Come on. Everyone knows only REAL men drive trucks. I’m not talking about those wussy mid-size pickups or SUV’s either. I’m talking about the real deal here, guys. I’m talking about the full-size pickup trucks like the F350 Superduty or the Chevy Silverado.

Full-size pickup trucks were once the stalwarts of the work force. Trucks were only used for hauling dirt, construction materials, and other same-type things. Now with most working families unable to afford owning two vehicles have made the pickup truck the vehicle of choice for some soccer moms.

It used to be pickup trucks came with one uncomfortable bench seat, no air conditioning, and a cassette deck if you were one of the lucky ones. This year’s trucks offer a plethora of different options to choose from. Most buyers spend more time debating which options to get than they do worrying about engine size or if it has four-wheel drive.

It can be a confusing and daunting task finding which trucks might work best for you, so we’re going to help out a little. Here is a look at some of the full-size pickup truck models for 2007 with a breakdown of each by the respected experts at Car and Driver Magazine:

• 2007 CHEVROLET SILVERADO CREW CAB - GM redesigned this truck inside and out for ’07, offering a vastly stiffer structure, a new coil-over front suspension, beefier brakes, a new rack-and-pinion steering system, standard stability control, more muscle, and bigger payloads. Pros: Impressive underpinnings, expanded roominess, upgraded interiors, enhanced work ethic, plenty of power, many choices. Cons: Four-speed automatic transmission, still thirsty in models with bigger V-8s.
• 2007 DODGE RAM SRT10 REGULAR CAB - Maybe we don’t need a 500-hp, V-10–powered pickup truck that can run to 60 mph in under five seconds, but its nice to know there’s one out there if we need it. Pros: A more brazen, decadent, and totally bad-ass ride can’t be imagined. It also handles well for such a big truck. Cons: This is not the vehicle you want to drive to the Earth Day festivities or to pick up Al Gore in the carpool.
• 2007 FORD F-150 SUPERCREW - The F-150 is quiet, comfortable, and car-like. It can be outfitted like a luxury car, with a DVD player, heated seats, and a power sliding rear window. Pros: Up to 10,500-pound towing capacity, classy interior, refined road manners, handsome exterior design. Cons: Extremely overweight and therefore slow, no stability control, horrible gas mileage.
• 2007 NISSAN TITAN CREW CAB - The Titan is the he-man of the full-size pickups. With a potent all-aluminum 5.6-liter V-8 producing 305 horsepower and 379 pound-feet of torque and fronting a standard five-speed automatic transmission, this bad boy can tow up to 9500 pounds and romp to 60 in 7.2 seconds. Pros: In terms of power, payload, performance, and price, this is a very attractive package. Cons: It lacks the posh interior of a Ford F-150 and the quiet refinement of a Toyota Tundra.
• 2007 TOYOTA TUNDRA REGULAR CAB - This truck finally makes a direct challenge to the full-size pickups from Ford, GM, and Dodge. For the first time, Toyota’s biggest pickup matches the domestics in size, power, and capabilities. Pros: Big-truck style and swagger, serious power from optional V-8, serious work ethic, Toyota detail refinement. Cons: Its in-your-face styling may be too much macho for some. They’re called sissies.

Any one of these cars on this list is available at a dealership near you and sold for a reasonable price. For further information on any of these trucks listed above be sure to check Car and Driver Magazine available for purchase at Magsforless.com at www.magsforless.com. Magsfoless.com sells over 75 different automotive magazine subscriptions and hundreds of other subjects to choose from.

Joel Simkhai has published numerous articles on a wide range of topics related to magazine journalism. He is currently the owner of Magsforless.com, a company that provides cheap magazines, and focuses on customer satisfaction.

A set of gnarly off-road lights is just about the final piece to your customization puzzle. You can get a pair of performance lights for the factory openings in your bumper, or line up a bank of lamps for extreme power. They come in all sizes—from less than 3” in diameter to beastly 6” housings—for making whatever kind of statement you want. And, with the wide array of makers out there, you can fit a set into just about any budget.

Also, off-road lights like the ones made by PIAA, KC and Hella come in more patterns than sheer brightness. You can pick a long, narrow beam pattern for distance, known as a “driving light.” On the opposite end of the lighting spectrum, “flood lights” sacrifice distance for a massive spread. To cut through nasty weather, a wide and low-intensity “fog light” beam adds to your overall visibility. But, most light buyers stick with the tried-and-true “off-road light” pattern, with awesome brightness and outstanding range.

There are also a variety of bulb options. Most off-road and other auxiliary lights are powered by high-efficiency halogen lights. That’s why most modest light setups can be run off your current battery, with no need for an upgrade. Also, if you have some serious scratch to spend on lights, you can opt for HIDs—incredibly low draw for such clean lighting power. Bulbs for most off road lights are easy to replace, and available at big department or home stores. You may want a set of light covers or light grilles with those new lamps, though. A tossed rock can easily put an unprotected lamp out of commission.

Off-road and other vehicle auxiliary lights usually spark a few common questions. “Why do I need such extreme lighting power on my rig?” The answer is, of course, that your fun doesn’t have to stop when the sun sets. You can keep on chuggin’ through the mud, rocks or dunes well past sundown, or use your lights to set a course through nasty weather. Or, heck, you can even keep your local pickup basketball game playing late. “Isn’t a set of lights extremely hard to wire?” It’s not as hard as you might think, especially with the plug-and-play harnesses provided with most light kits. You could be fired-up in less than an hour. “Would Marty McFly’s or Walker’s truck have been as cool without lights?” No. Absolutely not.

When you need more toughness and utility on your truck, pick from big brands like PIAA lights,
KC lights or
Hella lights, and see a world of difference.

Welcome to the air intake battle royale, where we force K&N Intakes and AEM Intakes to fight to the death…or at least until we have a clear winner holding the title of “Best intake for your auto.” At face value, there are some similarities between these two fighters—both pack incredible pipes with the testing and training an intake needs to be a champion. We suspect the subtle differences are where the fight will be won; expect neither to be knocked out but rather jabbed into a bloody, stumbling, slurred submission.

In the black, red and orange corner we have K&N, the taller, heavier, more established fighter of the two. Sure, they’ve been slugging it out with other contenders for more than 30 years, much like an aged and grizzled fighter like Evander Holyfield. But, unlike Holyfield, K&N is sharper than ever, still packs quite a wallop, has their ears intact, and nobody is begging them to quit for their own good. K&N’s advantage comes from not only being the undisputed champion intake, but also from being the brand that practically invented the sport.

AEM struts in as the challenger; a slimmer, faster, younger fighter sporting flashy red and yellow trunks. Buoyed by newer technology and plenty of support in the sport compact realm, AEM’s plan is to take the lumbering K&N with speed, quickness and quality punches. This challenger firmly believes they’re ushering in a new era of intake performance, design and maintenance.

The bell rings, and the two intake brands dance toward each other. They come together, and K&N lands a nice two-punch combination to the nose and jaw, thanks to their intake tubes. Their crosslink material tubes, available on the vaunted FIPK 57 Series and 63 Series Air Charger intakes, keep the incoming volumes of air much cooler than the metal tubes used with every AEM. Not to mention the price—crosslink plastic tubing helps a kit cost less. But, AEM relies on its smooth footwork to land a stinging gut shot, thanks to the dressy look of their pipes, which are slightly nicer in terms of engine compartment looks even when pitted against K&N’s 69 and 77 Series.

AEM also rallies to run K&N into the corner with Brute Force, their brawny truck and SUV intake that’s gaining street cred by the minute. But, K&N escapes damage by striking AEM with their 69 series—an unlikely point on the card for the veteran. Though AEM has the sport compact high ground, most of the 69 Series is able to be configured as a short ram intake or a cold air intake drawing from the wheel well. Then K&N drills AEM in the eye with filter technology, setting off suffocating swelling. K&N’s cotton-gauze with oil filtration system uses its time-tested formula and 1,000,000-mile warranty to land a big blow over AEM’s struggling bid to equal cotton-gauze performance with an oil-less filter.

Round and round they go, trading jabs and the occasional slug that re-engages the crowd to this clash of now-tiring titans. As the 12th and final round passes with many a fist thrown but few landed, the judges must go to the scorecard. Though AEM takes rounds judged on compact performance and looks under the hood, K&N wins the battle by decision with an extra 4hp on the dyno for the F-150 with a 5.4L V8, which happened to be the judges’ trucks. The cooler crosslink tube (which also costs less) helped put K&N over the top of AEM here, making it the current undisputed belt holder for intake performance. But, AEM will likely return soon with some new moves in its quest for the title.

When you need to pick a cold air intake vying for the title, go with a champion like the K&N Cold Air Intake, or a smart, up-and-coming contender like the AEM Cold Air Intake.

Chances are you’ve seen the Saturday afternoon show geared toward squeezing every droplet of power out of a 50s or 60s classic. You know—the one hosted by two middle-aged guys, one with a toupee that may as well have “this is a toupee” painted on it. They spend the entire half-hour show with a bunch of time-lapsed shots taken of them tearing the engine apart to put in highly-specialized, insanely expensive parts. Once the project’s done, they fire-up the dyno and laud the 3hp gain they received for about 4 hours of total work. If you’re like me, that’s not exactly how you want to spend a weekend, all for 3hp that you may not even notice with your rear-o-meter.

Fortunately, you’re probably also driving a computer-controlled vehicle, like most of the ones sold for the last 25 years or so. That makes tuning much easier, because a set of programming determines the way your engine performs. Replace the programming with a set geared toward performance, and you have near-instant power gains. Don’t get me wrong—there’s a lot to be said for the virtues of a computer-free classic that you have full control over. But, when it comes to getting more power in just a few minutes time without ripping your hands to shreds or spending thousands on obscure parts, a computer-controlled vehicle has a distinct advantage.

How can you make these changes in minutes? With a power programmer or performance chip, like the ones made by Hypertech or Diablosport. These programmers are built to hold performance settings tested by experienced pros for your specific engine. All you have to do is plug it into the OBD-II port beneath your steering column. With simple yes or no commands, you can adjust how you want your engine to perform, upload the new programming, and you’re ready to rock with 25hp or more extra. The maximum time this will take to complete: just 10 minutes.

Many drivers who want the extra power are leery of this tuning method. “How can so much power be had so fast, when the TV pros spend hours to get few gains?” they ask. The answer is that automakers down-tune their cars for the masses. Engines are setup to work the same for you, the budding performance enthusiast, as they are for the elderly, who like to travel half the speed limit or through the occasional farmer’s market. You aren’t the average driver, and performance programmers aren’t average settings. It’s a perfect match for you; it’s not a perfect match for your mother.

Some drivers worry about warranty when they’re considering a performance programmer. Not only to the companies that make programmers take safety into account with their settings, they often give you ways to return to stock settings for service visits at the dealership. And, as with all performance mods, you’re protected by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a federal law that basically states that your vehicle’s warranty can’t be voided by mods unless the mods can be proven as the source of trouble. In other words, there’s no reason to wait—the true potential is waiting to be unlocked, and you can do it without breaking a sweat.

Maximize your ride with performance chips, available from time-tested brands like a Hypertech programmer and Diablosport.

In order for everyone to understand where I’m coming from on this issue, I’ll need to delve into the storied history between the US and France. Back in 1914, World War I landed smack dab in the center of Europe, and France bit off a little more than she could chew. Turns out, for all their gusto, those cheese-eating generals couldn’t tell the difference between an Ottoman and a couch. So guess what happened? In came the American cavalry and saved their derrieres. Fast forward to 1939, and another major conflict erupted in the heart of Europe. Basically, it was the same players, same terrain, and same outcome. France got booted out of their own country, and the US had to come over and clean up the mess, again. Why do I bring this up? Simple. We’ve saved that ungrateful country so many times that they have no right to question our international doings. Our Greatest Generation didn’t die face down on the beaches of Normandy 60 years ago for France’s freedom to ignore our every command, no matter how absurd or wimsical.

So me and the rest of the boys down at our local Elk’s Lodge decided to take action. We started listening to this political wonk out of Levittown by the name of O’Reilly. According to his logic, the best way to fight back would be with our pocketbooks. He told us to stop buying French imports, and that’s exactly what we did. Wine? Only from California. Cheese? Better be from Wisconsin. Heartburn medicine? No Nexium for me, thank you very much.

Now, to be perfectly honest, it’s been a struggle. I haven’t had a decent flute of Champaign in nearly 2 years. And don’t even get me started on foie gras. I’m about one lackluster round of hors d’oeuvres away from force-feeding my own goose for even a single cracker’s worth of that pate. But I think all our sacrifice is really paying off because old Jacques up in the Elysee Palace is running away from reelection with his tail between his legs. That one goes out to the Gipper.

Unfortunately, this major victory is really going to the heads of some of the more power hungry boys in our Lodge. They want to expand the boycott to anything that even sounds remotely French. I can understand nixing baguettes from the grocery list and steering clear of cherries jubilee at restaurants. But I need my hair palmade. And after doing some online research, I learned that I really need a tonneau cover.

You see, I have to drive my truck for work, and the cost of gas keeps skyrocketing. I was nosing around on Google to see if I could find something to improve my fuel economy, and that’s when I stumbled across some articles about tonneau covers. Basically, they cover up your pickup’s box, which stops wind turbulence and cuts your drag. Long story short, you can save some serious dough at the pump with one of these. And there are a ton of companies all competing with each other, so the quality is top notch. I was giving serious consideration to Truxedo and Extang, but I finally went with a Pace Edwards retractable tonneau. I still catch hell down at the Lodge, but I don’t care. The cover was made in the USA, and I’m not going to hold it against the company that these miracle truck accessories sound like they came from Nice. C’est la vie.

After researching, the Undercover Tonneau, Extang, and Pace Edwards tonneaus impressed me the most.

As summer starts up people will start getting into their cars and trucks. But it is the season which has to be checked out. Summer would also mean that temperatures would be reaching beyond a limit which is something you should think on. The heat would be terrible that would remain the same for the entire season. As the temperatures go high and you have to travel long, it is very important to prepare your truck for summer. This makes your vehicle the perfect one to be for safe traveling. If any problem results and you get up stuck in the side of a busy road or a parking lot then it could be unsafe and could even lead to lots of tensions and confusion.

For the preparation of your truck for summer, it is very important to check the negative effects of heat and other problems in your vehicle. For keeping you and your loved ones safe in summer it is very important to check all these and especially the battery. It is considered to be important as the heavy electrical loads such as game systems, video equipments and the stereo systems could kill the battery along with the extremely hot temperature. This would in turn lead to putting you in terrible danger.

There are several things to be remembered for preparing your truck for summer. The first is to check your battery as the summer heat can be a danger. The connection between the posts and cables should be kept clean. Check the fluid levels always by opening the battery caps, but always wear eye protection. http://tonocover.com/ has all that is required for the automotive needs and it also offers free shipping on most of the products.

The coolant levels and the other fluids are to be checked often. For preparing your truck for summer it is very important to replace the antifreeze annually and the cooling system should be checked always. Other than all these it is very important to check out the engine oil, power steering, brake and transmission fluids and also the windshield washer solvent.

The hoses and belts should always be examined as the heat could result in leaks and damage. The electrical system, power steering and the air conditioning should be checked often. A loose belt or a damaged belt could lead to overheating of the engine. The varieties of truck accessories in the website http://tonocover.com/ are simply magnificent and attractive and are also available at low prices.

The gas as well as the performance mileage should be maximized. Thus the preparations of your truck for summer would be complete. Along with it always make it sure that the tires are inflated and if it is not, then it may seem like driving with parking breaks and above all it could also cost more than driving with inflated tires. The air filters are also to be checked always as it leads to burning of gas for the particular amount of air and also leads to gas wastage. This also results in losing engine power. The gas mileage could be improved by replacing the clogged air filter. It is also proved that the improvement could be about ten percent.

Rich Marsiglia, author for http://tonocover.com You can find more on truck accessories tonneau covers.

To begin with, I should say that I’ve been an avid Nerf fanatic since I gripped my first of many pink and black Turbo Juniors back in ‘84. Did you know that Nerf is actually an acronym for Non-Expanding Recreational Foam? Well, I know that, and now you know it as well, along with my level of Nerf geekdom. I can’t explain it, but holding that football gives me an unbelievable feeling of masculine power. With one flex of my arm muscles, I can pinch that sucker down into nothing more than a helpless wad. Then, I just ease off my death grip, and it pops right back into place. Good as new. I guess you could say that I feel like Nero at the Coliseum or an instrument of God when I’m choking the life out of my Nerf toys and then sparing them at that last minute. All balls must respect my grip.

The only thing I enjoy more than smothering a Nerf is accessorizing my F-150. I’ve already got a paint-matched Gaylord’s tonneau cover, a 4” Fabtech lift with 36” BF Goodrich rubbers, and every piece of Putco chrome I could get my hands on. My next move was to add some step bars so my mother wouldn’t have to agitate her sciatica climbing into the cab. When I started looking around, I was pleasantly puzzled to see that these steps were being called nerf bars. Sure, there are no similarities between my neon toys and those stainless steel and powder-coated nerf bars, but I knew I had to get a set.

After doing my research, I found that a lot of people were raving about Westin nerf bars and Nasta nerf bars. It almost came down to a coin toss, but my inner dawg told me to go with Nasta. My online order arrived about a week later, and it only took about an hour to bolt those bad boys into place. To show off my latest upgrade, I rounded up my Mom and Uncles and cruised down to the park on the next sunny Saturday afternoon. Man, I have to say that those nerf bars were glistening like a couple of sterling straws from a heavenly malt shop. Feeling like a million bucks, I decided to toss the ol’ foam around, which turned out to be a terrible idea.

Now, there were a couple of cuties in cutoffs hanging around, so I decided to let loose with my Nerfing skills. I told my Uncle Devon that I was going long, and I tore off down the field. Unfortunately, Devon was a second-string QB at his community college, so he released a Hail Mary that was big enough to absolve even Cain. I had to turn on the afterburners to get under it, and then it took a last-second dive to catch that sucker. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that I had high-stepped it into the parking lot. So when I came down with my Nerf ball, my head clipped the side of my new Nasta nerf bar. I can’t remember a whole lot about that day, except waking up on a gurney and seeing those two cuties in cutoffs staring at me from the back of the crowd of gawkers that had gathered around the ambulance. The rest is all an achy haze.

I lost a lot of blood from the silver dollar-sized flap of skin that scraped off my scalp, and it took a few days before I stopped seeing double. But I’m happy to say that the only damage to my nerf bar was a bit of gore, which hosed right off.

My vehicle choices for nerf bars have now been narrowed down to the Westin nerf bars and Nasta nerf bars brands.

Truck tool boxes can be used for a wide variety of projects. They can be used to carry things for work or for fishing or for playing your favorite sport. You can use them in your pick up truck if you don’t have a lot of space in the cab for hauling around other tools. You can use your tool box to protect items being carried in the truck bed. There are a wide array of styles to choose from. A homak tool box is a popular choice. You may also want to consider a truck lumber rack.

A top mount toll box will be mounted in the bed of the truck behind the cab. They may have one or two lids and they can have several compartments or one large one. You can choose the style you want depending on what you want to carry around with you in your truck. If you have a lot of small items than you will want something that has several compartments. IF you want something to carry larger tools than you will need one big compartment.

If you have a side mount box this will go on the side rail of the bed. This box will sit inside the truck bed and they come in many different sizes so that it can suite your particular truck. You can get them for a compact or full size bed. The box will open from the top and you should buy a model that locks so you can stop theft from occurring when you are parked. You want to make sure it has a proper lock. These features can be found on any sort of box.

If you are looking at boxes then consider the crossover box which is very popular. This will go behind the cab of the truck and you can find it in a model that will fit any kind of box. You can have your tool box bolted to the bed of the truck to stop people from trying to steal it. Many different manufacturers make crossover boxes.

The least expensive type of box is a plastic box which is a lot cheaper than other materials, but of course they are not as sturdy. If you want to get something slightly better than get something made out of aluminum. This is a good choice for a pick up truck. It is light but also more sturdy than a plastic box. You will pay more for this kind of box, but it will last longer than a plastic box. You can get this kind of box in a silver tone or in black.

If you want a really long lasting box then try a steel one. These are really good for professional uses and will prove themselves very long lasting and durable. They are also more expensive than the other types so you will have to pay for this reliability. Get one with a powder coated steel because it will be more durable and last even longer.

Focusing on latest news in tool storage, the columnist works almost entirely for http://www.insidewoodworking.com. You can discover his comments on workbenches and truck tool boxes over at http://www.insidewoodworking.com.

How is this so? Most car windows are coated with silicon or other types of substrates that make vinyl adhesion short lived. And because vehicles are exposed to direct sunlight and heat for long periods, vinyl decals, which are expected to last at least 3 years, might not stay on. In addition, most of the tints that coat car windows are also not vinyl friendly. While the vinyl decals stick longer on them, they become a problem to take off without running the risk of destroying the film.

It would also be prudent to do away with dark-colored graphics, because they respond adversely to sunlight as they absorb greater amounts of heat. If left for a long period of time, the glass might eventually explode. On the other hand, vinyl adhesion does not work in too cold weathers, particularly those under 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

This is why most vehicle graphics installers discourage against placing decals on windows. Apart from the incompatibility of the window coatings with vinyl, they also require a lot more work to install. For instance, while car bodies are okay with calendared vinyl, glass windows respond better to perforated cast vinyl, which are relatively pricey. Also, because car windows still have to serve their purpose, that is, for those inside to be able to see what’s outside, special materials have to be used.

This does not say, though, that vinyl graphics should never be placed on glass windows. It simply serves as a reminder that installing window graphics is a more tedious and costly process. However, if you really must have graphics on your car window, then you should bring the job to the professionals, to be safe.

Syed is the owner of Truck Wrap, web site which is a site dedicated all vinyl graphics.

For most of the past seven decades, Brembo has possessed a totalitarian hold on the title of “best brakes in the world.” The frequently lauded company from Bergamo, Italy has also added scores of race victories and many more outposts around the globe, crushing rotor rebellions right and left. No sight of braking beauty quite matches a glorious red Brembo caliper, which sends weak-pistoned competitors cowering away.

Then, there’s EBC brakes—the band of rebels to Brembo’s empire. EBC made its bones in the motorcycle world first. And, oddly enough (or not odd at all), EBC planted its pads and discs into the realm of competitive mountain biking, too, before going automotive almost 25 years ago. Since then, EBC has been chipping away at Brembo’s expansive territory, doing it all from their humble British beginnings.

What happens when the formerly two-wheeled David takes a swing at the one true Goliath in brakes? Let’s imagine the semi-metallic, cast-metal warfare. (Hmmm…England vs. Italy in an epic battle. Hasn’t this happened before?)

First, EBC sneak attacks Brembo with surprising quality at a price the big boys won’t ever reach. Meanwhile, EBC’s green, red and yellow pads occupy territory where Brembo hasn’t made big gains. Brembo responds with their undefeated drilled rotors vanquishing most of EBC’s disc forces. The death blow comes from Brembo’s big brake kits, which combine the invaluable traits of having unbeatable quality and several rap video appearances.

It looks like Brembo has taken this skirmish by a long shot, but the EBC rebellion lives on. In fact, you’ll still find pockets of EBC resistance throughout the performance and street braking worlds. As for Brembo, their brakes empire still encircles the globe, oppressing inferior parts.

Find quality brakes and parts from upstart EBC Brakes or stick with the tradition of Brembo Brakes to transform your stopping power.