Making the Most of Your Ute

As you know, space is limited in utility vehicles whether you have a single or dual cab. The classic “ute” is great for travelling with cargo and useful on-site, but they generally have restricted storage options and we are guessing you probably have lots to store!

So, we have jotted down a few tips to help you take advantage of your ute, so you can make the most of carrying your office around with you.

Clean it up

This can be one of the smallest or most tedious tasks, depending on how often you clean out your vehicle, but so necessary. Remove all of those extra bits and pieces from the cab that have snuck in, all the empty containers, loose tools, and PPE. Soon everything will have a place and won’t need to be floating around in the cab.

Give it a good blow out whilst you’re at it. If you don’t have a vacuum, grab a leaf blower, open all the doors, and hit it! All the excess dirt will be evacuated in no time (make sure all valuables are out first).

Get creative inside

We’ve all seen videos of astonishingly organised cars with all the extra fittings, whilst scrolling on Facebook. Your cab can be fitted out with amazing storage solutions too.

Look into getting some under-seat organisers, side seat caddies, console organisers, and door liners to make the most of all available storage in your cab. If you have a duel cab, or space behind your front seats, a back of seat organiser can also be a great place to store tools and safety equipment.

Furthermore, adding miniature rubbish bins to your spare cup holder, or collapsible canvas bins, can help keep your daily rubbish in order.

Revamp the tray

Depending on your trade and what style of vehicle you have, you may want to add a couple of toolboxes, roof racks, over cab storage solutions, bed slides, and or storage nets to section off parts of the tray and secure loads.

If you’re a tradie that uses a lot of small fitting or tool pieces, it might be worth investing in a toolbox equipped with internal storage or built in draws. These styles can be a little pricier but will make a difference to you when you’re searching for the smaller items.

Our tip is to start simple and work your way up. Find out what size, shape, and format will work best for your vehicle and your trade before splashing out. Bunnings has a large range of reasonably priced toolboxes to start you off.

Accessorise!

Add those extra touches to take your ute to the next level.

If we are talking practical, it's always wise to ensure you pick toolboxes with adequate locking systems, to avoid theft when your ute is unattended. Making sure to look for locking systems that can’t be removed by detaching the external hinges. Locks that are completely covered such as this one, are always a good choice as the thief cannot remove the whole locking system and take off with your tools.

You can also install toolbox alarm systems to either scare off the intruder or to alert you that someone is tampering with your toolbox.

A little extra measure is to install interior lighting to your toolbox for easy visibility in the early hours of the morning, or when working late in the evening.

If you are looking to make the most of your ute (for pleasure not work) then add in a Travel Buddy Oven mountable to your ute for warm toasty lunches every day! Not the most practical for space but who doesn’t love a hot pie for lunch.