Need Advice — Repairing Holes in the Composite Bed

My wife and I were installing a hard tonneau cover on her 2021 TRD Off-Road. The instructions include removing the side cargo rails, installing brackets where the side cargo rails attach to the truck bed, and relocating the rails to the lower portion of the brackets.

I used the wrong bolts to reinstall the cargo rails; they were too long. I did not realize it until after I had put four small holes in the composite bed. Grrrr!

This truck is my wife’s pride and joy. I feel awful. What is the best way to fix this? I want to plug the holes permanently, preferably with an undetectable repair. I’m just not sure what material will adhere to the black plastic bed and blend with it. Fortunately, the holes are not big; the largest one is probably 3/18”.

 

I wouldn't worry about them. The FRC bed is pretty tough and Toyota used a pretty unique blend of 11 herbs and spices in the fiber and resin.

If you're really concerned find a reputable local boat shop for fiberglass work but fair warning the appropriate repair requires approx a 10:1 taper and double sided repair.

 

I’d mix up some epoxy putty and color it black.

 

Photos , how big are the holes?

 

Maybe fill the holes with some black RTV if they are small?

PS: no worse feeling than when you fuck yourself over! We have all done it. This is a minor "whoops" so don't be too hard on yourself. Patch it as best you can and move on brother!

 

I think I'd stop by an auto parts store and pick up the right sized plastic trim plugs and push them in. They wouldn't be invisible, but, they would look like they were supposed to be there.

 

JB Weld in hole, tape over it to create a smooth finish on the visible side, hit it with a Sharpie when cured.

 

That's a good idea. Maybe a little rubber grommet to seal it up or a dab of RTV

 

Rubber grommet was what i was thinking too. But, i wanted to see how big these holes are.

If you need 3 grommets, youll end up with a box of 500 from Amazon. Ask me.how i know.

Maybe i can mail you some.

 

Lol yep. I think last time I bought a mixed set in the hopes some would fit. None of them did and they got returned.

 

Ha! Mine actually had what i needed. Its an ocd thing. I pluged the hole in the top of my factor 55 hook thing a ma bob. Covers the pin and snap ring.

 

That's too bad. My hard cover had brackets that attached to the original rails to lock it down. I didn't have to move anything.

 

UPDATE: I have probably over-thought this, but after getting over the trauma of putting holes in may wife's truck, I wanted to make sure I plugged the holes, ensured the holes did not weaken the bed or lead to any cracking, and make a seamless repair.

I appreciate all of the suggestions to date, and decided to try an epoxy. My first thought was regular JB Weld, which I happen to have, even thought it dries grey, not black. Then I thought I would go to the local big-box hardware store and ask for product advice. As I feared, this was a huge waste of time. The people who work there know less about materials and products than me, which is a sad commentary, as that's a pretty low bar.

Then I decided to look online at what the bed is made of, and use that information to see what people use to repair this kind of material. I knew the bed was some kind of plastic composite, but learned that more specifically it is a fiber-reinforced sheet-molded composite, or SMC. (This is probably fairly well-known among Tacomaworld, so forgive me if my knowledge seems rather basic.) While it's not made from 11 herbs and spices, the manufacturing process is pretty cool. Using my new-found knowledge to evaluate repair materials, I soon realized that most are commercial products for making larger and more structural repairs to modern Corvettes, jet skis, and the like, with the quantity of material and their cost reflecting that.

For my much smaller and hopefully non-structural repair, I found what I think will work:

$8 J-B Weld 50139 Plastic Bonder Body Panel Adhesive and Gap Filler Syringe - Black - 25 ml

J-B Weld 50139 Plastic Bonder Body Panel Adhesive and Gap Filler Syringe - Black - 25 ml -- $5.96.

It's advertised as both an adhesive and a gap filler, is supposedly suitable for repairing SMC, and the label says it dries black. I'm going to give it a try and will let you know how it went -- unless someone here shouts out: "Don't use THAT!" LOL.

 

You really need to post photos of what it looked like before you filled the holes in.

 

There are four holes, evenly spaced along the upper portion of one side of the bed. These two are the largest. The angle and lighting makes it look like they are not through-holes, but they are.

 

I understand being pissed about doing something like that, id have been. But you shouldn't beat yourself up, thats not that bad.

 

I appreciate that. I'm sure now that I'll get it fixed and finish the tonneau installation this week.

It was a frustrating experience. While I was misunderstanding the installation instructions, a torrential rain broke out, which made a horrendous noise on the easy-up canopy I was working under... until the covering collapsed under the weight of the water and soaked me like that scene in "Flashdance." What a feeling.

 

LATE UPDATE: The holes filled in fine; the tonneau cover is on. I'm not thrilled that the tonneau, despite water channels and drain hoses on each side, is not water-tight. Is this a common issue or are there hard folding covers that keep out rainwater?

 

There are many threads about sealing the bed. A complete solution involves more than the top/bed junction. There are several holes/seams in the bed and also egress between the tailgate and the bed. A pickup bed is not generally designed to be water/dust tight, but apparently with some work it can be made to be.

 

Thanks. I will look.