LOS ANGELES AUTO SHOW Customizers put the party on wheels

One customized pickup features a propane grill and beer kegs with spouts.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
LOS ANGELES -- Sometimes just having a new car or truck isn't enough.
Those who want more often are happy enough to add eye-catching paint jobs or ear-bending sound systems, but a few people want more.
Take a customized Ford F-150 pickup truck that's designed for the ultimate tailgate party fanatic.
On display at the Greater Los Angeles Auto Show, the truck has a stainless steel propane grill at the back of the bed. Two large ice chests also are on back.
Since tailgate parties usually have more than food, the truck has two on-board beer kegs with dual beer spouts next to the grill. The truck also comes with a blender.
With all that, the partiers might not want to leave the lot. In that case, the truck has a 33-inch plasma television screen mounted on the back of the cab and a satellite TV system. A cover stretches from the roof line back over the bed.
Galpin Ford of North Hills, Calif., is showing off the customized truck. The dealership has been customizing vehicles for more than 40 years but also bills itself as one of the largest Ford dealers in the world.
Koffin Kruzer
Also on display was a Ford F-250 that Galpin calls the Koffin Kruzer.
A black, full-size coffin with a red velvet interior sits in the bed. At the end of bed is an electric keyboard that plays music through chrome pipes that line the front of the bed. Prices weren't available on either of the Galpin models.
These trucks are among many vehicles and products on display in the auto show's after-market products area. Companies are showing sound systems, wheel covers, tires, satellite radio and television systems, shock absorbers and other products for customizing a vehicle.
Camping
Sportsmobile of Austin, Texas, is showing its customized vans that are designed for camping.
The company, which has been in this business for 40 years, takes incomplete underbodies from the domestic automakers and adds pop-up tops for more interior room, refrigerators, running water and a stove cook top.
The vans also are built with rugged ride and handling features so they can go far off road.
Prices range from $42,000 to $77,000.
Invisible Bra
Star Shield Armor of Irwindale, Calif., offers a way to keep a new car or truck looking new.
Its product, the Invisible Bra, is a thin film that's applied over the front of the vehicle to protect it from rock chips, bugs and other abrasions.
Unlike the black bras used by some, the Invisible Bra almost lives up to its name. The only part of it that can be seen is a faint line where the film ends.
Star Armor, which does work in nine states, lays the film on and then brushes off the moisture so the film sticks. It says the film, which was developed by 3M, can be removed without damaging the paint.
The cost for most vehicles is between $500 and $700.
Car ads
Once a car is looking good, an owner might want to make money from it.
Drivertise, another Irwindale company, debuted its mobile billboard, which will be available in the spring.
The signs are about 2 feet by 3 feet and are designed to attach over a back passenger's window or further back on the vehicle. The can be installed and removed easily, the company says.
"If you can see this, so can your customers," one colorful sign says.
The company is targeting independent business owners, such as real estate brokers, mortgage lenders and entrepreneurs.
shilling@vindy.com