DiamondBack Covers

Would any cover owners be able to measure something for me? I have an Engel 12v fridge that I’m hoping might be able to fit under the cover in one of the “empty” areas under the cover, away from the latches. 2011 with a 6’ bed.

The fridge is 20” tall... so are some of the areas under the cover allowing for 20” items?

Fridge is also 14” wide and 25” long though perhaps I can adjust around some of those if the 20” clearance is possible. Thanks in advance!

 

Hey @JW2011

Unfortunately it doesn't look like your fridge is going to fit. Looking at the dimensions of the 2nd Gen Tacoma, you've got about ~18" of height from your bed walls to work with and our cover gives an additional ~2" profile which rests on top of your bed rails for a combined max clearance of ~20" if you are able to utilize the additional height provided by the cover. However, the 2 studs/crossmembers of the HD cab/tailgate panels do not happen to provide an open area of 14" x 25" for the Engel to clear; additionally the SE cover's one singular studs/crossmember happens to be centrally located on the panel also preventing the Engel from utilizing the additional height.

We are aware of a few fridges offered by Dometic, such as the CFX50, that clear our cover if you're on the hunt in the future.

We hope this helps!

 

@DiamondBack Covers Would you guys happen to know if the Dometic CFX3 55IM will fit under the cover on a 3rd gen? Dometic says the height is 18.9".

 

Hey @bucwld1277

While we may be looking at similar space constraints as @JW2011 , you may be able to make it work. We aren't aware of anyone running a CFX3 55IM specifically, however we know the Dometic CFX50 fits snug under a DiamondBack on a 3rd Gen. The CFX50 has a height of 471mm or ~ 18.54". From this thread (https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/detailed-bed-dimensions.400407/) and other sources on 3rd Gen. bed dimensions, you've got about 19" to work with. In theory the CFX3 55IM at ~ 18.9" should slide under the cover, but you're cutting it close.

We'd recommend putting a feeler post out there or searching around to see if anyone specifically is running the CFX3 55IM under their DiamondBack. Although we aren't aware of which Dometic specifically, we have seen @savin yours has a Dometic CFX on a tray slider under his DiamondBack.

We hope this gets you set in the right direction!

(Pic of @savin yours )

 

@DiamondBack Covers I appreciate all of the info! I’ve got quite a few feeler threads out in various places but haven’t had much response. I’ve found some good info in other threads and I believe that, while it will be a tight fit, it should work. Last I heard, my order should be shipping out from you guys at the end of next week. Still have my fingers crossed that you guys have somehow gotten ahead of schedule! Haha. Once I have the fridge in and cover installed, I’ll update so that anyone else that is looking at the option will know what they are looking at.

 

@bucwld1277

No problem! You're so close, it'll be there before you know it. Awesome, we'll stay posted for the end results.

Best of luck!

 

I have a new Diamond Back cover. The instructions I got with the cover include a Bulkhead Weatherstrip kit. It requires removing the square tube top rail of the bulkhead which requires removing 5 torx bolts which appear to be held by 5 corresponding nutplates. I am curious if the nutplates are attached to the bulkhead or will they drop off if I remove the torx bolts? That would be bad as there is no room between the cab and bed bullkhead to hold the nuts in place by hand! Anybody have any experience with this? Also, I drive on dirt roads so a lot of dirt gets in through any openings around the tailgate, small tool storage box on right rear side of bed box, etc. Has anybody solved these leaks?

 

@DesignatedDriver No worries, those Rivnut style fasteners you are referring to are attached to the bulkhead, you shouldn't have any problems there. Also, if you are still on the hunt for silicone we recommend picking up

$5 Permatex 81158 Black Silicone Adhesive Sealant, 3 oz. Tube, Pack of 1

Permatex 81158. This helps button up the gaps in the bed on the cab side of things, however things get tricky in terms of the tailgate side. We'd recommend doing some digging on Tailgate Seal Kits and there effectiveness on dust, here's a link to a thread we found. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/best-tailgate-seal.517449/

 

Thanks. Yes I did remove the square tube top rail of the bulkhead no problem. I was sorry I did it though. According to Diamondback, the reason to do that is to place the foam strip under the bulkhead rail to seal out moisture. The problem is that there is already a very small amount of sealing strip there from the factory. I put the DB sealer on anyway and replaced the bulkhead. What a mistake! Then I notice that the bulkhead square tube top rail is now tilted toward the bed which means even more water will collect due to the extra material under the bulkhead rail causing it to tilt upward. It also forced the DB lid seal to get scrunched upward. I didn't like this so I removed the DB foam seal using a scraper and mineral spirits! Wow. What a waste of my time! I think that my top rail tube is now tilted due to deformation caused by the DB foam. The DB material causes the bulkhead cap to tilt undesirably unfortunately and is way too thick. The spacing between the bulkhead cap and bed is too close for adding any other material like the foam seal from DB. I have a new 2020 Taco SX so I think DB should update their instructions.

I did add a good quality tailgate seal which took care of most of the gaps. Unfortunately there are still more gaps to fill around the tail gate. The built in tool box on the right rear side of the bed box is a dirt magnet. I used a window gap foam seal around the edge of that small access door to seal that dirt inlet. There are several other problem areas that still need to be addressed for dirt control like the small access panels on either read upper side of the bed box and large gaps at the bottom internal lower rear corners of the bed. I'll need more silicon!

Also, I have a gripe with DB on their attachment of the center panel of their DB cover. My attaching bolts keep vibrating loose and need to be constantly re-tightened! Why no torque specifications for the 4 attaching bolts? There should be locking nuts on those bolts if you ask me placed on the bottom side! What do you expect for $1,700 ??

 

@DesignatedDriver We're sorry to hear of your difficulties, feel free to reach out to our support team directly. As hardworking honest people we appreciate and value all of our customers' business and that gratitude extends beyond the initial purchase. We'd be happy to help troubleshoot this together and assure your cover is installed as best as possible. (support@diamondbackcovers.com or 800-935-4002, Option 2)

With Tacoma's specifically, we are aware from both first hand experience and customer feedback in the past that this area leaves much work to be done in terms of weather protection. Due to the construction of the bed, the bulkhead bar leaves gaps, as you've seen, on both sides of the bar and underneath which form areas which water puddle up and eventually enter in. As can be seen in the photo below. To address this issue, the weatherstripping is included and additionally we recommend apply a beed of silicone. If you have the time to send over a couple photos to support@diamondbackcovers.com, our support team and engineers would love to see a couple photos of your bulkhead bar and the factory weatherstrip you mentioned.

In terms of the clamps, this is typical of new covers. For the following weeks after installation, your cover takes time to settle in. During this period, your perimeter gaskets will compress beyond the point they were at during installation. When this happens you will need to readjust some of the components of your cover, including readjustment of the center panel clamps. Generally, we recommend leaving the cover closed as much as possible during the 3-4 days following installation for your gaskets to compress, then periodically checking your clamps as the cover wears in further.

We hope this helped shed some light on the situation!

 

@DiamondBack Covers or anyone else I'm about to order a HD cover and i am curious if i choose to have the cleats not installed are the mounting holes predrilled?

 

@Aviator1218 If you opt for pre-installation, the cleat holes are laser cut during production -- otherwise the holes are not pre-drilled.

This is what you'd be looking at with cleat-less cover in Smooth Black.

Feel free to let us know if you have any other questions!

 

Awesome thanks for the quick reply. Guess I will opt for the pre-installation then.

 

@DiamondBack Covers One last question is the option to fast track an order still available? If so, how much is the fee?

 

$300 I believe is their normal fee, which is outrageous in my opinion. I was told I would need to pay $175 to get mine one week early to avoid a shipping conflict. I hope the service after purchase is better than it has been for me currently. Spend $1,800 on a cover, you think it would be different.

 

@Aviator1218 Certainly, our Fast Track option is still offered and ships your order in 3 business days for $300. While we do believe that when it comes to keeping your gear dry and secure sometimes you cannot wait, we also want to respect and do-right by others in line and balance this with our standing production queue. This is considered in both pricing and availability. We only allow a limited numbers of spots each week and the option should appear on the whichever product page you are viewing directly by the "Ready to Ship" times. If this is not visible it means we are currently out of our Fast Track options for the week. No worries though, the Fast Track options are replenished every Friday afternoon.

 

Hey @BoostKing1620, we apologize for that inconvenience. The world of freight shipping can be rather costly and unpredictable at times. We take a lot of pride in our product and believe our value and quality are a reflection this. We respect everyones hard earned money and aim to do right by all customers. If there are ever any problems, we're always here to lend a hand.

Most importantly thank you for choosing DiamondBack, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or concerns along the way. We're grateful for your business.

 

@DiamondBack Covers I just received my cover yesterday and man, I love this thing! Just to touch on my previous question/dilemma. For anyone looking, the Dometic CFX3 55IM will definitely fit under the cover when installed. I have at minimum a 1/4” of clearance across the top of the fridge. No chance of putting it on a slide out, but that wasn’t important to me. So if anyone asks in the future, it will indeed work. Thanks again for making such a great cover. I’m looking forward to many years of abuse!

 

Waiting on my cover, any install issues I should be on the lookout for. 2018 TRD Sport

 

I had no issues at all. I think the hardest part was fine tuning the height of the lock bars. I thought the instructions were pretty well laid out. I would suggest having someone around to help push down on the cover while you adjust the locking tension. Or at least some weights that you could put on the cover to help.