The eight-foot steel bed, which gives the pickup version of the Kodiak a level of coolness unequaled by any other truck on the road, is the only item not built in the Flint plant. It's manufactured and installed at nearby Monroe Truck Equipment.
"Monroe has engineered this aftermarket upfit using the GM dualie pickup box, taillights, tailgate, and bumper," explains Benson. "The composite side panels are manufactured by Monroe and are unique in that they're four inches longer than the GM production side panels found on the Silverado."
Monroe designed the bed panels so the lines match the contours of the Kodiak/TopKick body, and it designed a unique subframe for mounting the pickup box to the Kodiak frame.
After the final assembly of the bed on the frame, Monroe paints the pickup box to match the chassis cab.
"This is a totally aftermarket, dual-invoice conversion. Monroe builds these vehicles based on customer or dealer orders just like any other aftermarket upfit such as dump bodies, roll-backs, and van bodies," Benson says. "This enables GM dealers to order trucks that can be shipped to Monroe for upfitting and can be placed back in the GM transportation system for delivery to the dealer. The finished truck comes with a full warranty from both GM and Monroe."