Building any project vehicle for the annual SEMA Show is a dangerous proposition. It's like being a saline-filled blonde at the Playboy Mansion; if you expect to stand out, you better have something special. Justin Lambert knows this all too well. As the owner of Cognito Motorsports out of Bakersfield, Calif., he needed to build a truck that would not only showcase his company's products for the '06 SEMA Show, but stop crowds doing it. The catch was that the '05 GMC Sierra he chose needed to be done in three weeks.

With 21 days from start to finish, Justin and the employees of Cognito worked some long hours to get the truck ready in time. He also called his friends at Shocker Motorsports in Bakersfield, Calif. for reinforcements. The troops were in place and about to head on a mad dash for the finish line that ended in Las Vegas. Their efforts were well rewarded with a crew cab that looks like anything but a three-week project.

Because Cognito is most well known for their lift kits, tending to the suspension would be the first thing on the To Do list. Up front, the GMC received Cognito's 8-Lug 10- to 12-inch lift. Rather than dropping the upper control arms, Cognito's kit included new spindles that keep them in their factory location. The kit, with its new front tubular crossmember, also drops the front differential 10 inches to avoid severe CV axle angles. This kit comes standard with Cognito's revolutionary Pitman/Idler arm support kit that eliminates the premature wear found in the GM pitman and idler arm design that is present even on stock vehicles. Heavy-duty tie rods were also added, as were Cognito's tubular upper control arms and dual shock hoops where dual Fox Racing 2.0 reservoir shocks would soon call home. For the added bling factor SEMA projects are notorious for, the suspension components were powdercoated with a gold finish.

In the rear, 8 inches of lift was achieved through the use of Deaver's 8-inch leaf springs. Cognito's rear shock mount kit holds down a pair of Fox Racing 2.0 shocks and the entire rear axle assembly was powder-coated gold to match the theme up front. The rear diff was topped off with a chrome cover from ORU, which keeps the 4.88 gears covered in lube. Providing added support to the rear end assembly are Cognito's traction bars. To keep the underbody looking as clean as the rest of the truck, the frame was stripped down to bare metal and then repainted black.

When it came time to choosing wheels, Justin wanted to go big: 22-inch chrome KMC Balzac wheels to be exact. The wheels' large diameter compliments the Toyo Open Country M/T sized 40x15.5x22 tires well, but what is behind them is equally impressive. As if that kind of rolling stock wasn't enough of a shock factor, the brake upgrade offers plenty more to stare at. Behind the front rollers are huge Rotora brakes with 16-inch rotors and eight-piston calipers. The diameter of the rotors is the same as the factory wheels the GMC came from the factory with. Out back, the rear brakes are only slightly smaller, using 15-inch rotors and six-piston calipers.