sent out to Supreme Retroz for paint and/or matte clear coat. The Chassis Unlimited Prolite winch bumper and Warn Industries Epic shackles were also powder coated to match.

The level of detail here is impressive, with even the headlights and taillights being disassembled, painted, and reassembled. Bush even bought new AT4 badges that were chrome and red and had them refinished to match the black chrome and bronze of the OEM AT4 grille. To finish off the clean custom look a suede starlight LED headliner was installed, which even has shooting stars that move across it.

Final Push

The truck was buttoned up back in Bush’s home workshop over the final week. With help from his good friend Mike McKeen and the crew from Tint Cartel stopping in, the final punch list was knocked out. There was still a lot to do, even though the truck was looking sharp.

The back of the truck got a fully optioned and color-matched ARE CX Revo bed cap with an Ascend roof rack on top. The tuck bed was completed with a Bed Rug bed mat and Undercover Swing Cases. So Bush and his family are ready for real adventure the bed was loaded with a Warn off-road recovery kit, Factor55 Baja Kinetic recovery kit, and a Boxo Tools Motobox.

A Switch Pros Force 12 power management system handles the massive suite of Baja Designs lighting throughout the build. A Banks Derringer tuner with iDash DataMonster and Banks Pedal Monster help dial in the truck for the type of performance that will be asked of it, whether highway cruising, off-roading, or towing. A big Banks 5-inch Monster DPF back exhaust and Banks Ram Air intake let the truck breathe easy. A set of AMP Research XL power steps make getting in and out of the tall truck easy, while a Warn VR Evo 12 winch in the front bumper ensures it won’t be stuck for long if it gets in trouble off road.

The truck was completed and in 100% working order at around midnight, with Bush hitting the road at 3am to make his load-in time at SEMA. Bush drives his builds to the show, something he prides himself on, even turning down a free tow this year.

For more on Brian Bush and his incredible truck builds be sure to follow him on Instagram at @DenaliPrerunner.

2022 GMC Sierra AT4 Build

Exterior: Raceline 951BZ Ryno 17×9, Toyo Open Country RT Trail 37×12.50 R17, Fox 2.5 Elite Series Shocks, Superlift Leveling Kit, Deaver Mini Pack Leaf Springs, 1” Lift, Chassis Unlimited Prolite Front Winch Bumper, Warn VR Evo 12 Winch, Warn Industries Epic Shackles, Banks Ram-Air Differential Cover, Baja Designs Lighting (GMC S1 dual fog light kit, GMC S2 dual reverse light kit, Squadron Pro angled scene lights X4, XL Linkable light bar, OnX6 ARC 30” dual control light bar, S2 Pro auxiliary a-pillar lights, S2 Pro amber dust lights, LED rock light kit X2), AMP Research XL Power Steps, Airlift Load Lifter Pro Series Ultimate Wireless Air EZ Mount Compressor System

Interior: Banks Derringer Tuner w/ iDash DataMonster, Switch Pros Force 12 Power Management System, Sueded Starlight LED Headliner

Under the Hood: Banks Pedal Monster, Banks Ram Air intake, Kryptonite Steering Components (Upper control arm kit, Death Grip Idler support kit, SS center link and tie rod kit), Banks 5” Monster Exhaust DPF Back

Truck Bed: ARE Accessories CX Revo Bed Cap, ARE Ascend Roof Rack, Bed Rug Bed Mat, Undercover Swing Cases X2, Warn 29460 Recovery kit, Factor 55 Factor55 Baja Kinetic Kit, Boxo Tools Motobox