ARE bed cap coming. What could I be doing to get ahead of things?

Is it just me, or is it mind boggling that in 2018 they can't engineer a fully sealed rear window on a truck cap?!

 

I feel the same way, $3000. For a truck cap, and the quality is no where near the truck it goes on. This almost drove me to a T4R, but I need pickup. Sucks I know.

 

I was disappointed with the overall finish details on of the ARE cap. Overall it is fine and does what it is supposed to do. But yeah, they really can’t figure out how to get the back window to seal. It’s not a trivial gap on the lower corners either. It is at least a 1/2 inch.

 

Anyone have experience with the extruded solutions gaskets? Specifically the super cap seal or even the super cap seal xl? I see the first is for caps under 200lbs but the xl triple bulb style is 2 1/8” wide and over 200lbs. My ordered cx is under 200 but was thinking the extra wide seal would be great on the wide side rails we have

http://www.extrudedsolutions.com/products.html

Also plan on picking up the ultimate tailgate seal.

 

I am using their tailgate seal and it is holding up well. If I do the cap seal again in the future I’d go with the wider version.

 

I had a V-Series for about 2 months and ultimately sold it.

- The cap shifted more than once on me even though I tightened it down.
- When it shifted it abraded the paint to primer.
- I still have a mark on the edge of the black plastic where the paint needs to be buffed out with a machine polisher.
- My tailgate would have been damaged as well.

I put clear protective film on my tailgate right after I got the cap. I took the black plastic rail cap off and ran it from the edge of the top of the tailgate well past the door mating point.

In hindsight I would have done the same for the bed rail caps as well but I sold the cap for a small profit instead.

The second generation trucks had the same issue with the tailgate but due to the bed rail design it wasn’t an issue there.

Just my $0.02 on the matter.

 

All good stuff guys, thanks. I'm learning. Know much more than I did yesterday. Okay, so who makes the best bed clamps to hold the cap down? Which do I want to use?

 

Your getting a new right? Shouldn’t they come with a set of 4

 

I made sure to say all hardware is included, even though they will not be installing it. If your having the dealer install it should be part of the “pkg”

 

When you park on a side hill with a ARE MX, especially with a loaded rack on top, and try to open or close your tailgate, you will see the use for bed stiffeners as you push on the side to square it up enough so you can open or close the tailgate.

 

My ARE MX- I dont have bed stiffeners, but have needed to push in on the side to square the tailgate enough to open the tailgate after parking or offroading on a side hill. We go offroading a lot in the great basin desert, Mojave, Death Valley and Eastern Oregon, and have sealed the gaps between the tailgate and the sides and floor with this tape. It works pretty well, but a tarp placed over the stuff in back towards the tailgate also does the trick, too:

$28 ESI Ultimate Tailgate Seal with Taper Seal 10ft for use with Truck Caps and Tonneau Covers

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00IPQWXZQ?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

This post shows how to install it:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/camper-shell-and-tailgate-dust-protection.558268/#post-18237370

And also get @micwillia ‘s cubby hinge hole covers - https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/bed-cubby-caps.491909/
they keep dust and water out of your rear cubby pockets.

 

Its not so much the rear window as its the spaces between the tailgate and the side fenders and floors. Even the drain holes in the cubby let dirt in!

 

Yes, clamps come with the cap. Still, almost 50 years of observation has brought me to acknowledge the sad truth that the ancillary equipment that comes with whatever you purchase is usually as cheap as can be foisted off on the consumer. I'm going to see what they put on it, but want to have knowledge of what is the best so that I can replace them if necessary.

If you know which clamps are the best, please post up. Thanks.

 

The clamps that came with my ARE have been fine for almost 25k miles. No leaks, no shifting, nothing. I'm not sure it's worth worrying about unless it gives you problems. The clamps I got attach to the rail and seem fine. I probably have some pics in my media or gallery of my setup.

Gap at rear door is a thing though.

 

Under normal circumstances no warping will happen IMO. However, driving off-road frequently and/or aggressively could cause that extra weight to warp the bed over time. A few winters ago I ended up in the ditch with my cap on and I think it caused the bed to warp some. (When driving up hill on snow covered roads, i'd recommend turning on four wheel drive ) Installed total chaos bed stiffeners this summer and my tail gait gap decreased significantly. Even my GF noticed the improvement and she teases me whenever I spend money on the truck. I also use my truck for work (my part time job - Dolly) and the tie downs come in handy daily.