Ford Motor
Company will become the second truck manufacturer to add the option
of a factory applied spray-in bedliner - used to protect a pickup's
cargo box from wear and tear. Called 'Tough Bed', the durable coating
will be offered exclusively on Ford's 2009 F-Series Super Duty pickups
built at its Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, KY.
Nissan
was the first OEM to offer a factory spray-in liner, when the company
introduced its 'Durabed' sprayable bedliner as an option for the 2004
Titan full size pickup.
Tough
Bed debuted quietly at the 2008
Chicago Auto Show, on a Super Duty in the company's display
area. Ford
will market Tough Bed as an alternative to conventional, thermoformed
drop-in plastic bedliners and similar aftermarket box coatings
from companies like LINE-X and Rhino Linings.
Financially
challenged Ford will also gain another new revenue source from Tough
Bed installations, although final pricing hasn't been announced yet.
According to a June 2005 report by research firm Boston Analytics,
spray-in bed liner installations have been growing at 14% per year
versus 1% per year for drop-ins. Drop-ins have long been a dealer-installed
Ford accessory.
Tough
Bed will be applied robotically at the factory while LINE-X is applied
manually by a trained technician at a local LINE-X franchise.
Tough
Bed is the first spray-in bedliner backed by Ford. It will be covered
under the truck's new vehicle limited warranty - three years or 36,000-miles.
LINE-X offers a lifetime warranty to the original purchaser.
Tough
Bed has been developed by Ford in partnership with chemical and
paint manufacturer PPG, the same supplier for Nissan's Durabed
spray-in bedliner. LINE-X has teamed up with Dupont.
Tough
Bed is an aliphatic material - meaning its chemical bonds are open-chained
or linear. This gives Tough Bed a high ultraviolet (UV) resistance
to fading and chalking. LINE-X is an aromatic material - its
chemical bonds form a ringed structure, giving it a higher cross-linking
density than an equivalent aliphatic product - with an aliphatic top
coat. Ford expects Tough Bed to maintain its original color saturation
longer than aftermarket coatings.
Tough
Bed will only be offered in black. LINE-X can be color matched to
almost any color truck.
Ford
and LINE-X both claim the spray-in liner improves a truck's resale
value. According to the latest National Auto Dealers Association
(NADA) Official Used Car Appraisal Guide, a LINE-X Spray-On Bedliner
can add almost $200 in value to a truck at sale or trade-in time.
Ford
and LINE-X both claim their spray-in liners are tough enough for
military-grade usage scenarios.
Ford hasn't
said when Tough Bed will be available for the F-150.
It will
be interesting to see how quickly Ford truck owners adopt Tough Bed
over LINE-X and other aftermarket spray-in liners. And it probably
won't be long before we see General Motors, Chrysler, or Toyota
also start to offer their own factory spray-in bedliners for their
pickups too.
