Tonneau Covers

Why You Need Tonneau Covers for Your Truck

When you want to protect everything in your truck, tonneau covers are essential equipment. Whether hard or soft, these pickup truck bed covers provide you with a wide range of benefits, such as:

• Protection: No matter what you’re hauling, there’s a good chance that you want to keep it safe from the elements. These enclose your truck bed so rain, snow and mud won’t reach your belongings. Tools will be kept in pristine condition between uses, cutting down on the amount of maintenance and cleaning you have to do. Building materials will be kept safe and won’t fly out of the bed during periods of heavy wind.
• Security: Another significant advantage of these pickup bed covers is that they keep your belongings secure and safe from thieves. They not only keep what you’re hauling out of view, but many of them also come with locking mechanisms that make it even more difficult to get inside of the bed. This makes them especially important for contractors with expensive equipment or outdoor enthusiasts taking valuable recreation items out into the wild.
• Organization: Your truck bed is just a big, open space where your things can rattle around and bump into each other while you’re driving. This means there’s a greater chance of your equipment and valuables being smashed or dinged or dented on the drive to your destination. However, if you have a tonneau cover it can help prevent that. With one of them blocking out the wind and providing a barrier to items jumping around, you can keep the back of your truck from becoming a jumbled mess.
• Efficiency: It might seem like a strange thought at first, but one of the best reasons to get a tonneau cover could be how it improves your gas mileage. Its aerodynamic design cuts down on the amount of drag your truck experiences while cruising down the highway. This means your engine doesn’t have to work as hard to get you up to speed, which in turn means you’ll use less fuel. It’s not a huge amount, but it adds up over the course of the year, potentially saving you hundreds of dollars.

Tonneau Cover Types and Features

Selecting the right tonneau cover for your truck begins with knowing your options:

• Hard Tonneau Covers: These are rigid covers that can be folded away or retracted for access to the bed. They provide protection against damage that could be caused by bouncing rocks on the road or falling debris on the jobsite.
• Soft Tonneau Covers: Made from durable but flexible material, these covers help keep tools and cargo dry and protected from the elements as well as keeping gravel and dirt out of the truck bed.
• Roll-Up Tonneau Covers: A soft roll-up tonneau cover makes accessing the truck bed relatively easy and gives you the most room for loading large items.
• Folding Tonneau Covers: With a hard folding cover a portion of the truck bed remains covered even with the cover folded all the way open, which can make loading larger items more difficult.

When selecting a tonneau cover, you should know what your typical use case will be as well as what level of protection will be the best for your needs. It’s also critical to take careful measurements of your truck bed to ensure the cover you choose will provide the best possible fit. Our team here at Parts Via can provide you with the expertise you need to make the most informed decision.

Tonneau Cover Installation and Maintenance Tips

If you’re planning to install your new tonneau cover yourself, you should start by giving your truck’s bed a good cleaning. This will ensure the rails line up correctly and don’t leave scratches on your finish. Follow your cover’s installation guide, making sure to tighten the clamps only once you’ve confirmed the rails are properly aligned. Once it’s installed, check that it works properly and that you’re able to open and close your tailgate without difficulty. With the right tools and by following the instructions carefully, an installation shouldn’t take more than about an hour.

To keep your new cover in good working order, you should inspect it periodically to make sure the hardware is secure. Don’t leave heavy items on the cover for more than a moment, as the weight can bend components and impact the cover’s performance. For cleaning, simple soap and water works best. Avoid vinyl cleaners made for dashboards, as they typically contain ingredients that can deteriorate the materials of your tonneau cover over time.

Why Choose Parts Via?

If you want to experience all these benefits for yourself, Parts Via is the best place to buy tonneau covers online. We offer a huge selection of products from the leading manufacturers, but our staff also have the experience and expertise needed to help you choose the right model for you from our vast inventory of tonneau covers online. As a Parts Via customer, you’ll also be able to pick up your parts fast and free, as well as schedule installation at any one of the more than 2,000 dealers we have in our network. When you choose to work with us, you’ll have a seamless experience that fits your needs as well as your schedule. Get in touch with us today to learn more about what we have to offer or ask any questions you may have.