I can remember the very first time I rode in a pickup truck. I lived on the Big Island of Hawaii and my Mom's friend had a big old mid 70's Dodge Crew Cab. I was probably around 5 or 6 year's old. I remember this experience because I was absolutely thrilled to go for a ride in a big truck for the first time. Looking back I'm humored by the thought of how primitive trucks of that era were. As a youngster I didn't care about the bells and whistles like the ones found in my Dad's Subaru hatch-back, I only got excited about driving through deep mud puddles...
Today I'm all grown up and boy have things changed. While I still enjoy a quick splash in the mud once in a while, trucks of today are chock-full of electronic gizmo's and smart features that make owning and operating them much more like a car than that old crew cab I experienced as a boy. In this year's PTOTY fleet I noticed a few things that I though were worth mentioning. Some are new, some you may have seen before, but one thing is sure, it's these extra items that make all the difference.
The next generation of Ford Pickups are easier than ever to fill up. The bonus of this arrangement is you no longer need a key to secure your fossil fuel from would-be siphoner's. The self-sealing mechanism keeps debris out as well. Never again will you feel the embarrassment of forgetting to reinstall the cap after fueling up.
Inside the F-150 keeps impressing with the awesome Sync sound system/navigation stereo system. With this option you get the ability to upload songs directly to the internal hard drive via a dash-mounted USB plug. The Sync also takes care of the Bluetooth for your cell-phone and GPS navigation. It also has XM satellite radio, a phono jack input and a 9-speakers that don't distort at full blast!
Next on our list of innovative features is the Hummer H3T
Yes many vehicles have this same feature, but few hide it so stealthy and offer a camera so well protected from trail damage. The Hummer H3T's rear view mirror look normal to the untrained eye, that is until you place the automatic transmission in reverse gear. As you can see the mirror has two functions. I feel GM should get a pat on the back for this one.
Dodge didn't leave out any innovative trickery, check out the hidden compartments under the rear passenger floor boards. This small composite compartment is placed out of sight for items you don't want officer Elroy finding during his unsolicited search. We like these because they give owners a handy place to keep road flares, tools and extraction equipment.