Are you looking for a way to secure gear in your truck bed off and on the trail? Adding a tonneau cover to your Tacoma is the easiest way to do this, especially if you frequently store stuff in it. There are a ton of options on the market, but not all are created equal.
RealTruck’s BAKFlip brand is pretty well-known in the tonneau cover space. I even used to work at a Toyota dealership and sold their covers. In my years there, this was the number one brand year after year. Their tonneau covers are high-quality and feature thoughtful designs for daily drivers.
Table Of Contents
Features & Specs
- Impact-resistant construction
- Premium foam core panels
- Heavy-duty FRP (fiber-reinforced plastic) skins with powder-coated aluminum bottoms
- Rigid, lightweight aluminum frame
- Very low profile design
- Automatic latching panels
- Easy, no-drill installation
- Gives you full bed access
- Premium rubber perimeter seals
- Water drainage system
- 400-lb. weight capacity (when evenly distributed)
- 5-year warranty!!
- Assembled in Missouri
Installation
Tools Required
- Phillips head screwdriver or drill
- T-30 Torx bit
Step 1. Prepare Truck Bed
You must first remove both factory-installed side rails from the bed to make room for the new hardware.
Each side rail is attached to the bedsides with (4) T-30 Torx bolts. Be sure to break these bolts loose by hand with a ratchet before using any power tools to prevent stripping out the bolts.
Step 2. Install Side Rails
The tonneau cover will come with (2) side rails and a hardware bag with (10) aluminum brackets. If you have a 5-foot bed, slide (4) brackets into each side rail. For a 6-foot bed, slide (5) brackets into each side.
To secure the brackets to the bedsides, use the supplied longer Torx bolts. These new bolts will go into the upper hole in the bracket (long oval hole) and line up with the bedside holes that the factory side rails used.
Before fully tightening the bolts, ensure everything is lined up correctly and the rubber weather strip that sits against the top of the bedside makes even contact. Then, push the bedcover rail all the way forward toward the cab. Once that’s done, fully tighten all of the Torx bolts.
If you plan on keeping your factory bed rails, you can attach those to the lower hole on the aluminum brackets.
Step 3. Install Tonneau Cover
With the side rails installed, the cover can be lifted onto the top of the bed. It’s easiest to install this cover with it folded up. The smallest fold of the cover will go up against the cab side of the bed. Line up the holes of the cover with the side rail slots.
The front of the cover will attach to the side rails using the supplied bolt and large plastic hand nut. Separate the bolt from the nut and feed the bolt through the top so the threads go down into the bed.
Then, slide the metal and rubber washer over the bolt and attach the large plastic hand nut on the end of the bolt from inside the bed. Do not fully tighten yet.
Next, slowly unfold the tonneau cover, letting each section latch into the bedside rails. This allows the cover to align itself to the bed rails and make everything square. After the cover is fully closed, crawl inside the bed to fully tighten those large hand nuts.
Step 4. Install Water Drainage (Optional)
This step is optional and we opted not to do it. To install the drainage tubes, check out this article (Step 19). You must drill two holes into the bottom of your bed toward the cab allowing water to escape the bed rails.
Review
This tonneau cover has a very minimal design when closed which in my opinion, maintains the truck’s clean aesthetic.
I have always loved how BAKFlip’s covers fold up against the cab via built-in kickstands for full access to your bed for larger cargo. Anyone who has ever had to remove their tonneau cover to move furniture knows it’s a pain. This adds a level of utility to this cover.
Lastly, everything feels heavy-duty. While nothing is 100% theft-proof, this will keep your property more secure than other plastic or PVC bed covers. The aluminum panels are lightweight but durable to keep your property safe while camping or on a road trip. I would not hesitate to recommend this to any truck owner in the market for a quality tonneau cover!
