ARE truck caps

[jbb]

Greetings,

I have been lurking for awhile now and have have finally joined this community. I've gleaned a wealth of info. so far and hope to eventually buy/ find an Eagle/Fleet or Bobcat for my Tacoma. In the meantime I was wondering if anyone out there has thoughts/opinions on ARE truck caps. I'd like to get a MX series with the Walk-in Door. Dealers in my area (Ontario ,Cnd, wind chill of -30 tonight) don't have any on site so I'm relying on pictures. Does this model compromise any of the bed length? How water tight are these toppers? Any other thoughts/comments would be appreciated.

Thanks
JB

 

[Taku]

Out of the many toppers I have had, including ones I built, they should not leak at all if you are diligent about sealing around the bed rail, etc. In one or two cases in extremely heavy rains/winds on the west coast, it might blast through, but that should be it. While I have not had the walk-in door, I have had ARE's and it was well built with no problems.

 

[Beach]

I had a modified ARE Aluminum work topper( built a cab over extension to carry my longboards inside when traveling). Anyways back on subject, I had no leaks, I installed the self adhesive foam strips to the bottom of the camper rails so if I took the camper off there would be no tape stuck to the truck. I doubled the tape at the front behind the cab since that area is slightly lower than the truck side rails. Camper was tied down fwd, middle and rear on each side. My camper had a lift gate so there was no seal made in the tailgate area. Take your time and clean all surfaces thoroughly. P.S. camper is for sale, fits 2000-06 access cab.

 

[Bwht4x4]

My previous Dodge CTD had an ARE shell on it and I really liked it. I felt the quality was much better than many of the other brands. ARE is all I'd buy if I was looking for a lightweight shell.

 

[MotoDave]

Hey a topic on here I can actually contribute to!

I have an ARE V series shell on my '12 Tundra. From my research the construction and quality of ARE and Snugtop were very comparable, but ARE had a few features that sold me:

Vented Windoors - I've got a dog that rides in the back quite a bit (provided its not hot), so I really wanted a vent for her. I also wanted windoors, I had them on the shell on my last truck and they are indispensable at makign access stuff in the bed easier. Also if you camp in the back they're nice to have, this last trip I went on I woke up before the sunrise, got our my camera and got a few nice pictures of the sun coming up over the hills without having to leave my sleeping bag

Snugtop also has a wented windoor, their went portion is the top half of part of the window, and the dealer I talked to said they are more susceptible to leaks due to the horizontal seal.

Can see the windoor and vent (and some happy dogs) here:

Full framed back window - I believe that snugtop has fancy curved glass for the back window. Looks nice, but I think it'd be really expensive to replace if necessary. My ARE (and the MX series) has a normal framed flat back window, which is easy and cheap to replace.

Lock/latches - the standard snugtop latch sits flush to the window, which means you have to unlock it each time you want access to the shell. The latch on my ARE is a simple t-handle that sits proud of the surface, and can be locked or unlocked. The ARE also has a handle on the inside, handy for camping.

One more gratuitous shot

 

[WAND3R3R]

I have had 2 Tacomas with ARE caps, I like them a lot! They are well built and both have stayed dry! I like them because they are sturdy and relatively secure. I have the felt-like material on the interior sides and walls and it helps to prevent condensation from dripping on you as you sleep in them. I wanted a no-frills rig I can explore off the beaten path and the Tacoma plus ARE cap has been nice so far. I have had the double doors and now I have the conventional opening tailgate with window. I like the current tailgate window set-up because I can use the tailgate to sit on or cook on and just open the window if weather permits as I sleep in the bed. With the double doors it's not easy to just leave them partial open.
-AK

 

[jbb]

Thanks for all your input. I found out today that the "walk-through door" option is about $1000, the cap itself (with a few options) about $2000.Cnd $. An expensive door, but one that would be better for camping. Decisions decisions.

Cheers

 

[jcfly]

I don't remember the model, but had the fiberglass cap with the glass door in the middle. It was nice, and the quality of the cap in general was excellent. Definitely would not get the optional crank out windows again - the standard sliders ventilate way better.
If looking for one today, I'd buy the aluminum cap that is about 6 inches higher than the cab, and has double rear doors.

 

[MotoDave]

I gotta say I really like having the tailgate on the truck, makes a great work surface for cooking up a quick lunch, a spot to sit and put on my boots in the morning, etc. Plus the nice thing about a camper shell is I can still use my truck as a truck instead of just a dedicated camper.

 

[Rick NV]

have a look at some of the new Snugtop models- they have some nice stuff too- they just announced the Outback model which is really nice looking with double doors- I saw one the other day and it is really nice looking

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Don't mistake ARE & ARC tops. When my nice Gemtop was crushed (off truck) by a falling tree, I cheaped out and got an ARC. It's leaked from the beginning, and the dealer went out of business. The ARE has a good reputation.