[Maddog096]

I do a lot of highway driving and NEED a tonneau cover. I am leaning towards a soft but may still get a hard cover. What are your experiences with them? good, bad, indifferent no matter what it is.

I would like to purchase it this weekend. If you could throw out there some good name brands that would help me too.

 

[AK98Taco]

Get a soft cover.

I made a huge mistake and bought a Gaylord's X2000 Platinum tonneau. It's the nicest on the market and had all the goodies, like carpet, a dome light, dual flush-mounted locks, and so on, but was a massive waste of money.

Such a waste, in fact, that I took it off in favor of a canopy, which actually has function. The tonneau is still sitting in my garage in Alaska.


For the ultimate in secure and weatherproof storage, get a canopy.

 

[TOYOTA]

I have a high quality soft cover and it is great.cost $500 new.can not think of the name at the moment.cheap ones look like sh#t and take in water.

 

[Packoo]

interested in canopy

Get a soft cover.

I made a huge mistake and bought a Gaylord's X2000 Platinum tonneau. It's the nicest on the market and had all the goodies, like carpet, a dome light, dual flush-mounted locks, and so on, but was a massive waste of money.

Such a waste, in fact, that I took it off in favor of a canopy, which actually has function. The tonneau is still sitting in my garage in Alaska.


For the ultimate in secure and weatherproof storage, get a canopy.

Pics? price? brand name and where to get one... Very interested!

 

[AK98Taco]

A canopy? There are numerous brands. I have experience with Brahma and Summit canopies on Chevies, and I currently have a Range Rider canopy on my Tacoma.

It's the Cruiser series and is fiberglass with an interal frame, has dual locks, an LED third brake light, and wide mount roof rack provisions.

I paid about $1,400 for it in August '04.

Here's the best picture I can come up with: http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-4/155437/canopy.jpg

 

[WILD YOTE]

Price one from Toyota. I think They're around $300.00, I like mine a lot.

 

[Maddog096]

I'm not in the market for a canopy yet but maybe in a year or two. Right now I am just looking to save a few bucks on gas. And I don't want some piece of sh*t that isn't going to do what it was made to do.

 

[CYi5]

I have a Leer Tonneau cover. Got it used for $500 down from $850 new. Pretty good cover. Though fiberglass ones are heavy as hell, so your back may ride a tad lower than a retractable cover.

 

[tacomablack]

The best hard cover I've seen for tacoma's is from http://www.undercoverinfo.com/. They are hard covers but they are very light and easy to remove. They even come with a wall storage rack for when you take it off your truck.

 

[REDMARLIN WITH SOUL]

Have an A.R.E. hard tonneau cover on. One of best investments I have made. Check out this brand before you buy anything else. Weight @ 80# cost @ $750.00. I travel Fl. NY route twice a year. No leakage in the heaviest downpours. One of the beauty aspects is the wind slips right off your truck. Hunt and fish, great for gear, can sleep in back with tailgate down and mosquito bar covering. Looks classy!! Although post above is different brand it looks similiar to mine and you probably will admit it sure adds that "finishing touch." Certainly not for everyone but it has fullfilled my purpose better than I expected. Probably saves gas on long trips. Computer Newbie also and do not know how to post photos. Good Luck. Rich

02 3.4 TRD S/C, boost guage, 7th injector kit, headers, cat-back, air filter, step bars. Justin bull bar with KC fog lamps, Monomax shocks, Summmit anti-roll tractions springs, ARE hard tonneau cover.

 

[RENEGADE76254]

or u can alwasy do what i do, ride with the tailgate down... cheapest way i know 2 do it, then anything that cant get wet goes in the tool box, plus the toolbox provides perfect mount for my cb antenna.

 

[AK98Taco]

or u can alwasy do what i do, ride with the tailgate down... cheapest way i know 2 do it, then anything that cant get wet goes in the tool box, plus the toolbox provides perfect mount for my cb antenna.

It has been proven, by Lockheed Martin, that driving with a lowered tailgate actually diminishes the aerodynamics of a pickup truck, so the best option other than a canopy is to leave the bed open and the tailgate closed.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/columns/Archive/1997/October/05.html

 

[Intrepid]

best cover

I spent a lot of time trying to decide what cover to get, I liked the hard tonneau's because they tilted so you could get into the bed without crawling in, however there was no convenient way to remove it quickly whereas the soft I could unsnap them and use the bed if necessary. So I found the best of both worlds, the Extang Full Tilt Tonneau. It tilts up on two gas shocks so you can access the bed, but locks in place when down, if you unsnap the shocks you can tilt it up over 45 degrees and remove the whole thing, on the frame (this makes removing it in the winter much easier since you don't have to resnap it) and it can also unsnap it and roll it up if necessary. I have had mine for about a year and do a lot of wheeling with it and it holds up great, it stays sealed very well even when covered in mud and sand.
The best deal I could find was at at www.truckxpressions.com.

 

[AK98Taco]

That is a really slick cover! Wish I had gotten one of those instead of my luxo Gaylord's X2000. Oh, well. Now I have the canopy.

The X2000 could be removed in about a minute, by two people, so it wasn't too bad.

 

[TacoTaco]

Ive got an Extang soft tonneau....Looks great and actually does help mileage, especially on the highway. Ive had it for a year and a half now, with no leaks at all----and thats saying alot considering that I live in Washington, the land of eternal rain.

My only gripes about it is that its a PITA to put it back on if its cold. You have to stretch it something fierce. (This isnt an issue if you have a heated garage)

Id go with the soft, especially if you ever need to put anything large in your bed. The soft just rolls up, you dont have to take it off like a hard.

Just my .02

 

[synovus]

I've got a Gemtop GT Classic low-profile hard tonneau. If I remember correctly, it was $695. I think it weighs about 60 lbs, and with the help of another person comes off as quickly as you want it to. Its got a sheet of metal sandwiched between layers of fiberglass and is very strong. The weatherstripping helps to keep water from getting into the bed, but the gaps on either side of the tailgate still let some in (not the tonneau's fault). The only drawbacks I've encountered have been the limited room to access stuff at the front of the bed (I've got a large storage/tool box, and the lid on it only opens so far being where it is) and the limited vertical space to tote stuff (Taco beds are rather shallow in comparison to others). Overall I've been extremely pleased with it. I've never really liked the over-the-rail hard tonneaus; they just don't look very good to me. But that's completely a personal preference thing.

 

[RENEGADE76254]

It has been proven, by Lockheed Martin, that driving with a lowered tailgate actually diminishes the aerodynamics of a pickup truck, so the best option other than a canopy is to leave the bed open and the tailgate closed.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/colu...October/05.html

i hafta say thats a lil astounding. i am a senior and goin to college next year as a industrail design major (design trucks and other cool stuff) and i really find it kinda hrad to accept that based on my experiance. i do agree the bed is more strucuturally safe and possibly the truck with the tailgate up, but to test there theory i put a 3 plastic bags in the back of the truck, one empty, one with some misc. plastic junk i found in the barn, and the third with a brick. i rode down the dirt road at approx 25-30 mph wiht tailgate open. the empty bag immeadiately flew out, quickly followed by the bag with the plactic parts, but obviously the brick didnt move. i placed the items in just back of the center of the bed ( i have a toolbox so i wanted to compinsate for that). i then picked up my bags and put them back in original spot and closed the tailgate, i went to the paved road for this test. i had to get up to 35 before the empty bag finally exited the bed, it begin to blow around at about 25. i then acceled to 45-50mph before the bag with plastic was ever moved and it never left the truck, and the brick bag stayed. i was surprised at the results to say the least. i then returned home and put a nice handful of leaves in the bed, tailgate up i acceled and very few left the bed, but the majority did the a whirlwind motion in the bed, but never left. i then got another a few leaves and replaced what was left. i then acceled with tailgate open and to my surprise they didnt fly out the back, instead they sporadicly swirled and a good majority ended up underneath my toolbox while about the same were blown out. i was stunned, i was wronge. then i thought about it, as a designer i would make the truck where it would have great aero dynamics w/o dropping the tailgate. so u are right man, i bet im not the only person who has thought dropping the tailgate saved gas, when it actually dosent. thanks for pointing that out.
RENEGADE76254

 

[6vamocat]

Does anyone have any experience with the roll-n-lock bed covers?

 

[DBOY900]

It has been proven, by Lockheed Martin, that driving with a lowered tailgate actually diminishes the aerodynamics of a pickup truck, so the best option other than a canopy is to leave the bed open and the tailgate closed.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/columns/Archive/1997/October/05.html

:bitchslap wow that was enlightening, ever since I had a truck I thought that with the tailgate down it would have better airflow, now I feel retarded....well at least now I know and I can laugh at everyone else on the road with the tailgate down! :rofl:

 

[WindsorTaco]

It has been proven, by Lockheed Martin, that driving with a lowered tailgate actually diminishes the aerodynamics of a pickup truck, so the best option other than a canopy is to leave the bed open and the tailgate closed.

http://www.cartalk.com/content/columns/Archive/1997/October/05.html

i coulda told you that!.....then again, i had to take fluid dynamics twice lol