50 state legal bed seating.

[SPPD]

Hi all,

I came across this while trying to figure out a way for us to bring friends camping with us without taking an additional vehicle.
In the fall I am going to put a fiberglass cap on my F-150 bed and plan to add these.
http://bedryder.com/index.html

Has anyone seen these or used these? They claim that they are 50 state legal and exceed Federal Safety Standards.

When I get them in the fall, I will write a review.

SPPD

[MtnGuy]

In Virginia, there is an age restriction.....nobody under the age of 16 can ride in a pickup bed....except during a parade or farm children in the bed while the pickup is crossing the road from 1 field to another.

Other than that, you should be good to go in Virginia.

[SPPD]

Mtn,
We figure it will be my wife or I in the back with one of the older kids. The little ones will stay up in the cab. Illinois where I live there are no laws explicitly addressing bed riding, but other laws such as child seat would apply. There is a link on the site for the seats that address each states laws which could come in handy when we cross state lines to camp.

SPPD

[MtnGuy]

Seems like a pretty good idea for extra passengers. Be careful that other things in the bed are tied down good, or the passengers could be wearing the camp gear if you have to brake hard.

As an added bonus, you can watch your camper while in transit.

[ependydad]

I had also found something like Cowtown Sleepers. They're bubbles that are accessed from the cab or have their own doors from the bed of the truck. Enclosed, unlike this- pretty snazzy.

Basically, I'm looking for a bed while the wife drives. A nice nap would do wonders for our getting there!

[IllinoisCamper]

Just like the old Subaru's. One thing to keep in mind is that although a state may not have a law forbidding riding in the bed of a pickup, there maybe other statues that apply. In Illinois for example, the linked website is correct instating that there are no vehicle laws forbidding riding in the bed. There are child passenger protection laws that would still apply. Anyone 16 and under are required or wear an approved seatbelt. Those 8 and under need to be in an approved child seat or booster. There are seat belts so I am guessing over 8 would be OK. Kids 8 and under would be questionable without a car or booster seat.

[Oaklevel]

I have done this in the past with our boys until....................... We had a fiberglass cap with a boot between the cap & the bed which we did not have any issues ...............

BUT................................

Would NOT recommend it now.......... several years ago two children were sleeping in the back of their parents truck cap while traveling through VA near Roanoke when the parents stopped at a rest stop & tried to wake them & could not.....they died from a leak in the exhaust........

Would need to make sure that there was plenty of air flow...........................

[SPPD]

Oak,
That is a great point and I never thought of that. I will definately install a CO detector in the bed, and some sort of ventilation. Thank you for that information! What a tragedy.

SPPD

[asquared]

couple things come to mind..... one hot in summer, cold in winter. two... I worked trauma for years. anytime I hear about people riding in pickup truck beds I cringe thinking about ejection injuries and rollover injuries. good points about CO poisoning made above. that said, people ride in the back of trucks all the time in NC.

[SPPD]

ANARO,

I would never think about putting my family in the bed unsecured. I too have some trauma experience, 7 years as a Firefighter/Paramedic and 9 years in Law Enforcement and have seen the results of unsecured passengers. I would only use the bed for seating with proper equipment. The seats in the original post exceed federal standards for occupant safety. I have done my own research about these seats since I never take the manufacturers word and they seem to be safe.
I will make my final judgement when I install them in the fall and will scrap the idea if anything about these seats seems off in either manufacturing or safety.

Regards,

SPPD

[joelek]

Yup Subaru Brat all over again. The Mexican version has 20 migrant workers in the back of that pickup truck doing a Baja race to the next farm field. Non of them strapped in of course.