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Do you think vehicles like the Bronco, Explorer, S-10 Blazer, Suburban, Dodge Ram Charger, or Durango impacted the bed toppers? I'm not so sure. The advantage of these toppers is security and protection from the elements for things being kept in the bed or to be used as a bed area for camping or hunting, something that would be limited with the extra seats in the above vehicles.
Do you think vehicles like the Bronco, Explorer, S-10 Blazer, Suburban, Dodge Ram Charger, or Durango impacted the bed toppers? I'm not so sure. The advantage of these toppers is security and protection from the elements for things being kept in the bed or to be used as a bed area for camping or hunting, something that would be limited with the extra seats in the above vehicles.
I've never thought of that but probably they did have some impact. I do recall the International Scout was around back then but it was fairly expensive. I tried to buy a new one.
I believe once SUV's came about and grew in popularity that changed everything. Most toppers I see now are on commercial vehicles. Ocasionally I see an old farmer with an older pickup with a shell on top.
I have a 2011 F150 and I have been looking at putting one of those canvas toppers on. They can be rolled up in seconds and are about 600.00.
But canvas models like yours can easily be cut up by thieves looking for things to steal. The hard topper is slightly harder to break into for stealing. Also, the canvas is limited by the height of the items to the height of the bed. The traditional topper adds a few feet above the height of the bed. The downside of all bed covers is a reduction in fuel economy. Your canvas model has the benefit of merely rolling it up to recover the air bubble to bring back the designed aerodynamics of the truck to recover it's fuel economy. Down side of traditional toppers is not only the loss of the aerodynamics, but also the added weight on the rear of the vehicle which further reduces it's fuel efficiency, something that wasn't a big issue back when gas was cheaper. Another advantage of the traditional topper is dogs. You put dogs back there with the windows partially open and they get fresh air and can't jump out the bed. That was one of the reasons why hunters liked these toppers.
Folks now use truck tents when they want to rough it
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