Bob Suffern was on the verge of building another street rod, but something wasn’t quite right.
“I was going to do another ’32 Roadster, but everybody was doing that, so I thought I’d do something different,” explains the native Aussie.
That’s when he got the idea for building a little big rig. He’s always liked the look of a Kenworth T-600 or Peterbilt 379 coming down the road, so he decided to build his own, but on a pickup chassis instead.
That was in 1999, when Suffern started Lil Big Rigs. Now, 17 years and about 50 little big rigs later, his small shop in Nashville is backlogged with business.
With help from three women, one of whom is his daughter, Suffern produces Lil Big Rig kits patterned, of course, after the Kenworth T-600 and the Peterbilt 379. Lil Kenny body kits range in price from $14,950 to $20,385, while Lil Pete kits run from $12,950 to $27,000. Suffern also sells completed trucks starting at $65,000.
Engines vary depending on the build and include the Chevy 350 and 454 and Ford 7.3-liter Power Stroke. You could always request a blown 454, if that’s more your style. Oh, and if the road tuckers you out, you can catch a few Zs in your sleeper cab.
While Suffern takes on most of the mechanical work, his all-female crew tackles the body work. They’ve got around a four-month backlog at the moment. Turnaround time for a kit is normally around six to eight weeks. Check out the gallery below. You can’t help but smile when you see one and appreciate that Suffern decided to try something different. For more information, visit lilbigrig.com.
