Tonneau Cover

[kavemanbj]

I am looking for a good lower priced Tonneau Cover and was wondering if anyone had any recomendations on which to buy. Also, does it help out on gas milage enough to notice. I am searching for ways to get better milage. I drive 80 miles to and from work every day.
2000 Z71 SB

[john877]

Can't really recommend a low price tonneau cover, stick with the name brands, i found when i purchased mine a few years back that there were dozens of companies and the price was about the same for my model, approximately $300. Sure wish i could remember the name. Whatever you do don't get the kind that stick with velcro, the price looks great but they never seem to last very long before the stick-em on the velcro that attaches to the truck comes loose. I would recommend the snap on variety, generally the rails bolt right to the truck without the need to glue anything or drill anything.

As far as gas mileage, i saw a improvement of about a mile gallon or two. I have a 94 chevy k1500, 350 engine. was getting about 17-18 on open highway, now it's up to 19-20

[camdadz28]

I put on a Tonneau Cover by UNDERCOVER. It weights about 50lbs. and it is entirerly bolt on. I shoppped every cover out there and for the price and for the look, the Undercover was definitely right for me. I have a white truck, so the black cover looks great. It lips over the back tailgate so you have that as added security. It lifts easily and has two locks. I installed it by myself in 30 minutes. Go look at it on the internet.
http://www.tonneau-covers.org/underc...eau_covers.htm

[pbergmann]

kavemanbj,
I have an 02, and i bought one from the dealer, its a gm part and the best thing is that its enginerred for the truck. there are no holes to drill installs in about 1/2 hr. looks good, no snaps. cost about 300 (same as aftermarket) but has the 3 yr warrantee that the truck has. I would never go to the hard top. Had one once, such a pain if you pick something up then you have to run home to remove the dam thing!

[chuckwi11]

I shopped and looked for about a month for my cover. I talked to a lot of diffeent people that all said to stay away from this or stay away from that... blah, blah.

I there are a few things you have to ask yourself besides how much...

-How long do you plan on having the truck? If you plan on keeping it a long time you want a cover from a company that will be around because over time the cover will wear out.

-What features do you want?
-Are you going to put bed rails on?
-Do you want or have a toolbox?
-Drill or no drill?
-Roll up or take off?
-Locking tailgate?

I chose the Truxedo Plus for my Silverado. It was EXPENSIVE! ($600) However it had all the features I wanted... mounted inside the rails (no drill), roll up, built in supports (the ones that go across... can be a real pain to have them roling around in the bed), and a low profile tool box. I was able to install bed rails and it is secure (as secure as a tonneau can be) with an aftermarket tailgate lock.

Out of everything I have put on my truck it is one of the major things I would suggest not going cheap. Cheap ones are not custom and WILL stretch faster depending on the material used. Stretching leads to vibration at high speeds and the more it stretches, the more it vibrates, and the more noise it makes.

It does increase gas mileage but not a lot. You may notice it more since you drive long distances but only if those are open road at sustained speeds.

If you are really on a budget and decide you just need a cover try ebay.