The Certified Ag Dealers program began about twelve years ago and now includes around 200 dealers across the U.S. The program helps dealerships to better understand the needs of farmers and ranchers so they can serve them better. Certified Dealers undergo the training and then are kept up to date with agricultural issues through a weekly newsletter.
“If you think about it, farmers and ranchers buy everything from dealers who only deal with farmers and ranchers except their pickup trucks,” Chief Marketing Officer Lyle Orwig pointed out.
Orwig was excited about the new Ag Wagon that was designed by farmers and ranchers for farmers and ranchers. Maci Carter caught up with him to get the details on the truck that was the result of Certified Agricultural Dealers’ partnership with Fox Factory, which makes Ram 1500 Black Widow trucks and Ford Shelby F-150 trucks.
“They came to us and said that they have some capacity in their plant,” Orwig explained. “They said that when farmers buy a truck, they don’t take it home right away, but rather take it to get all of the things put on it that they need that don’t come from an Original Equipment Manufacturer. They asked if they build a perfect farm truck, could we sell it through our Certified Ag Dealers. We said absolutely.”
Orwig’s team got fourteen farmers and ranchers together last April to talk about what composes the perfect farm truck. The resulting truck is known as the Ag Wagon.
“Many farmers will remember that name because it used to be Cessna’s spray plane back in the sixties through nineties,” he said. “It was really the G.O.A.T. of the time. Many of those planes are still in use because they were such good planes. We are bringing that G.O.A.T. to the ground and putting it in a pickup truck.”
The Ag Wagon add-ons can be ordered for any truck purchased from a local Certified Ag dealership, to protect the warranty on the base truck whether it be a Chevrolet, Ford, or GM. Fox Factory handles all of the add-ons.
“The things that we learned that they want is a better front suspension because they only last a couple of years going through some of the fields, pastures, and potholes, that we take them through,” Orwig explained. “They put a three-inch ADS lift on it to give them more stability and security. It also has twenty-inch wheels with BF Goodwrench tires that throw the mud and manure off at ten miles per hour so you aren’t leaving it all over the road at 40 miles per hour. It has 360-degree LED lighting all the way around it, so you can see if you have to work on equipment at night or are out checking calves. It has an improved front bumper with a wench.”
Other possible upgrades include a factory-installed two-way radio, Starlink, and heavy-duty leather seats.
More information can be found by visiting CertifiedAgDealer.com to find a local dealer. “You can also search for AgPack because when you buy your truck from a Certified Ag Dealer, you are qualified for AgPack and that is up to forty thousand dollars’ worth of discounts from other ag companies that provide that when you purchase your truck,” Orwig concluded.
