If you own a truck and haven’t yet invested in some accessories for it, you’re really missing out. Getting your truck all kitted out straight from the dealership can be pricey, but there are plenty of aftermarket accessories available to help you get more functionality from your ride, and enjoy your truck even more than you already do.
In fact, some truck accessories are more than just a nice idea – they’re necessary if you want to get the most out of your truck. A bed liner, for example, protects the bed of your truck from scratches and makes it easier to clean. A tailgate ladder makes it easy to climb up into the bed of your truck when you need to do some work. Here are the five accessories you absolutely need if you want to get the most out of your truck.
1) Bed Liner
A bed liner is absolutely essential to protect the bed of your truck from scratches, dents, and cracks. It can also protect your cargo, since most bedliners provide traction to keep cargo from sliding around in the bed. A bed liner will help keep cargo in one place and absorb any vibrations or shocks that might otherwise damage the cargo. A bed liner can also protect the bed of your truck, including the walls and tailgate, from scratches, rust, dents, and other damage that can quickly render an unprotected truck bed unusable or, at the very least, unsightly.
Spray-in bedliners are the best option if you want to protect your truck bed and cargo from damage. They’ll cover not just the bottom of the truck bed, but also the tailgate and walls. You can apply the same spray material to fenders, bull bars, floorboards, bumpers, and other parts of the truck that you want to protect from damage. Drop-in bed liners are a little cheaper than spray-in liners but provide protection for the entire inside of the truck bed, as opposed to bed mats or rugs, which only provide protection for the bottom of the truck bed.
2) Toolbox
If your truck is a working truck, then you need a heavy-duty, locking toolbox to keep your tools safe, secure, and handy. A toolbox or storage box with a secure, locking lid is just what you need to store your tools, truck parts, and other valuables. Choose either a space-saving toolbox that fits right above the wheel well along the sidewall of your truck bed, or a larger model that fits across the width of your truck bed right behind the cab. You can also buy locking console boxes if you need a place to store valuables, like your wallet and phone, inside the cab while you’re working a job.
3) Tailgate Ladder
Sometimes you just have to climb up into the truck bed to unload cargo or access your tool box, but it isn’t always easy to lift your whole body up onto the tailgate. A tailgate ladder is the solution. A tailgate ladder attaches to or under your tailgate and folds down when you open the truck bed, providing one to three steps to help you climb up into the bed of your truck. Tailgate ladders can make it so much easier to get in and out of the bed of your truck, and they fold up snugly against the tailgate so you don’t have to worry about it snagging on your cargo.
4) Truck Bed Organizers
If your truck is your daily driver, you’re probably familiar with the problems you can have keeping ordinary cargo secured in the truck bed. It’s not like a car, where you can just dump your groceries or suitcases or kids’ sports equipment into the trunk and know that if it does shift around, it doesn’t have that far to go. Bags of groceries, sports equipment, and other day-to-day cargo have a lot of space in a truck bed to roll around – and it can be a real pain to unload your groceries when you have to climb up into the truck bed to retrieve them.
Truck bed organizers keep your cargo in one spot. You can buy drawer- or basket-style cargo carriers or hammock style cargo organizers that keep your cargo all together and right near the tailgate, where you can reach it when it’s time to unload. Not only will a truck bed organizer keep your cargo within reach, but it will keep it from getting damaged as it rolls around in the truck bed.
5) Running Boards
You might be tall enough to not need running boards on your truck, but that doesn’t mean your passengers will be. Running boards make it easy to climb up into a truck, especially if it’s lifted or if you or your passengers are on the short side. You can choose regular running boards that just bolt onto the frame of your truck, or electronic ones that extend when the door is opened and fold up when it’s closed.
The right truck accessories can make all the difference to your truck’s functionality and comfort. Get what you need out of your vehicle with bed liners, toolboxes, and other truck accessories.
