We don’t really do truck ‘tuning’ here in the UK, but that’s not really our fault. For a start, our roads are absolutely tiny in comparison to the USA. If everyone suddenly started rollin’ around in lifted RAMs on 38in wheels it wouldn’t take long for our towns to become quite literally gridlocked. Then there’s petrol prices…

A litre of ‘gas’ in the states will set you back around 80 cents (62p). A litre of petrol over here is back up to £1.29 a litre. So when you’re looking at an affordable runaround, a 4-tonne truck with a V8 motor averaging 15mpg isn’t going to be particularly high on the agenda.

But trucks were never designed for the UK; they’re much more at home in the USA, where trucks account for 65% of ALL vehicles sold every year. Cheap gas, huge roads and a tuning industry absolutely booming with accessories. Yup, if we ever moved across the Pacific we’d have a truck as a runaround straight away.

When we say the tuning industry is huge for trucks, we absolutely mean it! No place in the world showcases this better than SEMA where, over the past 5-years especially, domestic truck tuning has got bigger and better. On one side you’ve got manufacturers keen to sell ‘lifestyle’ accessories including camping & off-road gear, while at the other end of the spectrum you’ve got full blinged-out customization. Mini monster trucks, lifted to sit over 12ft tall, lashed in chrome and LED clad. Oh, and don’t forget the addition of a train horn for good measure…

Whether you’re into truck tuning or not, you can’t help but appreciate the variety displayed at SEMA every year. No other scene puts so much attention on otherwise mundane items – differential covers, driveshafts, dual shocks for each corner and more. In fact, the value of these trucks would put most supercars to shame… but when your country buys up 17.1-million of ’em every year it’s no surprise the market exists!