OEM tonneau cover care finding

I have a 2017 with the OEM tonneau cover and like most of us, as it has aged looks old and grey. I have tried a few different things on it and none have lasted or just washed off after the first wash.

I got a detail kit from Jay Leno Garage for Xmas a while back and it included the Tire Shine. I thought what the hell and after a wash, applied it to the tonneau and it did an amazing job, looks like new and the best thing is it looks just as good after being washed several times. Just as black as it looked new. I am kind of amazed and thought I would pass it along. This is not the tire and trim stuff, the tire shine.

 

Interesting! I use 303 on mine, but that shit is expensive AF!

 

I have been using that on my tonneau cover since I installed it. (Almost) every time I wash it, I use that stuff on the tonneau to make it shine and look brand new again. It only takes 3 minutes to give it a good coating and the results are worth it.

 

Yup, I tried that as well. This stuff is so much better.

 

Been using the same stuff the dealer supplied me for mine when i bought the truck.....wolfsteins tonneau protectant. Its not cheap either, but over 2 winters, and 3 blistering summers the cover looks great. It stays a deep black finish.

 

I use mcguire trim coat. Last 12 months

 

I store mine way in the summer and only pull it out in the winter to keep the snow out. The sun just kills it!

 

Hmmm I've had my Bakflip MX4 on mine for over a year now, in Phoenix where we get a little sun now and then.
Park it outside no shade - and so far it hasn't faded very much at all.

Of course I washed and waxed it this evening as temps dropped to a chilly 98 and out of nowhere we get a dust and rain storm.

 

I used a plastic coating spray, I cannot remember the name on it. I used it one time when I bought the truck and again 2 years ago. I will try to find it and post a pic. I swear it still looks new, beads water like crazy. In fact when I wash my truck I make sure I do the cover last because when the soap suds hit the cover they disappear and then when the wash mit goes back into the bucket it kills the suds there too. You can apply 303 on a small section and when that dries it looks no different than before, so any protectant spray doesn't make it shin any better.

 

Thats the reason for a good protectant.I've been worried for the same reason, just not as much now seeing how well this stuff keeps the suns ultra violet rays from ruining the surface. I see what the sun did to a neighbors chevy tonneau cover that had nothing to protect the surface in less than 10 years. Cover surface is dry, cracked, and weathered looking...doesn't even look black anymore.

 

A protectant has nothing to do with shine. In fact was told never to use anything like armor-all on a tonneau cover. You need a dedicated protectant like 303, or wolfsteins. This stuff actually forms a bond like shield on the surface as it drys.

 

I use 303 first, then go over it with McQuires trim coat using a tire shine sponge, rubbing it in a circular motion. Takes all of 15 minutes, looks great and lasts through many washings.

 

I was saying any protectant will not shine or make it any better than the plastic coating that I applied twice since I bought my truck new. My cover has never lost any shine and.if you apply anything it won't shine anymore. I have used 303 and I don't use armor all. I have been detailing cars for 38 years as a business and know what to use and that's why it still looks like new.