After a lot of research, I’ve finally decided on a tonneau cover for the Tacoma. The one that I went with is the Fold-a-Cover G4 Elite.
For those who have never seen this product before, the G4 Elite is essentially a hard folding tonneau cover but there are a few things that make this one stand out. First, this cover features a four-panel design. Many of the other hard folding covers on the market only feature three panels. Having four panels mean that each individual panel can be smaller and when everything is folded up, the cover takes up less space and allows for more usable bed space.
This cover also allows for the ability to access the truck bed without needing to lower the tailgate. On the front and rear panels of the cover are latch release handles. Just lift these and the panel comes right up. This is an extremely useful feature and is one of the main reasons why I purchased this cover.
Another useful feature of this cover is the ability to lock it independently from the truck. On the front and rear panels are covers that reveal a lock. Use the keys that come with the cover and you’ll be able to lock this cover in place. This in combination with a locking tailgate will provide you with a pretty safe place to store your things.
The last big thing that I’d like to point out with this cover is that it uses what Fold-a-Cover calls the wind seals. These are essentially two plastic strips that run along the entire bed rails. When unfolded, the panels actually sit in between the wind seals rather than directly on top of the bed rails like many other tonneau covers. The wind seals have weather stripping both where the panels sit and where they meet with the bed rails. Fold-a-Cover doesn’t explain why they took this approach but the way that I see it, because there is one solid weatherstrip with the blade seals, this design theoretically can provide better weather resistance. With other covers that fold and sit directly on the bed rails, there are typically cuts wherever the panels fold so that it can more easily articulate. In theory, these cuts make a break-in the weather stripping and can allow water to slip in. Overall, I would have to say that the G4 Elite’s design has worked so far because I haven’t seen any water seeping in from the sides of the cover.
And that, in a nutshell, is the G4 Elite from Fold-a-Cover. I’ve only owned this cover for a short time so I can’t attest for its long term durability. However, in my time with the cover, I’ve noticed a few things that I’d like to share with those who are interested in picking this product up.
Let’s get started with my first impressions of the G4 Elite. Well, let’s just say it wasn’t very good. The shipping box arrived ripped up with the staples that held it together torn apart so it was only staying together by the wires that wrapped around the entire box. Going inside, everything was still there but the cover itself was slightly damaged. There were a lot of small paint chips and scratches on the cover. I don’t think that this is a result of shipping. Sure, the smaller parts could’ve moved around and rubbed against the cover, but I think most of the damage was there before the cover even left the factory. Some of the damage definitely looks like it was from mishandling while others just look like a bad paint job. My overall first impressions were not great. For something that MSRP for $960, I’m not impressed. Had it not been the beginning of the rainy season and I needed a cover ASAP, I would’ve sent this thing back. And a word to the wise, if you are a stickler for a flawless product, do not install the cover right away. Make sure that you thoroughly inspect it because once installed, Fold-a-Cover will not take it back. I contacted Fold-a-Cover about this issue and the best they could do is send me some touch-up paint so that I can fix the damaged areas because that’s exactly what I wanted to do with a brand new bed cover that I spent almost a grand on (sarcasm).
Next, let’s move on to the install. I installed the G4 Elite on a 2019 Toyota Tacoma Double Cab Long Bed. There are various versions of this cover that will fit 2nd and 3rd gen. Tacomas, but I can only speak for my 2019 model. Let me just say right off the bat that this is the hardest bed cover that I’ve ever had to install. That’s not to say that the directions are overly hard to follow or the install itself is very difficult, but relatively speaking, it is much harder to install this cover than others and it definitely took the most time to do so. With other covers, there are a few brackets to install, put the cover on and you’re pretty much good to go. With the G4 Elite, there’s a lot of minor things to adjust and a lot of going back and forth to make sure that once you lock one thing down, the other side doesn’t move and is still good. There’s a lot of finagling with this cover and that can be quite annoying but again, the install is still manageable. However, there are a few things that I’d like to point out about the install process. This section is really only helpful for those doing the install. I’m not giving you a step by step but if you’re going through the directions, you should know exactly what I’m talking about.
One thing that was really throwing my install off was the front blade seal. This is essentially a weatherstrip that helps to prevent water from coming into the truck bed. The problem with this is that it is too long on the sides. The weatherstrip actually wedged itself against the front edge of the wind seal and does not allow the front panel to close.
Examine the included image. The blade seal (red) is too long and wedged itself against the wind seal’s endcap (green) and doesn’t allow the front panel (blue) to close properly. This leaves a gap that allows water to enter the truck bed.
To fix this, I trimmed off a small piece of the blade seal with a razor blade, just enough to allow it to clear the wind seal’s endcap.
Earlier I mentioned that one of the reasons why this cover is harder to install is because it requires a lot of adjustments. One of those things that took me a while to finalize is the rotary latch. With this, there are three things to consider: the latch’s position, the striker bolt’s position, and the latch’s timing. The latch and striker bolt have to be positioned so that the latch can catch the striker bolt and properly close the cover. If the latch is too far forward/backward, the striker bolt won’t engage the closing mechanism. The same goes if the striker bolt is too high/low. The panel may close but it won’t seat properly and may leave a gap in the wind seal. With the latch’s timing, this refers to the opening of the left and right rotary latch, relative to each other. If the timing is off, you’ll distinctly hear the latches open one after the other instead of in unison. This adjustment is fairly straightforward but took me a long time because I was really trying to get the two latches to sync up. The adjustment is done by tightening/loosening a few nuts which adjust a cable on the end panels. If you lift the latch release handle VERY slowly, you’ll be able to hear the individual rotary latches release one after the other. By doing this, you’ll be able to figure out which latch is releasing first, but it is still very difficult to adjust it so that they release at the same time. It is possible but difficult because there is such a fine line between one latch opening first or the other. Again it is possible to get them synced, but I’ve found that once you go to tighten the cable end jam nut, the cable slightly shifts and the timing is out of sync again. I would recommend that you don’t focus too much on the slow latch release method. Instead, lift the latch handle release like you normally would. With a smooth motion, the latches will release so quick that the timing will be indistinguishable. That is if you get the timing relatively close in the first place.
The thing that took me the longest time to finalize was the position of the wind seals. These were difficult to adjust because they are largely locked into place and there isn’t much room for adjustment. They are held in place by brackets that bolt into the bed frame and rails. Fairly straightforward but I’ve found that being just a tiny bit off with its placement will prevent your cover from closing properly. If you look at the brackets that hold the wind seal in place, you see that most of them are held in place by a bolt going through a hole so their position is largely set to one place. The only elongated holes are used on the brackets that mount the wind seals on to the bed. The elongated holes theoretically allow you to move the wind seals from side to side to allow the cover’s panels to fit in between. For me, the front of the wind seal kept on coming in too close against the cover so it wouldn’t close and latch properly. Even pulling the wind seal out to its maximum position didn’t help. Whenever I would tighten the bolts that held the wind seal in place, it would pull the wind seal towards the cover panel and that’s no good. I ended up shimming a few flat washers under the bracket that held the wind seal in place so that it sits higher. This way when the bolts get tightened, there’s relatively little movement from the wind seal. With other bed covers, they typically have weatherstripping along the entire edge of the cover panels and once the cover is closed, that weather-stripping compresses and prevents water from coming in. Because the Fold-a-Cover utilizes the wind seals, you have to worry about 2 extra parts that I feel just overcomplicates the install process. The panel compresses against the wind seal’s weatherstripping, then the wind seal itself compresses against the bed cap. The install would go so much more smoothly if Fold-a-Cover just does away with the wind seal completely and mount the cover directly to the bed caps.
Now, let’s just talk about everyday use and the practicality of this cover. One of my main reasons for getting a bed cover is to keep the contents of the truck bed dry. That being said, no cover is going to be waterproof or keep 100% of the water out. Most manufacturers, including Fold-a-Cover, will say this about their covers.
It’s rainy season here in Washington and this cover has been seeing a lot of rain. So far, the G4 Elite seems to be able to keep out a good amount of rain. I haven’t seen any penetration from the sides. The only places that get some water are the corners but this is to be expected. The Tacoma’s bed itself isn’t very well sealed. There are some noticeable gaps in the corners and I’m sure this is where water is coming in from. So, water getting in the bed is not so much the cover’s fault but the Tacoma. One thing that you can do to help reduce this problem is to get some truck bed weather-stripping/seals and just stick them in those gaps at the corners.
Another thing on the wetness, prior to purchasing this cover, I saw a few reviews that mentioned that the locks would freeze up in winter and become unusable. When I got my G4 Elite, I found this hard to believe because the locks have some pretty robust covers that seemed to seal pretty well and actually takes some effort to open. Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for me to realize that those reviews were actually correct. Either the cover doesn’t seal that great or there’s some other factor involved because there always seems to be water and condensation under the cover. Of course, in winter this will result in the locks freezing up.
I’ve also noticed something similar happening to the latch release handle and the entire lock housing. After a rainstorm, if I were to open the panels where the latches are, there will be noticeable amounts of water draining from the latch housing. This would mean that water is seeping in from the latch handle itself. Again, there’s a good chance that this can freeze up in the winter, making the cover completely unusable. With the amount of water that gets into this housing, I’m really interested in seeing how long it will last. Only time will tell.
Another problem that I have with this cover is the blade seals. I think that they are too short in width, especially on the tailgate where it is barely and unevenly distributed. You would think that I can just pull the entire cover slightly back but I can’t. Remember, the cover’s placement is largely set because it’s bolted into place with little adjustment available. Fold-a-Cover just needs to include a longer blade seal on these covers.
Overall, I would say that the Fold-a-Cover G4 Elite works pretty well after you get it installed. It looks good and largely functions as advertised. It’s just the amount of water that gets under the lock cover and lock assembly that’s kind of concerning. If you live in a relatively dry location with little precipitation and freezing temperatures, I think that this is a good option.
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