I think suicide doors on extended cabs are the single best innovation.

 

This is pretty close, too

 

I agree with Barritia. The step option was an extra $350 for my truck but mine is white. A simple trade will not work.

 

You can include me with him, I have no trouble getting in and out of the bed of my truck, and it's lifted 9". It just takes a little more grunt and umph.

 

I was not crazy about the "man step" until I had to use it. Now I feel it is a valuable option.

 

They are a good idea if ya dont mind loseing the bed space. For me thats not an option as i would rather have the bed space over the dry storage. Yes you can still fit a 4x8 sheet but you lose the extra stroage behind and infront and above the wheel well. I sometimes put 4 bikes in the rear and the 1st and 4th bike pedals sit right over the rear arches. I would be lucky if i could fit 2 bikes with the ram box.

 

I agree. Was about time they made it easier to get in and out of the back of the truck. I will admit the tailgate was a pain to clean after having 2 yards of compost loaded/unloaded. The back end of the truck barely sagged from the full load of compost.

 

I wonder how well those ram boxes are holding up, i.e. rattling, water leakage, etc. They seem like a great innovative idea, certainly one of the best non-Ford ideas for trucks I've ever seen. That extra storage door thing on the titan (or tundra I forget which) seemed like a cool idea at the time, to be able to store dirty jumper cables, etc. out of the way. But then I heard the door opened backwards, and seemed to be rattling about on those trucks. You need to really test an idea before just sticking it on a vehicle.

The tailgate step is an excellent add-on, those who like to downplay it, and uplay their 'manhood', just confuse me. That's like saying, "I'm a man I don't need A/C I just open all my windows. A/C is a sissy old man's thing." or how about "4x4 is for weak sissy boys, I just get out and push myself through snowbanks in the winter, that's how a real man does it, only the old and weak need 4x4." Very, very odd.

But anyways, would be interested to hear how those ram boxes are working out, sure would be nice to have someplace to stick jumper cables, roadside kits, etc. inside someplace yet out of way.

 

I agree. The step is a great idea. But the pull-up bar should have been another option all together. To use that you are in bad shape.

 

I use my tailgate step and "mini stripper pole" religiously and I'm far from being a sissy or out of shape. As a matter of fact I just used it about 20 minutes ago. Let's be real here, it's basically a tool, a tool that assist you in achieving a desired result. The result being getting in the bed of the truck. Now for some people yes getting in the bed is easy but for others it's not a simple task. Here's a couple of examples: Example #1-My wife who is all of 5 ft tall couldn't easily get into the bed of our previous truck due to a hip injury she got mountain biking so the tailgate step is a welcomed addition in her eyes. Example #2-I'm a US Army Airborne Infantryman and I gotta say having that tailgate step is awesome and helps save what's left of the cartilage in my knees. You see jumping out of planes, doing 12+ mile road marches with a 80 lb rucksack, and running 3-6 miles a day Monday-Friday takes a toll on my body especially my knees and lower back. So I applaud the option of the tailgate step simply because it makes life just that much easier even for a real man.

 

Nicely spoken. My fiance has lost virtually all of her cartilage in her right knee, and once it's gone, you either have pain all your life or get a knee operation to move the kneecap, which is just a temp solution at best if it even comes out alright in the first place. In other words, anything that helps your body is a welcome addition - even if your body doesn't need it yet, because it could prolong the onset of needing it just that much longer.

 

On never mind..... I was gonna throw by opinion out there, but decided I better not.

 

I don't have the man step...when looking for my truck it was a "nice to have" option but not a must have. I found the exact truck that had all of my "must have" options on it and this specific unit did not have the tailgate step.

It is a really neat idea. My concerns about it were how long it would hold up over time - like would it start rattling down the road? Also, I could see using it if I was working the bed by moving a bunch of boxes or something and I was having to get in and out of it alot. I just couldn't see pulling it out to use for a one-time use like if I needed to get one thing out of the bed. I would probably just jump in and grab what I needed.

Regarding the stripper pole - if you think about it the flat surface of the tailgate (where you slide things across it) had to be modified to accomodate the pole, not the step. It would be cool if they just had the step and no pole so the tailgate surface would be flat again.

I am not knocking it...it is a great, innovative idea which is one of the many new innovative ideas that Ford put out for '09 that made this former Chevy driver buy a Ford!

 

the man step wasn't a must have for most of the owners that bought trucks with this option, myself included. it's typical human reaction to say it's not needed because for so many years, you managed to live without. but once you have it, then it's use can ease your chore of climbing in and out of the box easier. any less strain is good

 

Good Luck.

I really don't see anybody wanting to give up their manstep/stripper pole tailgate. Maybe start checking salvage yards since maybe, just maybe a few 09's have biten the dust. But be prepared to shell out the bucks.

This post reminds me of the all too common thread on the Jeep Wrangler forums of someone wanting to trade their half doors for a set of full doors.