[13Frontero]

I have a 13 CC Desert Runner with 5 foot long bed without the Utili-Track. The wifey and I recently had our first child (It was a boy ::grin: so now I'm having to use my truck bed more often for my kids stroller and that kind of stuff. I'm looking to purchase a bed cover just to keep people from stealing what i have back there and to keep things dry in the rain. Do any of you have bed covers you would recommend? I am not looking to spend a lot of money, I saw some on amazon with good reviews for about $200. let me know!

Thanks Guys!

 

[Whiskysour]

Truxedo Lo Pro. I love mine. About 99.9% percent water tight out of the box, plus it rolls up to allow full use of the bed. It also still allows Utili-Track use.

 

[13Frontero]

Is the Utili-Track needed inorder to install the bed cover?

 

[JakeH]

I have a soft tri-fold from roughcountry.com & it actually mounts directly into the track. $250 out the door & on my porch 48 hours later. It's handled all my miles & 8 straight days of Colorado snow without a problem. I'd recommend it if you prefer a folder to a roller.

 

[Whiskysour]

Is the Utili-Track needed inorder to install the bed cover?

No, it's not required. It installs separate.

 

[[email protected]]

Before I got my Gator FX5 I had a Truxmart soft trifold that I got for about $200. It performed great for the 6 months that I had it. It kept water out other than the corners of the tailgate while going through the car wash. Even that was only a slight bit of water though. If I didn't want the hard trifold I would have been more than happy to have kept it. It had the option to be mounted with or without the utili track system so it would work on any frontier.

 

[RWM]

I've got the TorzaTop also, with utilitrack, and like it.

It does a good job keeping most of the water out, but driving rain or water from a car was will still seep in.

You can install/remove it in just a few minutes with practice, and when removed there are no parts left attached to the truck to get broken or lost.

Here are some pics of it installed.

 

[NPHLYT]

Think about what you need. The soft covers are great for weather, but a knife will afford entry quick. I have a Pace Edwards Full Metal JackRabbit with explorer rails. For the mos part I love the cover. The cover itself is metal, and locks ever 12 inches. Downfall is that the canister takes up quite a bit of the bed.

I should have gone with the Backflip. We just installed one on my brother's frontier. 20 minute installation. Opens to expose all but about 3 inches of bed. Easily removable.

 

[pearsonm]

I know this is out of your price range but I'll offer my experience anyway.

I had an Undercover hard cover on my previous truck - a '05 Dakota club cab. What I liked was that it was lockable and rainproof. What I didn't like was access towards the cab was a pain and I needed another person to help take it off when I needed full access to the bed.

If ever I need a cover on my new Frontier KC I'll consider either another Undercover or a hard, tri-fold. I sometimes haul a motorcycle. For that I need access to the front of the bed, which knocks out anything that rolls forward into a canister.

 

[JakeH]

I'll agree somebody could easily cut into my tri fold with a plain old pocket knife, but with aluminum rails every 6 or 8 inches, they really wouldn't be able to get much out of there. Not in a hurry anyway.

 

[mtyler11]

with covers, everything is a trade-off.

I have an Access Tonnosport. It's a low profile roll-up. Was inexpensive (bought at Realtruck.com with free shipping & discount to boot) and works well. Its weather-proof, not waterproof (car wash will wet the bed at the front edge & rear edge) and keeps people honest (hides content) but won't keep the criminals out. Works just fine with utilitrac.
If I had to do it again I would do a High profile instead of the low profile. I'd also consider a soft tri-fold. I use the bed of my truck for hauling stuff & house/yard waste. Sometimes I need the entire bed. The roll-up does get mostly out of the way, but not 100%. That last bit, if I have something strapped down all the way front, will cause the roll to rub against the cab. Also the rails for the roll-up prevent me from using a removable ladder rack. A soft tri-fold removes easy enough, then you can mount up the rack for the time you need it.
There ARE covers that work with racks, but then you start talking money...

If you want real security, you're limited to a hard roll-up or a hard tri-fold ($$$).

 

[carduke]

For your budget, I suggest a folding soft cover like the TonnoPro. It is not pricey, and you can easily access the truck bed.

 

[kookookeedoo]

I have two, an Encore and an Express, both by Extang. I like them both. The Express is super easy to use and I like the look of it, while the Encore does provide better security. I've also heard good things about the Truxedo Truxport, which seems almost identical to my Express.

 

[RONSFOLLY]

I have have had good results with Diamondback. It's all solid welded aluminum, has two lockable "wings" and the top end model will support ~1,600 as a flat bed! Combined with a locked tail gate, your bed is now completely secure. Problems - it relies on the Utilitrack to bolt down and it costs nearly $2K with the black coating. Thinner versions of the diamond plate material that hold less weight on top, without the black coating are quite a bit cheaper.

 

[mtaylor]

I have had an Extang SolidFold and a Truxedo Edge, both are good at what they are marketed for, and I would recommend both.

 

[subieguy]

I have truxedo lo pro qt. Have all but 4 inches of the front of the bed available,can only be opened with tailgate opened and i mace mine power locking. I love it,after family members having other types i went with this since I'd tried a coworkers