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Third-time-charm for the MidBox?

Jan. 6, 2014
So while attending the 2013 Rush Truck Centers (RTC) Technician Skills Rodeo last month, I checked out an interesting truck-body concept called the “MidBox” being built for the regular and super-cab versions of Ford’s F-150 pickup by Caseco Manufacturing, a family-owned service body maker that’s been in business for over 40 years.

The “MidBox” further intrigued me as I learned it’s been shopped around the truck body industry not once but twice with little success, until Caseco bought the design back in October 2012.

[You can view more photos of the MidBox and some other Caseco service body styles by clicking here.]

Caseco’s sales reps – who showed off the MidBox as well as its Master Mechanic Series line of heavy-duty crane and service bodies at the supplier expo RTC organized alongside its annual rodeo event – also told me that the MidBox is becoming something of a “multi-purpose” body design in this its third incarnation, as some fleets are using it to contain compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel tanks, for example.

One of Caseco’s reps told me the hallmark of the MidBox is “convenience” as it is designed to keep everything – tools, oil reels, even groceries in consumer applications – at waist level for easier access.

Right now, Caseco is building prototype MidBox applications for the Ford F-250 and F-350 models, which it hopes the OEM will eventually approve, as well as for GM’s Chevrolet Silverado.

It’s an interesting service body concept for pickups, this low-slung “MidBox” is. We’ll see how it fares among fleets as another New Year gets rolling.

About the Author

Sean Kilcarr 1 | Senior Editor

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