Tonneau covers?

[John Smith 3]

I'm looking to get a tonneau cover. I can't decide if I want a 1 pc hard top or a roll up.

I know I do not want a soft top, it would not survive 1 night without being cut.

I am looking at Pace Edwards roll top, Undercover and Gaylords, also Lt sport cover.

Does anybody have any of these? Tell me about them, the fit on the sport trac, how they hold up in the weather, ease of use, how easy to install. etc Anything that would help push me to one or the other. Thanks

 

[Nelson Atwell]

I have the OEM one, and love it. I see drawbacks with the two other options you mention.



The one piece fiberglass tops, are a pain if you need to load a big item, like a washer in the bed.You would need to remove the top before you left the house, whereas with the OEM one, you can just fold it and put it in the bed next to the load. I witnessed a fellow with an ARE cover trying to fit a plasma TV in his truck. He was struggling with it the whole 20 minutes I was shopping at Best Buy. I suspect he had to drive home and take the lid off before he could get it home.



The rollup would ice up if you had a snow or ice storm. It also would take away some of the front storage space in the bed.

 

[Kevin Hachey]

I have to agree with Nelson. I have the OEM cover and I love it. Combine it with the extender and you've got a versatile combination. I, too, have seen people with the one piece hard cover and how much fun:huh: they have loading bigger items. The only problem I have with the OEM cover is the bulkiness of it. Otherwise, it's great.

 

[Ken Stewart]

I have the Advance cover. Love that one, lower profile than factory, and much less $$$. Check it out as an alternative.

 

[Joe Magliocca]

I have had a Pace Edwards on my ST for three years here in Central New York. I love the look, and the retractable feature. The bed is weather tight, and unlike other hard covers, I can easily adapt the bed/cover to carry oversize item's.



I highly reccomend the Pace Edwards.

 

[Kerry Matthews]

I just hauled furniture down to San Jose yesterday, and I had to use the bed extender and remove the tonneau cover to accomodate the 2 piece armoir. I folded the tonneau cover and placed it between the upper & lower furniture pieces, placed side by side the bed, held in by the bed extender, and strapped it all down. We unloaded in San Jose, folded the bed extender into the bed, placed the tonneau cover back in place on the bed, and headed on down to Santa Cruz to go to the beach for a couple hours!



Gotta love the versatility of these trucks with the OEM tonneau & extender!!!



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[Jeff Wills]

I have the Advance cover and love it. It is really light, when you need to take off the tonneau.

 

[Richard L]

One-piece covers vs roll top covers.



One-piece covers can be painted to match the vehicle and generally are better weatherproof covers. The also look very sleek.



Problems with One-piece covers: The are more expensive and since they are painted, they have to be waxed and prone to chips and scratches like any painted surfance on your truck. The covers are heavy and impossible for one person to install or remove. If you carry any large object from time to time, removing and reinstalling the cover can be a real pain. Also, cargo in the very front is more difficult to reach and makes it inconvenient to use the whole bed for smaller items or multple pieces of luggage.



Roll-Top covers look nice and can be very convenient if you need to carrly large objects on a more frequent basis.



Problems with Roll-Top covers: They are also expensive and the storage box for the roll up cover takes up a large part of the already small pickup bed.



I personally think that the center hinged tonneau covers give the best overall versitility. They usually have a surface finish that is less likely to scratch or chip. The hinged cover allows for easy access to either the front or rear of the bed. Often some taller objects can be carried by simply folding the rear cover all the way over and do not require removing the entire cover. And the simple fact that the cover does fold in half, makes removal and installation much easier for one person even if the cover weights 70 lbs like the Ford OEM tonneau cover.



...Rich