Truck cap or Lid or Bestop? Help.

Ok guys I need your input. I have a 2012 AC cap 4x4. I am looking for something for my bed. I need your pro's and con's on a cap and or Lids. I tend to Carry lots of gear with me and or like to have my stuff with me. Always ready kind of guy. I am a firearms instructor in buffalo and need some way to lock and secure whatever I carry with. I have been looking at Leer, ARE, and Bestop. Let me have the real truth. Will a cap take gas millaege away? Lid? Or will my millaege get better? Which Cap is better? And why.

 

i leer or something like it. best top becomes kinda fragile in really cold weather. like buffalo gets. MPG should not be effected very much.


also i say cap. the covers limit you load a lot IMHO. our beds are not that deep.


also PM’ed you.

 

All caps, hard or soft will cause a drop in fuel economy. They create a larger vacuum behind the moving truck. It wont be much, 1-2mpg at the most, but still a factor to consider. Tonneau covers, however, are probably more aerodynamic.

I have the Bestop, and I personally never put anything of high value in there because it's just too easy to get into. You don't even need to cut through it with a knife...just pull on the zippers and you're in. I think a locking hard topper with a pop n lock tailgate lock is your best bet if you need the space.

 

Even a cap isn't all that secure

 

How much do you value rear visibility (changing lanes, backing up, etc.)? If it's important to you, get a hard tonneau (aka lid).

 

Backing up is no issue with the mirrors and camera

 

x2, I don't think anything is harder to see through than Bestop, and I manage just fine.

 

I would never buy a soft top , but that's just me

 

thanks guys so far, I never though about visibility.. good call

 

I have a Bestop and like it, the price was a big factor in my search.

I also made cables to "secure" the zippers to the d-rings in the closed position to keep random people from opening it up. won't do much against a knife, but at that point, someone might notice.

 

No loss in visibility here with my hard top; keep your windows clean, have your mirrors adjust right, and you won't notice a difference.

I went with my hard top, and have no regrets. I love the extra storage room i love being able to use it to sleep in, and it just looks great.

Oh, and i have seen no change in MPG.

 

^You now have to see through your truck's rear glass, the front glass in the cap, and either the side or rear glass in the cap. Rear visibility is definitely degraded. Whether you drive enough in rush-hour traffic for it to matter, is a different story.

 

No arguement as far as rear / side vision for changing lanes etc , I have zero issue with backing up though

 

Ok. I think I am over the cap idea, I called ARE, and Leer, both around 1800 for the nice one. So now my dicision is, Bestop soft top, which I kinda like, or a hard tonue cover.

 

That's cheap , my Leer 100RCC was $3000 after taxes

 

Its true, there are two extra windows... and i still see through them fine.
Now, i have a double cab, so the cap has never effected my side view, because when i turn back, i am looking through the passenger windows, not where the cap is (otherwise, i am using my side mirrors, which i took a while aiming, to help eliminate side blind spots).


And believe me, i drive in plenty of rush hour traffic (though, i will give that Albuquerque is not as bad as other citys).

 

I wouldn't leave anything valuable in a soft top for any substantial amount of time unless I were in the woods or somewhere with a lot of people around. I have the softopper (a little less tempting to look into with no side windows) but mainly use it to travel and unload at the destination. It is nice if you ever need the bed since it folds down.

I guess it really just depends on how much storage space you need. If you're transporting firearms, I'd think the tonneau would be most secure.

 

Also, Op, if you don't want to buy new, don't be afraid to scout craigslist for used bargains. I got my ARE CX , with folding/sliding front window, sliding side windows, carpeted interior, and mint condition, all for $300....the color doesn't match, but 5 cans of plasti dip took care of that for now..

 

Check out the Undercover Tonneau cover. I just got one. You can't easily cut through it, tough to pry open and keeps the tailgate from being pulled open. With that said, I'm not sure I'd store something like your guns there, but for transport, they are out of sight, locked down, innaccessible to the vehicle occupants and dry.

 

I too rely heavily on the rear camera for backing up, until it rains.