There are certain go-to truck upgrades we’ve become accustomed to installing over the years. Most notably, we always fit our truck with some type of retractable bed cover. The plight of the pickup truck has always been that they are great for hauling cargo in the bed, but your gear is stuck out in the open. Tonneau covers offer a great addition as they increase the functionality of the bed by keeping your stuff out of the elements. Retractable covers from companies such as Bestop increase the versatility as you can Fold, Roll or Zip the cover out of the way.
One cover we’ve had great luck with over the years is Bestop’s EZFold Soft Tonneau Cover. Many of you may recognize the Bestop name from its line of Jeep tops and accessories. What you may not know is that the company has been building soft-series bedcovers for mid- and fullsize trucks for years. Now, the company has launched an all-new “hard” version of its famous EZFold cover.
The hard portion of the name comes from the fact that it uses aluminum panels in place of where fabric would traditionally rest. Using aluminum allowed Bestop to keep the weight down, so the cover is still easy to fold and/or remove completely when you need to. The fact that it ships completely assembled and doesn’t require any tools to install makes it one of the easiest upgrades you can do. We were eager to check out the new hard-series Aluminum Tri-fold Tonneau cover, so we picked one up for our 2012 Ford F-150 Raptor.
There’s no special setup required to install the cover. You’ll simply unbox it and set it on your bedrails to get started. Before you clamp the forward latches down, you’ll need to fold out the cover and make sure it sits square on the truck.
One feature we were very excited to see was the thick dust cover that runs the width of the bed. This feature has been especially useful in keeping dirt and water from seeping in.
The forward latches secure beneath the lip of the bedrails. If your truck is equipped with plastic bed caps such as ours, you may need to remove a small section of the cap to ensure the clamp is grabbing the metal lip of the bed. These small twist knob clamps don’t require much force to lock down the cover. Hand tight is all you need. No tools required.
To make sure the tri-fold cover panels don’t rattle or become damaged when the cover is folded, Bestop fits the hard-cover with foam inserts. It’s also worth noting that each handle has a recessed pocket to sit in when not in use.
Latching the rear of the truck is Bestop’s quick-release lever system. These are similar to what you’ll find on Bestop’s other Tonneau covers and extremely easy to use and adjust.
Each aluminum cover panel is fit with a solid-foam core. For a little added flare, the all-black cover has a slight textured finish to it. The piano-style hinges also have extended seals to make sure the cover keeps the elements out—a testament we can definitely confirm as our cover has endured plenty of rain showers already.
When you want to fold the top, you can do so by easily flipping the two rear sections forward. The built-in straps make it easy to lock the lid in place. Removing it completely is also an easy one-person job.
Given our truck is a daily driver, the bed gets used frequently with a mix of groceries, bicycles and car parts. Since our pickup has a locking tailgate, the top also makes a bed a more secure place to keep our stuff. To date, we haven't experienced any leaks from the cover, which is always a big concern. To see the full line of Bestop bed covers and truck accessories, visit bestop.com.
