Why?

Why spend money on development and testing of this device when all they had to do was make longer running tubes?

Does the bed and cab flex so differently that it would create clearance issues?

With as much money as they are bleeding, why spend more to develop something so seemingly complicated?
Image courtesy of BowHunter2001


Same with the tailgate step. It would have been nearly as effective and vastly cheaper to put foot holds on the corners of the bumper and hand grips molded into the tops of the bed (ala Avalanche)

 

I think it's called, "one ups manship" and a very profitable option.

Tim

 

We have the avalanche right outside the house and the f250 at the office with the tailgate step and i can tell you now that the tailgate step is a lot lot lot easier to use to get into and out of the bed. Def worth the upgrade. Plus look how stupid the foot slots look.

 

I havent stepped on a tailgate step, or a retractable step, but I cant help but think that after a little bit of use and abuse, its gonna break and be very costly to fix. Say its for working, can it hold up a 200 plus pound man with 50-100 lbs of stuff he may be carrying?

I havent seen them up close either though.

 

I don't care about the looks. I'm a function over form guy for the most part.

I do understand about the one-upmanship. But longer running baords/tubes is one-upmanship as nobody else has them from what I can see.

Now, don't get me wrong. I think their new stuff is cool. But are they banking on these trinkets to get people into the showroom?

I guess my thought is more on how much money they spent to develop stuff like that (and the capless gas tank. ) and then have to go lookin' for a freakin' handout of MY tax dollars!



FWIW, I have no issues getting in the bed on my Avalanche with the footholds and handles. I also don't try to climb up with 50-100 lbs of stuff in my hands. Not sure who on this planet actually would try that with either design.

 

I was more referring to the side step deals, isnt that why they made em, so people could lean over and reach into the bed better?

Correct me if Im wrong, as i very well may be!

 

i could see throwing the 50-100lbs into the bed. and useing the step to get it out but not to put place it in thier. The ford tail gate step is more practical then the avalanche is. Useing the tail gate step would be more natural on your body then it would be on the bumper step on the avalanche (ever tryed to get your foot on the slim part of the bumper showing when they tail gate is down to get into the bed? well let me say its ****in akward) besides that, thats one ugly bumper

 

I guess in some cases.

Last weekend I had the box full of stuff in my truck. I had my lawn tractor(taking up most of the space) then i had a load of about 50lb or so each fireplace bricks. I had to stack them in and around the lawn tractor, and before I could remove the lawn tractor, I had to remove the bricks.

I guess that was fresh in my mind, because i had to constantly reach over the side of the bed to stack, and remove the bricks.

 

I've already spotted a couple of those bed steps ripped off the gate.

Mike

 

Okay...so as to prevent this from becoming an Avalanche bashing thread let me say that I used it as an example for my thought process. Why is Ford coming up with complicated solutions to simple problems but will do the opposite action by using low powered engines where higher powered ones are called for and then scratching thier heads as to why their stock is less than 2 liter bottle of Coke all the while holding out their paws for a handout.

I so sometimes think things like the retractable step reveal the actual lack of thinking at Ford.

 

I can assure you its a stout feature. The grip handle alone can handle 300 lbs. and the step a lot more than that (though I don't have the rating handy). Its been out for some time with the 2008 Super Duty, and I've zero complaints about failures.

 

Ford didn't have to spend big bucks. AMP Research invented the side steps, and the tailgate step came from previous Super Duty R&D. You'd be surprised at how much Ford doesn't invent. Brake controller... comes from one of the major aftermarket brake controller companies. Extender towing mirrors from an Austrailian company. Bed extender, AMP Research. Ford isn't coming up with complicated solutions, they are licensing profitable solutions. Besids, there are often patent issues with certain features, that can't be copied exactly until a clever engineer figures a work-around the patent language.

I think the tailgate step is a much better solution than the bumper step. Its sturdy (300 lbs on the handle alone, the step can hold even more) and anyone I doubt many people could carry a load heavy enough to exceed the capacity and still grab the handle to get in. The Avalanche bumper step looks just plain ugly, but I guess that's okay since that fits well with the entire truck. It seems GM engineers got together and said "Lets see if we can use more exterior plastic than Nissan), the Aztec wasn't ugly enough for our customers."

Gotta be a very profitable option for Ford to sell it!

 

That's bound to happen especially on work trucks. I'm a painfully average 5'9" man and my '88 F-150 doesn't sit as high as the current generation trucks. With that said, I need all the assistance I can get short of using a stool and scratching the hell out of the sides of my truck.

I believe that these maybe two options that you can get without having to add an expensive package option grouping rediculous and dis-simliar features to the cost.

Tim

 

Prob a Jealous GM/Chevy owner drove into it in the parking lot whilst the bloke was loading his truck lol

 

Thanks for the info.

I was just hoping it wasnt cheaply made and would be one of those things that would end up break or falling off easy!

Im definatly all in for more options and accessories,a s long as they were well built and they stand the test of time