At a massive 317 pounds, Earl Dotson of the Green Bay Packers is one of the premier right tackles in the NFL. In his nine-year career and at only 30 years old Dotson has played in close to a hundred games and has been an integral part of the offensive line for Green Bay. His contributions helped lead the Packers to the "big dance" twice, in consecutive seasons (1996 and 1997). One of the two visits earned him and his team the Super Bowl trophy. That in itself is quite an accomplishment for a player whose NFL career isn't over yet.
Dotson splits his time between Green Bay, Wisconsin and Longview, Texas. In the off-season, or whenever he has some down time, the big Texan is usually found in the Lone Star state. Getting around town poses a problem for a man of Dotson's size. He needs a larger than normal mode of transportation. In other words, as is the case with most athletes, owning an SUV is practically a necessity and only after the fact a matter of fashion. That doesn't mean he is indifferent to the way his vehicle looks. That's clearly not the case, as is evidenced by the pictures seen here.
At first Dotson wasn't thrilled with the way his 1996 Chevrolet Suburban looked inside and out and was prepared to make some modifications to it in order to make it fit his style. In order to accomplish what he had in mind, the Suburban went to Rick's Detailing in Corpus Christi, Texas. Dotson's choice to take his vehicle to Rick's Detailing had many benefits. It is an A to Z shop that does stand-out work. As a company that has been in business for over a quarter century, car audio is not their only specialty. Rick's offers many services covering various areas: customizing, restorations, paint jobs, interior work, wheels & tires, drop kits, air rides, billet grilles, body work, TV installs, alarms, body kits, hot rods, and performance upgrades. Having all of these capabilities in one place was a bonus for Dotson, allowing him to take care of a lot of the work in one place. Of course, the top priority was the stereo system. Something special was planned and the people that would handle the project were Billy Robinson and William Skinner.
New InteriorGetting rid of the OEM GM radio was the first step. It was replaced with an Alpine CVA-1005 Mobile Multi Media Station. It acts as the main source (controller) for the entire system. Equipped with a 6.5-inch motorized monitor, its capabilities are tremendous; moreover, Dotson can easily see what is happening on the screen without having to guess. Several of the Alpine sources are controlled through the CVA-1005. The first, residing directly below it in the dash, is an Alpine DVA-5200 Mobile DVD player (also capable of playing CD's). Minor modifications were performed to accommodate both pieces in the factory location. This portion of the dash remained black while the rest of the dash was sanded smooth to take away the texture then painted white.
An Alpine NVE-N851A DVD-based navigation system was nestled into the factory CD slot. Since the DVD nav unit is two inches wider as well as taller than the factory OEM opening, the hole was made larger and formed to fit the unit. A new console was constructed and runs up between the two front seats, meeting the bottom of the dashboard. In the console, you can see that Rick's went as far as including smaller tribal designs for an added touch. The new console was constructed using MDF, body filler, fiberglass, and required a lot of sanding and carving. After the console was sanded, it was primered, and painted "Diamond White" to match the exterior of the SUV. With the new console in place, enough room was made to store the brain to the CVA-1005 and Rockford Fosgate Symmetry EPX inside. The controller (RDAT) was mounted just below the dashboard and accented with aluminum. This unit adds life to the system because of its extensive crossover and equalizer capabilities.