You fellas with the soft toppers!!

I have been doing loads of research/video review watching on the soft toppers. Im curious as to how well they keep out the weather. I really want a ARE fiberglass shell but they are heavy priced and akward to remove and store if needed. We travel alot and want to be able to take our things without having to completely pack into water proof totes. Is the soft topper an option?? I love the looks of them but dont want to spend 600+ on something that everything is still going to get wet

 

The corners are not waterproof, water is going to leak in a bit, especially if your parked on an angle.

Good part is the drops that do make it in, will just run down the inside of the bed and under the bed mat (I use the toyota one).
Unless you have items pressed directly against the inside of the bed near the corners, they will stay dry, humid, but dry...

 

You got a long bed or short bed?

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/lets-see-some-softoppers.277644/

^ Read to your heart's content: 129+ pages of softtopper information.

I have a Softtopper - its been in use coming up on a year and 12,000 miles. Torrential wind and rain, a pressure washer, a foot of heavy and wet snow, the works. It has kept out 99% of water except that which is shot horizontally in at high pressure. I have seen hard shells let the same amount of water in. Handles highway speeds and heavy cross winds we get here in CO (gusts of 60+ mph) without damage. The only thing I imagine a hardshell would have less of is the fine dust you get after 20-30 miles on a gravel road.

Pros: weighs 120+ lbs less than fiberglass which = more payload and less spring sag. Can be put up/taken down/removed in minutes so you can carry tall stuff. Standard black color looks good on all colors of Tacomas. People sell them used for $450-500 which is 75% of what you pay for a new one vs 40-50% for hardshells. Can roll up sides to keep it cool in the back if you have kenneled dogs. Can get accessories (mesh windows, racks, etc) for it fairly cheaply. Softtopper has every component in stock and is amazing to work with if you have any damage to it - WAY cheaper to fix than a standard topper. With a replacement rear window they fit 2005-2015 Tacomas.

Cons: Takes a few extra seconds to open and access than hardshells. Not lockable and can be opened by anyone who wants access. Must buy a rack in order to put something on top of it. Not color matched. Gets hot inside in summer if kept closed.

My philosophy of buying it was to use it for a few years and wait for a used market to develop on the hard shells. I use my softtopper for 3 years and sell it for $450 to somebody who's happy to save some money, and save $1000-1500 by not buying a hardshell topper new. By that time I'm replacing my stock shocks anyways, so an add a leaf and upgraded shocks are a wash.

 

I have a long bed

 

I started building racks. So I put my bestop supertop in storage. It wouldn't come with the t-nuts. But if you wanted one at a massive discount, it's yours.

 

A wealth of knowledge and honest opinion i greatly appreciate that! I am def Leaning more towards the soft topper at this point. I would like the idea of a rack of some sort over it for sure! Thanks for the reply and look forward to chatting with yall!!

Truck just hit 1k miles pulling into the drive tonight! I think its time for tires/wheels and some other stuff! Just dont tell the wife what the stuff really cost!!!!

 

Im not real crazy about the side windows on the supertop. And not quite ready to pull the trigger on anything just yet but i really appreciate the offer and if i change my mind in the next little bit i will surely let you know!

 

Just got a softopper and took it camping. Got rained on A Lot and while it's not water tight, only a small amount of water got in and most from the dog window I had them install and didn't bother to close when the rain came pouring down. It allows you to roll up a small section of the front window so the dog can get some air and you can open the back window and say 'hi'. Overall, it worked great and a local CO company so plus for me.

I got it because I don't really want a shell on there most of the time and they are fairly heavy and hard to store. The softopper comes off easily and I can put the tonneau cover back on for daily driving.