Phat Phabz Is First to Bodydrop and Airbag a 2015 Cadillac Escalade

The 2015 Escalade includes a 71-3082 intake that offers an estimated boost of 8.3 horsepower.

McKiddie is well known in the world of specialty equipment manufacturing for the expert work he does in dropping the body of a pickup or SUV and then adding an air bag suspension system. Many vehicles that have gone through a conversion in McKiddie’s shop have been showcased at various SEMA Shows through the years and on the covers of national magazines.

In fact, he has achieved a number of firsts in this style of work. For example, he was the first to bodydrop a 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe, 2015 aluminum body Ford F-150, 2015 Chevrolet 3500 dually, and 2015 and 2016 Chevrolet Silverado.

So it should not be surprising that Carlos Herrera of Eunice, New Mexico, brought his 2015 Cadillac Escalade to the master. Once McKiddie was able to eyeball the truck, he realized that he could add another first to his list of drop and 'bag conversions – a 2015 Escalade.

To achieve this feat, McKiddie also had to construct a brand new chassis for the vehicle. The first thing that had to be done was the disassembly of the Escalade so that the body could be dropped, the suspension changed to an air bag system and to integrate a new chassis. That called for the removal of everything in the cabin of the vehicle including seats, dash and consoles, pedals and carpet.

Next, McKiddie had to mark the Escalade up to identify where he intended to make the cuts. Once that was done, he took a grinder and cleaned off paint from the locations where he would cut and then cut into the sheet metal with a reciprocating saw. Now that the Escalade laid in pieces, McKiddie concentrated on lowering the cab.

“We lowered it all the way to the ground,” noted McKiddie.

Next he focused on the construction of the chassis. This part of the overall process called for him to fabricate a frame.

“We made a frame out of 2x4 3016 grade small tubing, installed a parallel four link under the rear and then constructed our own control arms in the front,” he explained.

Firestone F9000 airbags were put on the rear and Airlift 2600 Dominator bags were added to the front. Also included into the suspension were Wilwood 6-piston brakes in the front and rear.

Once the pieces of the Escalade were put back together the stock wheels and tires obviously could not be used. So McKiddie exchanged them for US Mags Gambler 26x9/26x12 wheels and Lexani LX30 295/30-26 and 305/30-26 tires.

An Endo-VT tank that would supply the air for the bags and an Accuair E-Level Controller, which managed the amount of air in each bag, were bolted in and an I-Level app was included so that Herrera could manage the air suspension through his smartphone.

To boost performance of the stock engine, McKiddie included a K&N 71-3082 Blackhawk air intake system and to ensure that the cabin remained fresh, the stock cabin air filter was exchanged for a K&N VF2044 cabin air filter.

The 71-3082 Blackhawk air intake system is ideal for the 2015 Escalade build because it boosts engine performance an estimated 8.3 horsepower at 5338 rpm. It features a K&N RU-3101HBK air filter that is also washable and reusable and backed with the K&N 10-year/Million Mile Limited Warranty. The intake also includes a black powdercoated metal intake tube.

The VF2044 cabin air filter refreshes the air of the Escalade cabin. The filter is electrostatically charged to catch and hold dirt, dust, and other contaminants including mold, mildew, fungus, spores, bacteria, germs, pollen and allergens. This filter is also washable and reusable.

Charles Degand of CD Designs in Edmond, Oklahoma, was called in to paint and add the graphics on to the exterior. According to McKiddie, his portion of the project took about two weeks and the paintwork added another six weeks to the job for an overall total of eight weeks to complete the project.

The vehicle was showcased in the Accuair booth at the 2016 SEMA Show.

McKiddie concluded that work on the interior of the Escalade still has to be done. He added that an audio system with two 10-inch subwoofers in a fiberglass box placed in the rear of the cab and door speakers would be incorporated into the build.