Truck owners want increased utility, lower cost, and better looks over that of RVs and SUVs
Like some institutions that never grow old, but instead manage to adapt to the times and improve themselves along the way, the traditional truck/camper shell union has recently undergone a renaissance of popularity. Fueled in part by innovative design and construction improvements, heightened gas prices, and a new breed of pickup truck purchaser that recognizes a good deal when they see one, the appeal of camper shells has only grown stronger.
Allowing maximum flexibility while giving up nothing in terms of storage capacity and security, the simple addition of a shell--sometimes colloquially known as a "camper" shell or top--makes a truck more stylish, utilitarian, and oftentimes less expensive than a single purpose SUV or RV. For minimal investment, a truck owner can instantly turn his or her pickup into a mobile motel, tackle room, bicycle repair shop, supply room, hunting lodge, locker room, motorcycle garage or moving van.
"People buy shells for any number of reasons: they need more space for storage on a trip, they need to be able to lock their stuff up, or they need to protect the contents of the bed from weather," says Charles Matocha of DFW Camper Corral, a truck accessory store with four locations in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex area. "A shell gives them that versatility and more because it can always be pulled off if when the need arises."
Perish the stereotypical vision of a carpenter pulling up to a construction site with a load of 2x4s. While that segment has hardly waned, thousands of white-collar professionals are now embracing the utility of pickup trucks with equal enthusiasm.
Driving this appeal is the simple camper shell, which immediately adds a Mack-truck sized helping of utility to any pickup.
"People drive trucks now, who never in the past would think of owning one," says
Jeannie Keough, a marketing and sales manager who works in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. "For both men and women, pickup trucks are now vehicles that professionals choose to drive. Not only is it usually cheaper to buy a truck and camper shell than an SUV, but with the shell we can use the back to store all of our things that are needed for work: sales samples, technical equipment, computers, etc."
"When we head out to our second home in the mountains, it's pretty much just my wife, me and the dog," says 51 year-old Donald Wayne, an electrical engineer who calls Moss Beach, California his primary home. "I bought a SNUGTOP shell for my Toyota Tacoma because I like the styling of it. With the beautiful blue paint job, it looks like original factory equipment."
With roots dating back to 1959, SNUGTOP is one of the country's leading manufacturers of fiberglass truck caps and snuglid tonneau covers.
The renewed appeal of the traditional camper shell on a pickup also likely results from the variety of new uses to which they are put by the new generation of owners. Of course, the traditional purposes--such as camping, biking, sports, boating, fishing, hunting and motorcycling--still apply. However, a shell allows a great deal of crossover between avocation and vocation.
"I originally started doing surf videos a few years back, but now I mostly do corporate marketing, training, and educational videos," states Jeff Killian, 45 year-old owner of Ocean Motion Productions of Newport Beach, California. "I have a Dodge Ram and I needed a camper shell to store and secure all of my production equipment like video cameras and microphones."
"Of course, surfing is my main hobby," continues Killian. "With a shell I can easily fit in both a long and short board back there."
(Related Articles)
Cover Ups: The Latest Truck Caps and Tonneau Covers
Want to protect your cargo from wind and weather? Looking for some secure storage space? Hoping to turn your pickup's bed into a big trunk? Then you just might be in the market for a truck cap or tonneau cover. |