Patent ID: 7703784

Claim:
A vehicle structure comprising: a structural support; a vehicle cargo area supported on the structural support, the vehicle cargo area having first and second sides extending a generally uniform height above a cargo bed of the vehicle cargo area, upper edges of the first and second sides defining an open upper end of the vehicle cargo area; a main side body panel extending along one of the first and second sides of the vehicle cargo area the height of the one of the first and second sides; and a vehicle side panel step structure extending along a lower region of the main side body panel, the vehicle side panel step structure including a step, a mounting structure movably coupling the step to the structural support for movement of the step between a retracted step position and an extended step position relative to the structural support with an intermediate overcenter position located between the retracted and extended step positions, the mounting structure including a step frame pivotally coupled to the structural support for pivotal movement of the step between the extended step position and the retracted step position, the step being rigidly fixed to the step frame, the mounting structure further including a support frame fixed to the structural support having a pivot portion configured to pivotally support the step frame, and an over-the-center biasing member operatively coupled to the mounting structure to apply a first urging force for maintaining the step in the retracted step position when the step is in the retracted step position and to apply a second urging force for maintaining the step in the extended step position when the step is moved from the retracted step position past the overcenter position towards the extended step position, the biasing member being operably coupled between the support frame and the step frame, and a point on the step frame where the step frame and the biasing member connect is at a vertical location below the step when the step is in the retracted step position and is at a vertical location above the step when the step is in the extended step position.