2014+ Truck Bed / Tonneau Covers

soltys · January 8, 2014

I've got the TruXedo Lo Pro.

I wasn't interested in a roll up because of their operation in the winter - I was thinking that when you roll it up in the stupid cold it would wrecking it. But with the lifetime warrantee on the entire cover, there wasn't much risk. And for the price, I risked it. Since then - I'm really surprised. It keeps out the water (at least in the car wash), and the snow, and it doesn't flap around all that much on the highway either. I'm a believer

TxTruckMan · January 8, 2014

I love my Fold-A-Cover G4 Elite. $860 delivered and self-installed. Dealer wanted $1200. No thank you.

crushNchowda · January 8, 2014

Correction: The GM tonneau cover is a tri-fold. The fold-a-cover is a 4 panel cover. I saw a youtube video showing how the GM cover is installed and operates on a NNBS truck.

The rails are a part of the cover so as you fold the cover up, the rails go with it. It looks like a quick installation as the clamps are built in the rails. Looks pretty good. But I like the fold-a-cover for the front of the bed access. I think I am going to lean that way when I get ready to buy. But ChevyParts.com has the GM for $609 which is influencing me that way. That and bearman95's review. Decisions, decisions....

This is the one I have. It is money IMO, not sure why people keep ignoring what GM has to offer then complain they bought a cheaper tonneau and it leaks....

fondupot · January 8, 2014

I have the extang trifecta signature series. I love it! It is 99% waterproof. Only time I see water is in torrential down pours or going through the car wash. It takes about 5 minutes to put on by myself and about 2 minutes to remove myself. Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

I had this cover on my 2002 Silverado. Its a GREAT cover. and Extangs customer service it top notch. I had a hinge break on my Trifecta. They sent me a new one after I sent them a picture of the broken one, free of charge.

How much did you pick this one up for?

Edited January 8, 2014 by fondupot

PhilB · January 9, 2014

To those that have the GM hard folding tonneau on your '14, could you provide some pics of it. I am curious as to if it covers the new hand hold stake pocket. Thanks.

loganbent · January 9, 2014

To those that have the GM hard folding tonneau on your '14, could you provide some pics of it. I am curious as to if it covers the new hand hold stake pocket. Thanks.

Assuming the comments are correct and the GM Hard folding cover is the Fold-A-Cover G4, see the pic linked below on my review of that cover

http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/topic/156634-fold-a-cover-g4-elite-hard-folding-tonneau-cover-review/?p=1392966

loganbent · January 9, 2014

Easy to install, need basic tools, just did it this last weekend and was straight forward with good instructions

PhilB · January 9, 2014

Assuming the comments are correct and the GM Hard folding cover is the Fold-A-Cover G4, see the pic linked below on my review of that cover

http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/topic/156634-fold-a-cover-g4-elite-hard-folding-tonneau-cover-review/?p=1392966

No - the GM cover is not the same. The GM cover is a tri-fold where as the Fold-a-Cover has 4 panels.

loganbent · January 9, 2014

No - the GM cover is not the same. The GM cover is a tri-fold where as the Fold-a-Cover has 4 panels.

The question was about the hard folding cover, not the soft folding cover. From a review of the gmaccessoryzone site the factory one is definitely the Fold-A-Cover

PhilB · January 9, 2014

GM also sells their own branded hard cover tri-folds. See part nbr: 22834743

BringTheRain403 · January 9, 2014

I have the extang trifecta signature series. I love it! It is 99% waterproof. Only time I see water is in torrential down pours or going through the car wash. It takes about 5 minutes to put on by myself and about 2 minutes to remove myself. Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

I had this cover on my 2002 Silverado. Its a GREAT cover. and Extangs customer service it top notch. I had a hinge break on my Trifecta. They sent me a new one after I sent them a picture of the broken one, free of charge.

How much did you pick this one up for?

I believe it was around $440. The signature series is canvas instead of vinyl.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

DRS 95 Silverado · January 9, 2014

No - the GM cover is not the same. The GM cover is a tri-fold where as the Fold-a-Cover has 4 panels.

The four panel one that GM sells is the Fold-A-Cover. Exact same thing. Cheaper to buy direct from Fold-A-Cover. GM also has a three panel one that I don't know who makes.

fondupot · January 9, 2014

I believe it was around $440. The signature series is canvas instead of vinyl. Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

Thanks yea. I had the signature series on my 2002. It's definitely a better option than the vinyl top. I think that's about what I paid. Not bad.

TxTruckMan · January 9, 2014

To those that have the GM hard folding tonneau on your '14, could you provide some pics of it. I am curious as to if it covers the new hand hold stake pocket. Thanks.

They do not cover it very much - maybe a 1/4" on the inside. You can still get your hand in there to help pull yourself up. But you couldn't use it to install a stake or tiedown or anything. There's a tab on the cover side rail that goes in there to secure it to the bed.

klrrdr · January 9, 2014

A tonneau can help improve MPG

Mythbusters Testing

I always take Mythbusters episodes with a grain of salt. How many different model and configuration types did they test? What was the weight of the tonneau used.... Mythbusters episode reference:http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2006/12/episode_64_more_myths_revisite.html

Their results actually got the same MPG with tailgate up compared to with tonneau cover. Now account for the weight of the tonneau cover being about 100 lbs and you actually had better aerodynamics but that was countered by the weight of the cover. Effect on MPG will also depend on the steadiness of your speed when adding weight - lots of stop and go acceleration will mean greater effect of added weight. Go with a lighter tonneau like lazerlite aluminum (48 lbs) or an ABS cover (60 lbs) and you will not have so much extra weight to haul around and should get better gas mileage.

SAE Testing

An example of a good SCIENTIFIC test was done by the Society of Automotive and Aerospace Engineers (SAE): http://ecow.engr.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/getbig/me/363/ghandhi1/pickup.pdf

Their testing shows that other variables make a difference such as crosswind and bed length.

For their testing of pre-2004 model F-150s they found:

1. In most cases a partial box cover (at the rear) or full tonneau gave the best aerodynamics.

2. For the 8' bed standard cab trucks the tailgate down but not removed gave better aerodynamics than with tailgate up. Tailgate off gave better or worse depending on how much crosswind compared to speed. Full tonneau gave the least drag in all conditions (best for MPG). Mesh gate gave the highest drag in all conditions (worst for MPG).

3. For the 6.5' bed super/crew cab trucks the tailgate up gave better aerodynamics than down or off (like Mythbuster results but opposite of 8' bed results). Tonneau covers gave the least drag in all conditions with a partial cover slightly better than a full cover (best for MPG). Tailgate off gave the highest drag (worst MPG).

If you look at the flow models you can see that the difference in Cd occurs after the cab, so you could extrapolate that the bed length difference will be the decider in what method you should go with. The GMC and Toyota tested also support this conclusion with their 6.5' bed trucks having similar results to the Ford 6.5' beds. (Tailgate up is better than tailgate down)

In all cases, a tonneau lowers drag...but you have to account for the weight of the tonneau possibly having a negative effect on MPG. Lesson: if you want improve aerodynamics and lower MPG with a tonneau, pick the lightest available.

SEMA Testing

Here is more scientific testing by SEMA showing that tonneaus improve aerodynamics: http://www.trucktestdigest.com/PDFfiles/SEMATonneauStudy2007.pdf

Summary of some of their results:

1. Hard tonneaus did better than soft in general with 6.5% or better drag reduction (hard covers) compared to 5% drag reduction (soft covers) at highway speeds.

2. Reduced drag primarily occurs at above 40 mph and the benefit increases up to 65 mph where it levels off.

3. They also mention that the weight of heavy fiberglass covers can negate benefits.

SnugTop manufacturer testing

Yes, I am including a link to a manufacturer's tests.
http://www.snugtop.com/gas_savings_test.php

Their tests show an improvement of MPG with fiberglass tonneaus. Of note, they did their test with cruise control on which would help minimize the effect of additional weight of the cover.