Remote control of your truck cap or tonneau cover is now availabe from Leer of Woodland, Califronia, among others. Leer's goal was to make these truck caps and tonneau covers as easy to open as a pickup's doors, thanks to a keyless entry system. The Leer remote features separate lock and unlock buttons, so you never leave the cap or tonneau open by mistake, and it works from 100 feet away. Plus, no outer hardware shows when you install the remote system, so you get super-smooth looks. Go to www.leer.com and expect to pay $195 or so.
Cars used to have radios and then they had stereos and then they had sound systems and soon they're going to have multi-purpose entertainment devices. Alpine Electronics of Torrance, California, are now selling CD head units with Versatile-Link technology. These devices (check them out at www.alpine1.com) will make it possible for you to plug in an MP3 player, a game player or other accessory. Some units also feature the company's new Bass Engine technology, which enables ultimate customization of how bass and other music frequencies sound directly from the head unit, instead of from the amp in your trunk. The head units cost $430 to $1,100, and the Versatile-Link cable is $15.