Words by Devin Fawkes Photos By Tanner Pare
Tell us a bit about yourself. Who are you? What do you do? Where do you live? What makes you happiest?
My name is Devin Fawkes. I’m based in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, I’m a mountain bike rider and coach who enjoys going out and exploring new places on weekends with my friends. I’m also heading into my final year of Kinesiology at Vancouver Island University. What makes me happiest is being out in nature in any form, whether that is on my bike, camping, trail building, or in my truck.
Describe your vehicle: make, model, etc.
My truck is a 1987 Toyota Pickup with the 22RE, and it’s got just under 300xxx km.
Why did you pick this truck specifically?
My dad and I bought this truck as a project. We started with old Honda Odyssey go-karts during COVID, which we flipped into a couple of Jeeps. I also had a 4x4 diesel ambulance that I ended up flipping into this as well. I’ve always wanted a Toyota, all of my older friends who used to drive me around drove Tacomas and pickups, so it’s just always been a dream vehicle. This one came up for sale, and they took our lowball, so that’s why I have it now.
What sort of work have you done/are planning to do on this truck?
So far I’ve done a lot of “maintenance” to the truck, redid part of the frame, rebuilt both front hub assemblies, fuel pump, some sensors, built both front and rear bumpers, a tent rack, also did a Chevy 63 spring swap for a bit more travel in the rear and a small level in the front to match. As of now, I have some big projects on the go, I am just finishing the bodywork on a new cab since this one has a decent amount of rust which I will be swapping on this winter, I also have a Toyota mini truck axle to go under the front that I got for a price I couldn’t say no too.
Describe your favorite feature of your vehicle.
I love that this truck is the in-between, it feels like you’re driving a classic truck, but having the fuel injection and small extras make it a lot more drivable. I also think it's hilarious how, for a very basic build, it can go most places you point it!
Best location/adventure you've ever had with your vehicle?
My favorite locations this truck has been are some of the beaches and lakes on the more northern parts of Vancouver Island, and all of the small lookouts and mountain tops in my backyard that I probably never would have been without!
Most epic stuck/breakdown/wrong turn?
Fortunately, I haven’t had much in the way of major breakdowns, but I did get pretty stuck this winter trying to recover a quad, didn’t see some ice on the trail, and slid down to the edge of a tank trap which resulted in a lot of winch pulls and a lot of fun!
Any advice to someone thinking of getting into a custom adventure vehicle?
My advice for someone is just to do it! I bought this truck with very minimal mechanical and fabrication knowledge. I had only ever worked on 2 engines and built bed racks for my previous truck. Luckily, I have friends who have shown me so much and have helped me a lot along the way, but I still never thought I would be doing half the things I’ve done,
so it has been quite a cool learning experience!
