Kuat Huk Half Tailgate Bike Pad for Trucks - 2 Bikes - 25" Wide

Video Transcript for Kuat Huk Half Truck Tailgate Pad Review - 2021 Ford Ranger

Hey everybody, Cooper here at etrailer. Today we're going to be taking a look at the Kuat Huk on our 2021 Ford Ranger. Now the Huk does come in multiple different sizes. Today we have the half-size one on today, which can help accommodate up to two bikes. If you are looking for something to carry more, they do make a full-length one for the back of trucks like our Ford Ranger, which can help accommodate up to five bikes. But if you don't need to carry around that many, the half-size is going to be a perfect solution for you.

Now, a tailgate pad is going to be different than your traditional bike rack. It does save out on a lot space. So whether you're trying to store something in your garage or maybe on the back of your vehicle, a traditional bike rack that is hitch-mounted is going to take up a lot more space, both in your garage and on the back of your vehicle, compared to something like a tailgate pad. And usually, they're a little bit more cost effective, which is a really nice bonus as well. And the installation process is a lot easier.

We don't have to deal with any pins and clips like we would with our traditional bike rack. We just have to take our rope and make sure that we cinch it down real tight through our tailgate and then it has a nice hold on it. Now the Huk can only accommodate up to two bikes, but those points are not fixed. We actually have five different locations here on the hook where we can put our straps at that secure our bikes down. So if we have something like the wheel well on the back of our truck here, and one of our spots is unusable, we can move that strap to one of the other locations to help accommodate our bikes.

And if you're worried about causing any damage to your tailgate at all, you don't have to. There's actually inch-thick padding on each side of the Huk to help protect your bike and your tailgate from any damage. And on the inside of the pad actually, is a very soft felt lining, so that way, you don't have to worry about causing any damage to the paint of your vehicle. Now take a little bit closer look at the Huk. We're gonna go ahead and take our bike out.

It is as simple as just undoing this strap here and then lifting your bike out. Now since the Huk is made out of a really durable and water resistant TPU, it does pick up dirt pretty easily. But it's as easy as just taking a cloth with a little bit of water on it and just kind of wiping it back and forth and you can knock that dirt right off. Coming down to the center here, we can see that we actually do have full use of our handle still. So if you don't have any bikes loaded up, you could, in theory, just leave the Huk on when you're just driving around. And because our backup camera does sit pretty centered on our Ford Ranger here, we will have full use of that. You might see the Huk in the corner of it, but if you really wanted to micromanage and get the most use out of it, you could pull the Huk a little bit more towards the edge. You would just lose that ability to pull down that tailgate. As we mentioned earlier, there are two straps to hold the Huk in place. And these are nice and durable straps. And with all this extra stitching here, they do hold on very tight. So I wouldn't worry about any of this coming undone anytime soon. We found that the easiest installation process is to essentially lower down your tailgate, feed those straps in from the back and then hook them up on the front. Close your tailgate and then cinch it down here on the back. Overall, I do think that the Kuat Huk is a very good alternative to a hitch-mount style bike rack. Like we said earlier, it is very easy to install. It doesn't take up as much room, which is all really nice and great things about it. And if you even wanted to upgrade to the full-length size, which can accommodate up to five bikes, there is a access door essentially for the lever to your tailgate and to use your backup camera. So even if you wanted to upgrade to that full-length size, you're not losing out on any of the features that we still get using the half-size, which is a really nice bonus about it too. So overall, I would have no problem recommending the Kuat Huk if you we're looking for a tailgate pad similar to this. And overall, I think it looks really great on our 2021 Ford Ranger. My name's Cooper, and thanks for watching.