Freddie Figueroa has always been interested in trucks, which interest he inherited from his dad who was always fixing his own trucks back in the 80s. Freddie was brought up on how to work on them and get them to look fresh.

“My dad owned a construction company for over 20 years until he passed away. After that I really had to step it up and do me,” Freddie says.

The hobby of fixing trucks that was passed down to him from his father is something he still loves to this day. And though he certainly knows how to fix them up, he really loves adding his own unique touches to them.

“I love the truck scene! It makes me feel that I’m doing something good for the kids because I see their happy expressions when they see my truck,” explained Freddie. “Even in adults, I like seeing their reactions when they see my truck. It brings me joy and gives me more motivation to keep on going with my builds.”

Nightmare

Freddie owns his own trucking company and does real estate, so he’s always busy. But then something unexpected happened—his daughter was diagnosed with stage 4 Neuroblastoma cancer. She had been given a 30 percent chance of living, and Freddie’s family canceled all of their future plans until she got better. Thankfully, reality’s nightmare has a happy ending as his 11-year-old daughter, five years after being diagnosed, is in remission, completely cancer-free.

And to commemorate the good turn of events, Freddie decided to build a truck that other kids would love to see that he could bring to events for childhood cancer awareness. They also participated with the Childhood Cancer Foundation. For more on her story, Google search “Prayers for Zoe Figueroa.”

“When you see Team Zoe logos everywhere you know why,” Freddie said.

Another hobby of Freddie’s is helping other parents with information and how to get through the nightmare of children’s cancer. His family helps other families get through the cruel twist of fate.

“Every year we head to Chicago for a seminar for childhood cancer,” Freddie continued.

The Build

As for the truck itself, a 2021 Ford F250 Super Duty, Freddie chose to go with diesel over gas because it makes him feel like he has real American power, and the power is just better overall.

“Plus, that smell of diesel in the morning just gets you pumped up and ready to tackle the day!”

In preparation for 2022 SEMA, he certainly has rigged up his LA MAMALONA, a term Mexican-American sons (takuaches) used to call their dad’s or parents’ truck.

“Hey, Cuhh, let’s go out tonight, mi Apá me presto la mamalona,” Freddie shared as an example.

Because of what he learned working on trucks with his father, Freddie’s done most of the modifications himself, but he had help from a local mechanic installing his 18-inch Kelderman air suspension lift kit. Otherwise, he’s done the rest of the work on his own for the most part. He’s equipped his truck with Fury tires and Fuel Off-Road wheels, and armored it with front and rear bumpers from Flog Industries with Rigid lighting POD’s. And if his Kleinn train horn doesn’t let you know that Mr. Fresh is coming, then the Wet Sounds marine speakers he’s installed inside the front bumper pointing outward certainly will!

Extra Modifications

Freddie also has some more interesting modifications, such as a 66-gallon S&B tank, a custom exhaust tip made by Grille Technologies, a Rockford Fosgate unit for the rear system, and Morimoto XB headlights. Plus he’s installed a Banks cold air intake, hot intake, and MISHIMOTO intercooler on his engine. As for the interior, he went with a full sound system with custom seats and leather doors that have his logo on them, along with 1,500 strands of star lighting from FCKLightbars with charcoal gray suede. Finally, the truck’s equipped with a GEN-Y hitch and a customized grille by Royalty Core.

It’s a good thing Freddie has the know-how to undertake such a project as he confesses to being picky about the build’s specifics, and being careful about which mechanics to trust for help with the build process.

“I’m really picky over who touches my truck. I have more than $190K into it so I don’t let just anyone touch it,” Freddie says about who he trusts to assist with any modifications or work on the build.

So, just let it be known that if he asks you for help with modding his truck, that is a display of true trust. But he’s also picky about sound systems, and though he has rigged his truck with them, his taste in sound may be surprising in comparison to the modern trend.

“I like the clarity of sound, not that extreme bass head. Everything should come out clean sounding with no distortions. That’s the best sound quality right there.”

What’s Next?

It seems that the next focus for Freddie is to begin passing his knowledge onward to his kids.

“This is the sixth build I’ve done, and now that my kids are getting older I get to be able to teach them what I know and they can help with new upcoming builds.”

After SEMA, Freddie is thinking about changing some things around and getting LA MAMALONA ready for a new year to come. He says he’ll certainly be changing the wrap including powder-coating the color.

“Not sure what I wanna do yet, but I’m still thinking about it,” Freddie says.