Access Literider for third gen Tacoma? Other suggestions?

Hi all

I'm looking for a roll up tonneau cover that uses velcro for the third gen Tacoma.

I previously was using a Truxedo Truxport on my previous truck which for the most part I was happy with. It did its job keeping the bed dry and was easy to install. At the time it was one of the cheapest options out there that fit my criteria.

My main complaint with the Truxport was the velcro straps kept falling between the bed and cab and had to be fished out. In the previous forum I was in some other users mentioned using super glue, double sided tape, etc to secure the strap. Which I did too but it would always eventually come lose again and had to be fished out. I think the constant fishing out is what eventually caused the velcro to tear and just a little bit over the warranty period.

I can't find a good close up on any of the sites but assume that the Truxport still uses the velcro straps? (There were also other users that mentioned that they didn't have this issue at all)

But anyways this is one of the reasons why a buckle is one of my criteria now along with a rollup cover that uses velcro. And it looks like the Access covers matches this criteria, along with it being one of the recommended brands when I last researched this a while back.

Considering that I was happy with the Truxport that was under $300 and looks like it's still in that range, I'm not sure if Access Original cover is more than I need(not to mention more expensive).

Which has me looking at the Literider now. My main questions for the Literider is:
-most of the other Access covers come with a bulkhead seal (https://www.accesscover.com/comparison/ ). Is there a reason why the Literider does not come with one? Is it not needed due to the way its designed?

-it sounds like the third gen trucks have issues with tonneau covers leaking. But there is an option to put a tailgate seal on. Exactly where is this seal placed? If it's placed on the inside of the tailgate wouldn't it get crushed when laying things on it?

-what are the opinions of third gen owners that have this cover? Kind of hesitant about the three year warranty. Where Truxedo also had a higher priced cover with a longer warranty. So I kind of view it as the length of a warranty as a sign on how much a company stands behind the quality of their product.

Here's a video on how the rails are installed for reference in case its helpful to anyone:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mZhRjJQZYM

and one for the earlier generations:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6Unf7rTFb4

I was kind of hesitant about the install process when first reading about it but after looking into it more and seeing the videos, don't think it looks too bad.

Thanks in advance!

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edit-for some reason I missed this thread when I was searching earlier:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/access-literider-tonneau.446584/

 

So I decided to go with the Literider. With my last truck it was a couple of years before I bought a cover. But I never really felt okay fully utlizing bed on a regular basis without a cover. So a cover was something that I wanted to buy immediately after buying another truck.

There were some issues I had with the Truxedo Truxport and wondered if it was a case of you get what you paid for. And when I last looked into it seven or eight years ago, Access covers were frequently recommended.

The price difference between the Access original and Literider is maybe roughly $125. Which may not be that big of a difference. But decided to give the cheaper one a try.

I can't say I'm too impressed with the Literider. Some of these things might already be known or previously discussed but I'm new to the Tacoma and the board. So haven't seen all of the things discussed yet. Anyways my notes on the Literider and comparing it with the Truxport Truxedo (bought maybe seven or eight years ago, so am not sure if anything has changed since then):

-shipping was pretty fast. Ordered from autoanything and got it in the Washington DC area in about a week. If I recall correctly it took two or three weeks to get the Truxport Truxedo when ordering from autoanything back then

-initial impression was not that great. The side rails came with manual cuts and predrilled holes. All kind of messy looking and not painted over. Which I MIGHT be okay with. But there were some chips along the rail exposing the metal underneath. I'll probably touch it up.

-the package was missing one carriage bolt and one regular nut. After finishing up, I was left with one extra flare nut and one really long bolt. Guess those got put in by mistake. I did search everywhere to make sure it wasn't a case of me misplacing it. Anyways was able to get what I needed with a quick run to the store

-to answer my previous question, there is nothing to accommodate the gap between the front and side rails in front of the Tacoma. With the Access Original cover it looks like they give you a seal to put in it. I was hoping with there was something about the design of Literider where it wasn't necessary. But after laying it out saw there was no way to really cover that gap with what was provided. Ended up trying to stuff something in there to seal it. But I imagine that those seals that come with the Original can't cost more then $20 (honestly maybe even $5). So think it's kind of cheap that its not included with the Literider.

-also the tailgate seal goes around the opening of the tailgate. I thought it was something that seals the opening of the back of the cover. I actually had one I never used from my last purchase and don't mind the tailgate not being airtight. Where the water drains out of the gaps after I spray out the bed.

-I think due to the track system being so high in the Tacoma, its not possible to install the cover with clamps under the rails. This takes away being able to fully use the rail system which I was initially okay with. But then on a spur of a moment decision decided to order a bed divider before realizing that I won't be able to fully slide the divider forward and backward. The knobs on top of the divider do fit underneath the cover okay. Although I was having issues in getting it into the screws into the bracket. (it was dark and will try again in daylight). The tiedown cleats barely clear when trying to rotate and remove them. So are still useable and can be moved. With the divider, I figure I'll just take it out whenever I need the full bed but just need to make sure to do so whenever I think it's a possibility before I leave the house.

-to have the side rails seal properly, the rails can pretty much sit at a certain height and placement horizontally. They're cut to accommodate the curve towards the rear of the bed.

-the bars/rods along the cover are aluminum versus the plastic of the Truxedo Truxport(if I recall correctly)

-keeping in mind that my previous cover was about seven years old, the cover of the Literider felt very thick and soft. Not sure if its just a case of the Truxedo becoming dry over the years and haven't really handled it the same way when installing the Access cover

-the placement of the rails are different. Where the Truxport lays on top of the rails, while the Literider lays to the side of the rail. The Truxport caused an issue a while back when I was interested in bed racks but found out that the cover got in the way. I don't think this would be an issue with the Literider. But do have some concerns about how long these seals on the side rails will hold up.

-the unlocking mechanism to open the covers are a bit different. Where the Truxport would kind of spring open when you release it and was what I was expecting with the Literider. So originally thought that something may have not been working or jammed. But turns out that you have to manually fold open the cover after releasing the latch.

-There's still a small gap between the rear of the rails and the tailgate. But the cover does cover this part so I hope that it won't be an issue. If it is, I think I can try to put a bigger seal or something in there.

-It took me a little bit to understand the concept of the tensioners and how they installed. Had to look at Youtube and found out that I bolted the brackets too tight at first. With the Truxport, their instructions say to tighten the cover to just pull on the sides harder, which I thought was kind of cheap/funny.

-with the Tacoma some things discovered. In the past I liked to use the bumper to step up into the bed. With the sides of the Tacoma going upwards, there is no place to step up into the truck bed and have to crawl onto the tailgate to do this. I'm about 230 lb and I think over the tailgate capacity of my previous truck. There are some arguments how it doesn't account for the cables holding it up and all of that. But am still kind of uncomfortable with that.

-I did have some concerns about how the rails go into the bed, so you can't lean anything against the bed sides. But the bars seem to be pretty firm on there and I would be okay with leaning stuff on their and tying it down so it wouldn't move. I probably wouldn't crank it down too much though.

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Anyways long story short, I found this old thread that breaks down the difference between the Literider and Original Access cover:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/access-cover-or-literider-cover.30338/

I did see this thread but was hoping that maybe there was some redesigns of the Literider since then to make it more waterproof. When buying a cover the two main purposes for me are to secure things out of sight and to keep them dry. So I don't know why anyone would spend this much money on a cover and be okay with leaks. As mentioned in the previous post, other then the velcro straps and limited options of bedracks I was satisfied with the Truxport through seven years of use. And the use of bed racks isn't a big issue to me anymore for now. If making a bed more weatherproof is possible with more high cost options/design, I would've preferred Agricover to focus more on the design and maybe go a bit cheap on materials. ie maybe not as high quality of a cover and using plastic like Truxport did. If there are no leaks with the Literider, I guess I'd be okay with it. I do like the quick release for the straps, which is the main reason why I didn't want a Truxport this time around. But might be willing to deal with them if it means that the bed stays dry.

This was also the first time really looking at the bed of the Tacoma. (as mentioned wanted a cover before using it) With the Tacoma, as mentioned I don't know why there is such a big gap between the side and front rails. The bumper is arched upwards at the side, making nowhere to step up into the bed. The rails for the track system is really high, limiting its use with covers. And the other tiedowns are too low at the bottom corner of the beds and on the floor. Where it would've been more useful for me to be higher up in the four corners of the bed.