Soft tonneau for a Stepside

Trust me on this... I hate to have my first post on this forum be a new thread asking an off-the-wall question, but I'm hoping somebody out there has some experience with this...

I have an '03 Stepside which is a garage queen. I want to add a bed cover to clean up the look. Been researching this for weeks and have found four companies which claim to have a model which will specifically fit the 1st Gen stepside.

They are as follows:

Access Literider #35029 $400 MSRP
Access Original #15029 $500
Access Limited $25029 $550

Craftec #554931 $250

Extang Tufftonno #14910 $290

Truxedo Lo Pro #564101 $500

Not really concerned about functionality, just want one that fits cleanly on this oddball Taco. The Craftec looks like rubbish, and the rest are all kinda similar to one another in terms of price.

When I compare the SS bed with my regular Taco's bed the upper rail and transition to the tailgate look pretty similar. So it could be simply a matter of the manufacturer producing a narrower version.

If you've got experience with any of these, I ask you to chime in. Gracias.

 

The Access Literider is on order from AutoAnything.

I narrowed it down to that model and the Truxedo. When I look at pictures of the corners, the stitching of the Truxedo was much nicer and pulled the material down a bit better, but the cost was just too big of a factor. $280 versus $400 for something that is just there for looks.

 

I was temporarily looking for a soft tonneau cover as well a while back and then changed my mind. But from what I could find, based purely on reviews, it seemed truxedo or extang was what I was gonna wait for to find used on classifieds.

 

Curious to hear your take on the tonneau you ordered when you get it installed

 

I will post some pictures.
It's all about fitment on the stepside bed, since this truck sits in a garage and won't get driven, much less used as a truck.

 

Access Literider arrived on Friday. Installed on Saturday.

For something so incredibly simple, the instructions are beyond terrible. It was easier to figure it out once I tossed them in trash.

This is ajob that turns into a job if you try to follow the directions.

Materials are okay. Fit was good.

I considered locktiting the clamps and handful of other fasteners. Didn't , but might go back at a later point.

My expectations weren't all that high, given the price point. Given a second chance, I might drop the extra $120 and get the Truxedo Lo Pro. Just for the fact that they stitch the corners of the vinyl in such a way that they conform to the frame.

I didn't bother with the gasketing material. The sole job of this tonneau is to prevent my stretch-fit car cover from sagging into the bed.

 

is this foldable? I got a 2002 stepside and I have a hard tonneau shell which is good and amazing looking but I fish a lot and it's a pain in the butt when I'm hauling 7+ feet long rods and can't close it without damaging the rods.

 

Yes. Both the Access and Truxedo models roll up. The Tufftono rolls up, as well but the bows remain in place.

Those hard tonneaus look so clean. But yeah, I can see how they would suck if you need to use the bed.

 

I think I'll get one like yours and maybe sell this one later on. Thanks for answering.

 

Send a PM to @eccracer104

He's got good pricing on the Access and Truxedo product lines at Autoanything.

 

Do you have a part number? or model?

 

1st post

 

I've had my Access roll up for 15 years and still enjoy it. I replaced the velcro a couple years ago because it got sun baked.

 

Forgot to mention I think mine was $99 from Amazon lol still works fine tho.

 

Do you have part number a d place to pick up that hard top?

 

Sorry to bring back an old thread. Anyone know if any of these are still available for purchase? Looking into getting a cover for my Stepside S-Runner..