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What's the fascination with truck caps?

5K views 22 replies 19 participants last post by  Blue 
#1 ·
I'm always curious why truck owners put hard permanent caps and covers over the beds. Not to offend anyone but, I just don't get it.

My feeling is that if someone wants to cover the bed permanently why not get an SUV. One of the great things about owning a truck is the ability to carry something bulky that wouldn't normally fit in the SUV,van, or car trunk.

For the ROC members interested in getting a truck cap. How do you intend to use it ? Especially since Ridgeline has such a short bed. Are you interested more for the appearance ?

I know there's two sides to every story and differing opinions. I know there are alot of truck owners driving around with caps so there must be reasons.

Just curious.
 
#3 ·
Hey Nighthawk, I was wondering about this, too, so thanks for bringing it up.

I'm guessing it has more to do with camping. I've also seen people here saying they want one before the cold weather sets in. But why not an SUV instead? Maybe they're easy enough to remove if you have to.

Looking forward to people's answers since I've never had one.
 
#8 ·
I move dirty and clean clothes around a lot, and having that cap over the bed would allow me to install my two long racks. But for now I just have to use the cute little hooks inside the cab. I hope they last longer than the ones in my Tahoe...those pulled out of the mounting holes before the bar broke, but a couple of screws helped the bar stay in place. I hope someone comes out with a capper before I end up putting screws through the headliner into the frame. NOT GOOD!

George
 
#9 ·
I'll be the first one in line to buy a shell/cap when Leer comes out with theirs next month (fingers crossed). I want it for security and dry storage as I often have items bigger than will fit in the trunk. I've always had a shell on my pickups and on the rare occasion I need to haul something oversized my previous shells came off lickity split. Hopefully the Ridge shell will be just as easy but who knows since it deviates from the traditional bed they are all used to mounting on. Probably won't be as easy but if they can put it on I can certainly take it off if needed.
 
#11 ·
I'd consider a cap IF it was guaranteed to be bone dry inside. I'm not sure I'll like the looks of it, but maybe. So far tonneau covers aren't sounding like they are perfectly dry, which is important to me, and the trunk is too small to hold everything I'd like to haul and keep dry. At the same time, I don't want to cram the backseat full. So the cap is an option. If someone makes a tonneau cover that's dry, doesn't take up too much room in the front of the bed, allows full access to the trunk and prints $100 bills, I'm in! :)
 
#12 ·
Embo_9 said:
I'd consider a cap IF it was guaranteed to be bone dry inside. I'm not sure I'll like the looks of it, but maybe. So far tonneau covers aren't sounding like they are perfectly dry, which is important to me, and the trunk is too small to hold everything I'd like to haul and keep dry. At the same time, I don't want to cram the backseat full. So the cap is an option. If someone makes a tonneau cover that's dry, doesn't take up too much room in the front of the bed, allows full access to the trunk and prints $100 bills, I'm in! :)
Are you sure you needed a truck? Most caps are pretty good but 100% watertight, probably not. If you commonly need water proof storage, then you may have been better off with a van than a truck. That was one of the things I gave up to move to a truck was water proof storage in my Forester, of course the back seat of the Ridgeline isn't much smaller than the entire storage space in my Forester was. Of course I don't commonly need water proof storage, just make sure I don't pick certain things up when I know it is going to rain or is raining.
 
#13 ·
Capt.:

I did plenty of research before deciding on the Ridgeline. I drove a variety of vehicles and considered them at great length. In the long run, the Ridgeline was the vehicle that best suited my needs.

I made the assumption, however, that the tonneau covers that are or would be available, would be water tight. I don't need it water tight often, but when i do, like hauling Christmas presents 300 miles in the snowy winter, I need it. Even when I haul things to my tailgater 300 plus miles a way, it would be nice to know that I had more flexibility in packing things without getting them wet. The rest of the time, if I'm hauling wood or plants or dirt, I'm not concerned with it.

I guess I shouldn't have assumed the tonneau covers would be water tight. That's my mistake as a first time truck buyer.
 
#14 ·
FWIW To me a cap was the best way to provide some security and weather protection for things left in the box. The Bed Cover seems to have taken over, but the idea is the same. In either case the ability to lock and or remove the cap or cover quickly are some of the the factors I look for.
 
#15 ·
Embo_9,

I still think you can probably work with the amount of water protection that these things do provide. If it was something like what ladyridge has where she is moving large paper products around or other things highly adverse to water around as part of her business then this is where I would say a truck may not be the best decision, but of course she bought the truck before the career change and I don't think you could pry it away from her now without putting your own life in danger. When I take Christmas presents places in trucks I generally put them in big plastic bags even if they will be under a cover. But my times doing that were always with family trucks, since this is my first truck also. And with most of those, I dreaded putting anything in the truck at all because not only were they dirty they were often rusty and drove like trucks (bump bump bump all the way). Especially given that everyone here has said that it is more of a drip than a leak, that is something you can overcome, a leak well forget it there is no telling how bad it will be from one moment to the next.
 
#16 ·
I am looking forward to driving to Florida around February to escape NYC winter. With 4 people in the cab, there just is not enough space for luggage and golf clubs and fishing rods and tennis rackets and cooler and 3 extra bags wife packs for reasons I have no way of explaining. We also have an SUV, but I think the RL will give us more room in the covered back and the trunk space is bonus room.
 
#17 ·
I live in an area that gets alot of rain in the winter,so a cap will give me a dry place to store/transport goods year round.Also in this city if it is not locked it will be stolen{anything too big to fit in the trunk} I would love to not have a cap but it is a waste of space without one.
 
#18 ·
The leer cap is available her in Redding, but I like the 4are cap better. I have 3 dogs, 2 are medium to large, they would fit in the back better . I also do gardening , I liked my ford ranger in that I could lock up my mower and tools in the cap, I like the trunk and have it loaded up with my hand tools and I have a trailer to haul debris in, so it would be nice to have the bed covered and relatively dry and secure .
 
#19 ·
I rarely tow or carry large objects, but always like to own a pick-up truck. I know when I need the cargo space it is there for me. I like outdoor activities and do need to have the hitch installed for my bike rack.

The truck cap is not cheap but for utility it is great to have one. Here are my reasons to have the cap installed:
- secure luggage when on vacation
- store camping gears (if you are in a bear country it is required to have the food/cooler stored inside the car)
- hide your stuff after shopping (in-bed trunk may not big enough)
- same purpose as the bed cover – save gas
- keep everything dry

When plan to carry large object I can easily remove the cap since it is a small cap so it is light. Like many members concern, the visibility is a problem. In this case backup camera is a big plus.

Just my opinions.
 
#20 ·
In Illinois a truck gets a seperate plate and can not go the same places as a car. Put a cap on a truck and now it gets a different plate and becomes an RV and can drive anywhere a car can. A truck is not suppose to drive in the far left lane and can not go in the express lanes. A RV can plus the cap is water tight. Some time the cap is not the issue so much as using the law to your advntage.
 
#21 ·
I bought the truck so that I Can throw my kids camping stuf and stuff, and so that I can take my Dogs with us to our cabin in Big Bear.

In my Durango I will smell the dogs for weeks, and all the stinking kids stuff too.

When I put plants in the Durango dirt gets everywhere. When Iput plants in the bed of my Dakota, wind blows off all the leaf. But the cap will give me best of all worlds, No?
 
#22 ·
cucamonga silver rtl said:
I bought the truck so that I Can throw my kids camping stuf and stuff, and so that I can take my Dogs with us to our cabin in Big Bear.

In my Durango I will smell the dogs for weeks, and all the stinking kids stuff too.

When I put plants in the Durango dirt gets everywhere. When Iput plants in the bed of my Dakota, wind blows off all the leaf. But the cap will give me best of all worlds, No?
Exactly! I did not want an SUV because I don't want to ruin an interior with all the crap I need/want to carry AND keep it away from the elements...pretty silly question to start, if you ask me...
 
#23 ·
I can see if you have a lot of stuff to carry securely, you do need a cap. things like gasoline, fertilizer, chlorine can ruin a SUV or minivan.

My neighbor has a F-150 and he carried horse manure and has to rinse the bed afterwards. Without the cap, the horse manure will fly everywhere down the country road. I would not want to be behind that truck!

I am sure there are hundreds of other reasons.
 
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