A few days ago we got to work with a shop we've never worked with before here in the Great Midwest: Forreston Auto Body. 

Located in the small town of Forreston, Illinois (about 25 miles southwest of Rockford), it turns out that Forreston Auto Body is way more than just a body shop.  Sure, they do everything from collision repair to total restorations, but this 40 year-old company also has a history and an active business in four-wheel-drive-related parts and accessories.   

The general manager, Marty Alich, is a truck guy from way back.  This is his '90 Chevy pickup, which ironically, we actually shot for a feature back in 1995.  He's currently in the middle of rebuilding it.

On the body shop side of things there are the usual works-in-progress sitting around like these vehicles that suffer from everything from deer damage to rollover damage.

Everywhere you look there is something going on with body repair.  Or a total restoration as is the case with that old car in the background. 

They also do vinyl graphics and things of that nature.  These brand-new Dodge Charger Ogle County Sheriff's cars were getting striped and fitted with pushbars while we were there.

They even have an in-house alignment rack!   

We couldn't help but be impressed by how clean and well-lit the shop is.  You know what they say; "A clean shop is a happy shop," and this shop is very happy.

EVERYTHING has its specific place.  We didn't see one orphan tool laying around.  Marty, Dave and Jim keep a tight ship. 

The front office is the first thing you see when you walk in and it's usually staffed by Emil (he's the guy on the left), Sherrie (on the right) or Cheri.      

From outside, the building is hard to miss.  It's festooned with aftermarket manufacturer banners representing a number of busineses that wheeler's know.    

We were there to install a Skyjacker 5-inch lift and a set of Mickey Thompson wheels and tires under a '95 Dodge Ram.  Here's the Ram on one of the lifts.

Here's the finished truck.  It was bone-stock and boring when it rolled into Forreston Auto Body.  It ain't either of those anymore.  You can read about the build in the May issue of Four Wheeler.

If you'd like more info on Forreston Auto Body visit www.forrestonautobody.com.