Truck manufacturers respond to consumer demands for cargo management.
With 35 million trucks on the road and 3.5 million new trucks being
sold each year, vehicle manufacturers are increasingly eager to address
the needs of this burgeoning group of consumers. And what truck buyers
want is a way to manage cargo — any and all kinds of it.
By GRAE YOHE
Contractors load their trucks with tools, ladders, lumber and drywall.
Weekend warriors haul bikes, kayaks, and maybe a motorcycle or Jet
Ski. Others haul their Hibachis to the campground along with tents
and coolers. There are as many types of cargo as there are personalities
of truck owners, but the one thing that almost all of them have in
common is that the reason they bought a truck instead of a Tercel
is that they want to be able to haul something, somewhere.
Hence Toyota’s aggressive advertising of the Tacoma’s
integrated deck rail system. Hence the prominence of tie-downs in
ads for the Nissan Titan. Hence cargo management features on the new
Honda Ridgeline and Chevy Avalanche, and hence the proliferation of
after-market roof racks, bed extenders, and rear hitch cargo boxes.
What manufacturers are realizing is that truck owners haul a wide
variety of cargo and need a way to keep it in place while keeping
it accessible. For most owners, the truck bed is indisputably “where
it’s at.” Cargo management, like engine power, is instrumental
in determining just how useful a truck is.
With more and more automakers adding cargo management features to
their trucks before they leave the factory (GM, Dodge/Chrysler, and
Ford are prominent among them), purchasers of new trucks will have
a bevy of cargo-related options to choose from. The owners of older
trucks tend to look to after-market products like the gear boxes,
bike or kayak racks, and rooftop storage units offered by providers
like Thule. For heavy-duty use, one solid option is the TracRac family
of products.
“TracRac is the ultimate cargo management system, especially
for customers who use their trucks to make a living,” says Tom
Derecktor, president and CEO of Fall River, Mass.-based TracRac. “Our
primary customers are contractors, and contractors need to carry power
tools, ladders, and lumber. They need to manage a lot of varied cargo,
and they primarily drive pickups. We provide a product, designed for
pickups, that incorporates the ability to haul everything they need
— and it slides, which makes it unique. ”
The basic TracRac — consisting of a pair of side rails and the
associated sliding, adjustable elevated racks — costs $699.
This base configuration can then be accessorized in more ways than
an Erector set. Sliding cargo separators, kayak and bike mounts, toolbox
mounts, and basic tiedowns and locks are among the accessories offered.
For serious cargo haulers, there’s an industrial cantilever
(boosting the carrying capacity from 1000 to 1250 pounds), a cantilever
extension to allow loading over the cab, and a tonneau cover (as of
August 2005). Perhaps the coolest thing about the product is its versatility.
The metal cargo separator can flip up for use as a rear window guard,
and the TracBox — a sturdy metal bed-width tool box —
slides on a set of inside tracks, independent of the tie-down rails
on which the overheads are mounted. And because installation does
not require bolts or drilling, the product is perfect for people who
lease or who just don’t want to make permanent modifications
to their trucks.
“It’s a great all-around enhancement, regardless of how
it’s used, what you haul, or what your hobbies are,” says
Derecktor. “We hear from a lot of our customers that not only
is TracRac functional, but that it looks great on the back of their
trucks — and makes them more valuable.”
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