All About Truck Tonneau Covers
Over the years, truck tonneau covers, also commonly referred to as truck bed covers, have undergone some dramatic changes; from unappealing tarpaulin covers to stylish soft bed covers and highly-customized hard tonneau covers.
If you own a truck, then a bed lid is absolutely essential for it.
Not only will a truck bed cover enhance the looks of your vehicle, but it also provides loads of benefits, like Protection from damaging weather conditions- Ingenious features as weather seals and arched support bows provide complete coverage from harsh weather conditions like snow, rain and sun.
Keeps your belongings safe and secure- Truck bed lids do not just provide coverage, but also offer high levels of protection against theft and robbery.
While hinged bed covers have a locking tailgate, retractable and hard-top truck covers have key-locking systems to keep the contents of your truck securely out of sight.
Improves gas mileage- As you drive your truck, the air flows smoothly over the aerodynamic front portion of your vehicle, but as it reaches the back end of your automobile, it can swirl in the bed and cause excessive fuel consumption.
Both hard and soft tonneau covers prevent the creation of the tailgate effect and improve the gas mileage of your vehicle.
Helps to organize the storage- In addition to well-packed objects, If you frequently carry loose items in your truck.
A good truck bed lid shields your cargo and keeps it well-organized.
Adds an element of style- Different truck owners have different needs.
For this reason, a wide variety of bed lids are available, so as to fulfill the needs of all and sundry.
The most commonly used lids are soft covers in which a highly durable material is stretched over a light-weight metallic frame.
These soft roll up covers can be easily installed in less than 10-minutes.
Some good choices are Truxedo 546901 Soft Roll-Up Tonneau Cover, Lund 90000 Genesis Snap Tonneau, Bestop 42712-01 Soft Tonneau Cover.
Hard tonneau covers are quite sturdy and will provide better protection.
Typically, fiberglass is used to build up these covers.
Hard covers sit on the bed rails of your truck and provide a smooth customized look.
Extang 56625 Hard Tri-Fold Tonneau Cover, Bestop 42721-01 BestRail Hard Tonneau Cover, and Torza 41026 Hard Hat Tri-Fold Tonneau Cover are a few superlative hard truck covers.
If you don't want your truck bed to be covered all the time, then you should opt for a retractable tonneau.
As per your needs, you can either keep the bed lid open or closed.
Some examples of retractable bed lids are Pace Edwards TR011714 JackRabbit Retractable Hard Tonneau Cover, and BAK Industries R15207 RollBak G2 Tonneau Cover.
Things to consider while buying a cover for your truck.
A number of factors have to be taken into account while buying truck covers.
Let's take a look at a few important ones.
What is your budget? The price of tonneaus is highly variable.
Hence, before you set out to buy one, it is important to ascertain how much you can actually spend for a new bed lid.
Do you carry over-sized payloads often? Some truck owners rarely use their truck bed, while others use every inch of the bed.
If you don't need too much of truck bed space, then soft tonneau is a good option.
Choose a hard truck cover, if you infrequently carry large loads.
A retractable soft bed lid would be the best choice, if you regularly ship loads that are stacked over the height of the bed rails.
How much security do you require? For high-end security, hard and retractable tonneaus are the best.
However, if your security needs aren't that much, then a hinged soft cover or retractable lid with latch-lock would be beneficial.
What are the weather conditions in your area? If the weather in your area is quite harsh, then go for hard covers.
For moderate weather conditions soft retractable covers are good enough.
If you own a truck, then a bed lid is absolutely essential for it.
Not only will a truck bed cover enhance the looks of your vehicle, but it also provides loads of benefits, like Protection from damaging weather conditions- Ingenious features as weather seals and arched support bows provide complete coverage from harsh weather conditions like snow, rain and sun.
Keeps your belongings safe and secure- Truck bed lids do not just provide coverage, but also offer high levels of protection against theft and robbery.
While hinged bed covers have a locking tailgate, retractable and hard-top truck covers have key-locking systems to keep the contents of your truck securely out of sight.
Improves gas mileage- As you drive your truck, the air flows smoothly over the aerodynamic front portion of your vehicle, but as it reaches the back end of your automobile, it can swirl in the bed and cause excessive fuel consumption.
Both hard and soft tonneau covers prevent the creation of the tailgate effect and improve the gas mileage of your vehicle.
Helps to organize the storage- In addition to well-packed objects, If you frequently carry loose items in your truck.
A good truck bed lid shields your cargo and keeps it well-organized.
Adds an element of style- Different truck owners have different needs.
For this reason, a wide variety of bed lids are available, so as to fulfill the needs of all and sundry.
The most commonly used lids are soft covers in which a highly durable material is stretched over a light-weight metallic frame.
These soft roll up covers can be easily installed in less than 10-minutes.
Some good choices are Truxedo 546901 Soft Roll-Up Tonneau Cover, Lund 90000 Genesis Snap Tonneau, Bestop 42712-01 Soft Tonneau Cover.
Hard tonneau covers are quite sturdy and will provide better protection.
Typically, fiberglass is used to build up these covers.
Hard covers sit on the bed rails of your truck and provide a smooth customized look.
Extang 56625 Hard Tri-Fold Tonneau Cover, Bestop 42721-01 BestRail Hard Tonneau Cover, and Torza 41026 Hard Hat Tri-Fold Tonneau Cover are a few superlative hard truck covers.
If you don't want your truck bed to be covered all the time, then you should opt for a retractable tonneau.
As per your needs, you can either keep the bed lid open or closed.
Some examples of retractable bed lids are Pace Edwards TR011714 JackRabbit Retractable Hard Tonneau Cover, and BAK Industries R15207 RollBak G2 Tonneau Cover.
Things to consider while buying a cover for your truck.
A number of factors have to be taken into account while buying truck covers.
Let's take a look at a few important ones.
What is your budget? The price of tonneaus is highly variable.
Hence, before you set out to buy one, it is important to ascertain how much you can actually spend for a new bed lid.
Do you carry over-sized payloads often? Some truck owners rarely use their truck bed, while others use every inch of the bed.
If you don't need too much of truck bed space, then soft tonneau is a good option.
Choose a hard truck cover, if you infrequently carry large loads.
A retractable soft bed lid would be the best choice, if you regularly ship loads that are stacked over the height of the bed rails.
How much security do you require? For high-end security, hard and retractable tonneaus are the best.
However, if your security needs aren't that much, then a hinged soft cover or retractable lid with latch-lock would be beneficial.
What are the weather conditions in your area? If the weather in your area is quite harsh, then go for hard covers.
For moderate weather conditions soft retractable covers are good enough.
