PickUp Truck Info

[ghillie]

First time owner of a pickup truck.  Just curious for those of you out there who own or have owned.  How much will a cover on the bed increase mileage?  Topper or bed cover?  There are some problems around here with the covers getting slashed so was thinking the aluminum lined cover or should I just get a topper?  Gonna be hauling a lot of wood so is a topper gonna be a pain in the arse??  Thanks in advance for the tips and recommendations

[briancady]

I put a soft cover on my truck.  On the hiway it is only about 1 mile to the gallon difference than if I didn't have it on.  Not  a big gain.  The advantage is that it comes off in less than a minute if I want to haul something.

[ghillie]

Yep..bedliner is sprayed in..

[AUDoubleBeard]

It did not make much of any diffrence on my f-150.

[redarrow]

I have been driving trucks since 73 and I have no use for a soft cover . To me the only way to go is a full size cap. You hunt and fish long enough you will need to sleep back there once in awhile.soft tops offer no protection for your stuff.If you think you will need to remove it now and then go with aluminum.Otherwise you can't beat fiberglass.

[justturnin]

I don't think it makes a difference at all, if anything it will add weight and negatively affect MPG. 

My reasoning, have you ever been behind a truck w/ a can/cup just swirling around in the bed where it floats up and then drops?   Well I think there is a pocket of pressure acting no different than a camper on the bed keeping the air from dropping down and grabbing your tailgate like a parachute.  I also believe dropping your tailgate messes with the aerodynamics of the truck in the same way.


Now this is my opinion and it is worth every penny that you paid for it.

[paboxcall]

I have been driving trucks since 73 and I have no use for a soft cover . To me the only way to go is a full size cap. You hunt and fish long enough you will need to sleep back there once in awhile.soft tops offer no protection for your stuff.If you think you will need to remove it now and then go with aluminum.Otherwise you can't beat fiberglass.

I had an aluminum topper on my old truck, easy to put on or take off -- which was once or twice.  And it makes an impromptu sleeping compartment like redarrown said.  I don't think they increase mileage, actually its more weight to haul around if its fiberglass.

I didn't go with a topper for my full size truck this time around, instead I got the Undercover brand hard cover, which is lockable.  Its a bit of a pain now that I've used one for a couple years.  Limits access from the sides due to the front hinge, and to the front of the bed near the cab.  If you need to haul anything that's 1/2" taller than the rails you have to pop it off and store it somewhere.  The front hinge is a bit of a hassle. 

If you want a cover the hard, the lockable trifold would be the way to go, though with the hinges there are potential leak points and tubes that need routed down through the bed to drain.

What is nice about the hard covers that lock is your gear is out of sight and locked away.  With a topper you have the glass all the way around.  Soft cover someone can cut it or pop it up to see what's in there.

Me -- soft cover -- I would never do one.  In the hard winter they can shrink, hard to snap or velcro back in place.

Pros and cons for each....comes down to how you will use the bed.

[Thebody]

I think mythbusters actually did a piece on Discovery Channel and determined you get better mileage without a bed cover.  Something about friction and airflow.

I have a soft cover and love it.  I can see the use for a full shell to sleep under, but I have to take mine off often to get a ton of wood pellets or to haul stuff.  My soft cover comes off real easy and installs easy with one person.  When I have had to sleep under it, I just crawl in a sleeping bag on a mattress in the bed and sleep right by the tail gate, I never noticed any leaking or anything. 

[Huntress]

I have a fiberglass shell... couldn't live without it.  No change in mileage one way or the other.  However, trips to Granma's house are roomier (suitcases in back) and when we go hunting out of state it's a lifesaver!  Everything depends on your lifestyle and how you want your truck to look.  "caps" are removable...  didn't like having a Toneau cover (flat)  was a waste IMHO.

[redrivergar]

I don't have a topper or cover on my truck, but I watched Duck Dynasty last night and Jase Robertson had one on his truck that was automatic. He pushed a button either on or under the dash and it rolled forward. I thought that was slick. 

[renegade19]

I have a fiberglass shell... couldn't live without it.  No change in mileage one way or the other.  However, trips to Granma's house are roomier (suitcases in back) and when we go hunting out of state it's a lifesaver!  Everything depends on your lifestyle and how you want your truck to look.  "caps" are removable...  didn't like having a Toneau cover (flat)  was a waste IMHO.

Me too!  Awful nice to be able to lock it.  I don't think it makes a nickles worth of difference in MPG.

[o2stk1]

check out undercovers from sportsland the are a hard cover but are not very heavy  and takes less than a min. to take off or put on. this is the 3rd pickup I have put them on. I will always have one of them on my truck

[Old Gobbler]

Cant help you with the topper but a  suspension lift with larger tires will bite into your mileage by about 10% -

[sugarray]

I have had a 98 Tacoma with soft cover that got cut and then a Toyota factory one that was the best soft cover I have ever seen, 03 Dakota crew with a cab high cap, 01 Ram xcab with a cab high cap, 09 Dakota crew with a high rise Leer, and now an 11 F150 crew with a 6.5' bed.  I have had a cover on all of them.  Putting wood in them is tough, tougher to get out, but the benefit of locking your gear in there way outweighs the inconvenience.  Only problem I have found was with a 4 wheeler.  I have a Jason hard tonneau and love it.  I have a light trailer for the 4 wheeler and no problems.  I would go with some type of cover always just to keep my stuff dry.  Get a hard, lockable cover of some kind if you want that security.  Put a PopLock on your tail gait if you can't lock it.  Works great.  You will not notice much change in mileage.

What truck do you have?

[GSLAM95]

Depends on what you are doing but I personally could not last long without a camper shell as I live out of the truck on Turkey hunting trips..