best tonneau for 06 taco?

[70seriesaddict]

well, gonna take some x-mas money from the inlaws and get a tonneau cover for the 06 taco, can you all give me some feedback as to what ones are best? i guess i've been told no vinyl or hard plastic leaving what, fiberglass and aluminum? we plan to get a rooftop tent to put over it most likely with a custom frame/rack to mount it on over the tonneau, don't know if that makes a difference...

 

[Jacket]

I know a bunch of guys have gone with the Lorado if you need something that folds/rolls away pretty quickly - but I think its vinyl. Or the Gaylord is a good choice for a fiberglass (I think it's fiberglass).

Why have you heard to stay away from vinyl? Seems like it would be the most versatile of all "non secure" choices.

I've got a Bestop softop on mine, and I'm pretty happy with it as another option. More storage, yet still can be folded or removed if needed.

 

[70seriesaddict]

last i checked best top did not make one for the short bed (got a double cab)...

i think the idea was maybe we could find one that was solid enough to be able to mount the roof top tent to it?

 

[coonass]

last i checked best top did not make one for the short bed (got a double cab)...

i think the idea was maybe we could find one that was solid enough to be able to mount the roof top tent to it?

Besttop does make one for the short box on the Dcab, I have had one for about a year. You would need to build a custom rack however to mount the RTT. The soft top will not support any weight.Jacque

 

[70seriesaddict]

while i like the idea of the soft top and wanted one when we first got the taco (best top's site had none and when we e-mailed they told us they were not making one yet), we got a sportz II tent for the bed and were quite happy. a sot top would have worked about the smae for us except given us covered storage when not sleeping in the bed. but things changed, we had twins in april (lucky we had the double cab, it is our only 4 door vehicle) and the sportz II won't fit four even if two are quite small. we need something to cover the bed and soon as shaking off a cold double stroller everytime we want to go somewhere really sucks, and with babies in the back of the truck when we travel all our gear will now need to be in the bed and we will want the gear covered too. the roof top tent is what we are going to move to to sleep all four of us (and we need to get that in time for our summer trip) and i just don't want to go as high profile as a sot top with a rtt mounted yet above that, hence the tonneau with rtt mounted above it. i've e-mailed the expeditions west guy to ask how their rtt is mounted but i don't think they have a tonneau under it...

 

[MOfj40]

If you're doin a custom frame off the bed for the rtt then I wouldn't rule out the vinyl. I don't remember what brand mine is (came with the truck, 00 Tundra) but it's heavy vinyl with aluminum spreaders. A metal channel is mounted along the inner lip of the bed down each side and across the front. the cover velcro's down each side to the channel, and tension is maintained by a cam lock system at the tailgate end. The stake pockets are still accessable and you don't have those ugly snaps like the older vinyl covers.

The nice thing about this type cover is you can easily roll it back if you need to haul something taller than the bed, and yet it's still watertight. If you set up a rtt frame a foot above the cover then you'd still be able to roll back the tonneau to access gear with the rtt fully open.

 

[70seriesaddict]

MOfj40, when/if you get a chance can you take a lok and see if you can find the manufacturer of the one you have? thanks, alex.

 

[MOfj40]

It's built by Agri-Cover ( Agricover.com: Truck Bed Covers and Caps - Pickup Tonneau Covers ). I've got the Access model. I'm very impressed by the quality of components and the fit/finish.


My truck is parked on the street, which is a very steep downhill. I've never had any water in the bed. I don't know about a Taco, but my Tundra has a locking tailgate. With the tonneau latches engaged you'd have to cut the cover to get into the bed. It's not true secure storage, but it keeps the casual opportunistic thief away.

btw, I'm not associated with the manufacturer and I'm not paid to shill their stuff on web forums. I'm just impressed by their quality because it's so rare to find a well made product anymore.