Terry Aslinger’s 1996 Peterbilt 379 a tribute to Route 66

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Updated May 31, 2017
Terry Aslinger with his wife, Kasey, and their daughter, Jolie, at the 37th Annual SuperRigs show in Tulsa, Oklahoma.Terry Aslinger with his wife, Kasey, and their daughter, Jolie, at the 37th Annual SuperRigs show in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Terry Aslinger, from Marquand, Missouri, wanted to customize his 1996 Peterbilt 379 with an extended hood to pay tribute to an iconic American highway. The entire truck honors Route 66.

“We did a custom painted visor, paying tribute to the old Route 66,” Aslinger said. “The theme goes throughout the rest of the truck on the floor and some other places.”

The truck won second place Class Division at the Shell Rotella SuperRigs truck show in Tulsa, Oklahoma, May 18-20.

Under the hood, Aslinger outfitted the truck with a 60 series Detroit with a Pittsburgh Power kit and aftermarket turbo with a fast fuel system. He says it develops 750 horsepower.

He hauls cars and went with a single axle drive because the cars he hauls tends to be lighter. He pulls a 2013 Shipshewana trailer.

“I was able to get my fuel mileage up to around 10 miles a gallon which is comparable to what the hotshot pickups are running, but I’ll last quite a bit longer,” Aslinger said.

Terry Aslinger’s 1996 Peterbilt 379Terry Aslinger’s 1996 Peterbilt 379

Inside, the floors have the Route 66 logo, a custom painted Route 66 visor that Aslinger keeps pictures of his wife in, and custom one-off builds of the American flag on the doors.

“They’re cut out of fiberglass. We did the American flag and then did the wood behind it to match our floors,” Aslinger said. “We have an airbrush artist out of Missouri that came in and airbrushed it and gave it a little bit of 3D detail.”

Aslinger converted the sleeper’s bed into a wraparound couch for when his kids ride with him to truck shows. It folds down into a bed.

He used to work on custom cars and had a 1970 Mustang that he showed, but he was only able to take it out a few times a year and enjoy it. He likes doing custom work on trucks because he gets to use what he builds.

“When you fix up a custom truck you get the same feeling of going to a car show everyday. You have people come up and talk to you about it and want to know more about it. It gives you something you can take pride in and then you get to use it everyday and work with it everyday, so it makes going to work a lot more enjoyable,” Aslinger said.

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Terry Aslinger hauls cars with his 1996 Peterbilt 379.Terry Aslinger hauls cars with his 1996 Peterbilt 379.

Terry Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379Terry Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379

The interior of Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379 has a Route 66 theme.The interior of Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379 has a Route 66 theme.

The interior door panels were custom made to have a 3D look.The interior door panels were custom made to have a 3D look.

Aslinger incorporated the Route 66 logo into the floors.Aslinger incorporated the Route 66 logo into the floors.

Aslinger's visor features Route 66 and holds pictures of his wife, Kasey.Aslinger's visor features Route 66 and holds pictures of his wife, Kasey.

Aslinger converted the sleeper bed into a wraparound couch that converts into a bed.Aslinger converted the sleeper bed into a wraparound couch that converts into a bed.

Terry Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379Terry Aslinger's 1996 Peterbilt 379