I installed the RETRAX retractable bed cover on my 1997 Ford F-150 pickup a few years ago. After I sold the truck, I sure missed that cover, and must have talked it up enough, because my wife ordered a replacement for the new truck. I'm still not sure if she missed it too, or if she just didn't want to hear about it anymore. Installation steps can vary a little depending on your truck bed, but you'll find you don't need much mechanical expertise to install the cover.

Dodge showed its HEMI-equipped Mopar Ram Bianco at this year's SEMA Show. The truck is outfitted with Mopar accessories from top to bottom, including a hard tonneau cover and a washable carpet in the bed. Inside are white and black Katzkin seats and an upgraded audio system.

More about the Ram Bianco

_{Photo © Dale Wickell}

Toyota partnered with Fender Guitar and Phoenix-based Sucker Punch Sally's to build the Tundra Hot Rod pickup. Underneath its red flames, the truck is a flat black regular cab Tundra, but custom components inside and out turned it into a street rod that would look at home during '50s and '60s cruises. Tuck 'n roll upholstery and a curly maple truck bed (straight from Fender's shop) are two of the Tundra's special features.

_{Photo by Dale Wickell}

The main focus at Chevy's SEMA display was the automaker's new Camaro, but the Silverado ZR2 concept truck attracted its fair share of onlookers. Built for off-roading, a good portion of the truck's steel body has been replaced with lightweight carbon fiber panels. Instead of paint, designers clear-coated some of the panels so that the material's intricate patterning would remain visible. The ZR2 truck is powered by a 550-horsepower supercharged engine, and wears unique accessories inside and out. Chevy says it's taking a close look at some of the truck's components to determine if they can be used in future production vehicles.

_{Photo © Dale Wickell}

P-Ayr is a company that builds lightweight models of all sorts of components. For the auto industry the list includes engines, carburetors, manifolds -- pretty much anything they're asked to build. The parts are realistic and built to OEM specs, so accessories can be hooked into the models for on-site displays that look just like the originals.

The company decided to display some of its products by building a "show car" for SEMA, and the result was a unique "vehicle" that drew plenty of attention during the event.

_{Photo © Dale Wickell}

Ford's SEMA exhibit includes several trucks, like Superlift's Hot Wheels F-150 and the K-Daddyz Kustomz pickup. Be sure to look at the airbrushing on the F-150 Freedom Truck, by Malibu Customz. The artist, Mickey Harris of Knoxville, Tennessee, is at the SEMA exhibit, working on a project -- airbrushing the hood of a Ford Mustang.

Another truck on display is the candy-red 2010 Project FX2 Sport, by the Ford Vehicle Personalization Team. The FX2 Sport package is available now from Ford dealers, but the show truck is equipped with features not included on the production vehicle.

_{Photo © Dale Wickell}

Hummer brought four trucks and SUVs to this week's SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The display opens tomorrow and will include two concepts, the H3 Moab, which is packed with off-road accessories, and the H3T Sportsman, billed as "the ultimate outdoorsman's truck." Rod Hall Racing's H3 Alpha and Robby Gordon's Off-Road's Dakar Hummer will also be shown.

SEMA Pre-Show Previews

ICON Vehicle Dynamics built its own off-road pickup truck from a Suzuki Equator, using ICON inventory plus parts and accessories from other suppliers. The truck will be on display at next week's SEMA Show in Las Vegas.

It's impossible to view everything at SEMA, but the Las Vegas event is one of my favorite auto shows. Last year, exhibits were spread out over 2-million square feet of space, and two-thousand new automotive products (in every category imaginable) were introduced. This year's show (four days beginning November 3rd) will probably be similar.

Is there a specific product you'd like me to watch out for? Leave a comment or send me an email.

_{Photo © Suzuki}

Adam Berry is the Lead Creative Designer at GM's Accessory Studio. He appears in a new YouTube Video, talking about six Camaros scheduled to be on display at this year's SEMA Show and asking viewers to vote for their favorite Camaro graphics package on the car's Facebook enthusiasts page. But that's sure not a Camaro behind him. The video clearly shows a raised Silverado truck, and if you enlarge the page you can read the text that accompanies the graphic -- Silverado Baja Off Road Vision. He doesn't mention the truck at all, but the illustration is sure an interesting teaser.

Watch the Video

_{Photo © Chevrolet}

Ford released sketches today of five custom F-Series trucks that will be on display at this year's SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The Freedom Truck shown here is a 2009 Ford F-150 by Malibu Customz. The company teamed up with artist Mickey Harris to design the truck -- a tribute to everyone who's served in the U.S. armed forces. Superlist Suspension Systems created a Hot Wheels version of the F-150, and Ford Vehicle Personalization added to its FX2 series with a candy-red truck.