Access Cover Overview

A Breakdown of All 7 Tonneau Cover Lines

Access offers so many variants of Tonneau Covers for your Pickup Truck that it can be overwhelming. Which one should you choose? Which one is right for my rig? We'll give you a quick overview here so you can figure out which is the best for your truck.

Which Access Cover is right for me?

A great question that often customers lead with is just this: which tonneau is right for me? Access Cover has a huge range of roll up tonneau covers, which is both fantastic, but also at times overwhelming for a first time shopper. It can be hard to decide which tonneau is best for my rig? Do I really need the top of the line cover? What's the difference between an Increased Capacity Cover and a Low Profile Tonneau? We'll settle it all for you in this quick picture overview of a great roll up tonneau producer: Access Cover. Really Access' strong point is its selection, but you might wonder what's the difference. First, the covers are broken down into two categories: Increased Capacity Covers and Low Profile Covers. Next there is the option for if you have a toolbox installed in the back of your pickup. Finally, you'll have to decide whether you want to go with their "Good, Better, or Best" options. Each category has some different features, so you'll want to check each out to make sure. This page is just the overview. Once you realize which you want: Increased Capacity, Low Profile, or Toolbox, you'll want to see the full review of each in the other articles on Midwest Aftermarket in our Product Center. Don't worry. I'll link to those below too. Now on to the Overview of Access Cover product lines: all the roll up tonneau you'd ever need!

Increased Capacity Tonneau Covers from Access

First to differentiate between Low Profile and Increased Capacity: Low Profile sits as close to flush as possible with your truck's bed sidewalls or your truck box. Increased Capacity, on the other hand, is elevated above your truck's sidewalls. This means that an Increased Capacity Tonneau from Access Cover will allow you to stand upright objects beneath your closed tonneau that are a bit taller than your bed. All four of the options offered have clearance of 1 1/2" inches above the truck box. You'd be surprised how much of a difference this might make, especially if you ever transport anything in your truck bed that sits almost flush with your side walls. If this is the case, you definitely want one of these covers. The Original Access Tonneau, shown right/below, is stylish and slightly elevated, as you can see in the pic. On top of this feature, each Increased Capacity Tonneau comes with a Dual Locking System, Water tight seals along all four sides of the cover, a hook and loop fastening system, XT-Dial Tension adjustment, and premium storage straps. The top of the line in this category from Access Cover also includes additional bonus accessories at no additional cost to you. For more information on all three of the different variants in this category, click on the picture to read our complete review of Increased Capacity Tonneau covers from Access. We'll breakdown each individual feature.

Low Profile Tonneau Covers from Access

 If you've decided you want a tonneau that lays flush or as close to flush as possible with your side walls or truck box, then the Low Profile line is best for you and your truck. The biggest difference between the two really is the elevation of the top of the tonneau. Both the Increased Capacity and Low Profile lines from Access are top of the line tonneau covers that provide excellent protection of your truck bed and gear stored underneath it. Many consumers want the Low Profile cover for less wind resistance and appearance. In my personal opinion, while both lines look pretty sweet, the low profile Lorado, shown left or directly above on mobile, is pretty sleek looking. However, one may argue that the Limited Increased Capacity cover actually has the most features for the money. Basically a win-win. So you need to pick which line fits your use and your truck best. It becomes an extremely personal decision. Features included in all Low Profile Tonneaux from Access Cover are: their patented AutoLatch II dual locking system, Extra Element Seal Gasket along all four sides, Tight Bite Clamps to hold the tonneau down, Easy to use Tension Adjustment to keep that cover tight, a reliable fastening system that is simple to operate even by one person, and the same Premium storage straps you've come to know and love from Access Cover. In this category, there are three separate options from Good, to Better, to Best, and we'll break that all down in the Low Profile review, linked to the pic of the Lorado at left/above.

Got a Toolbox? Check out aptly named Toolbox

While there is only one option from Access Cover for a truck bed with a toolbox installed, that doesn't make this particular tonneau any less premium. The Toolbox Edition Roll-Up Cover from Access is technically an Increased Capacity cover as it is elevated roughly 1 1/2 inches above your truck box or sidewalls. As you can see from the image, this tonneau is designed to attach flush to your toolbox, protecting your truck bed and anything you're storing within from prying eyes and the elements alike. It comes with all the great features of Access' Increased Capacity line, listed above, and you can learn even more about those by reading our review of all those lines from our Product Center or the linked image above of the red pickup sporting the Original. On top of all those aspects, it also has a Front Header Bar that seals the area between your toolbox and your cover, protecting the gap between the two and preventing water and air from penetrating underneath. If you are looking for a top-of-the-line roll-up tonneau that is compatible with your toolbox, you really can't go wrong with Access' Toolbox Edition.

A More Nuanced Breakdown

With Pictures!

While for some customers, the above quick guide may be enough to allow you to pick at least which style of tonneau you are interested in if not the exact model, others will need more information to make an informed decision. We, here at Midwest Aftermarket get that. Also, we like to give you copious amounts of information in text, even though we know that you're probably just like us and are just going to look at all the cool pics. Just kidding! Read on for a more detailed analysis of what exactly separates each model of tonneau from Access.

Automatic Locking Systems on Access Covers

While all Access Tonneau Covers come with an Automatic Locking System that locks the truck bed cover as soon as you close it, the three different locking mechanism do vary a bit.

Patented AutoLatch II Dual Locking System

This automatic dual locking mechanism protects your stowed gear by securing your tonneau. With the tailgate down, a simple pull on the line shown above unlocks the cover, allowing you easy access when you need it.

AutoLatch II comes on these covers: Limited, Original, Lorado, and Toolbox. 

AutoLatch Locking System with Slide Lock

The original AutoLatch system involves a single Slide Lock on each side of the tonneau. While not quite as easy to unlock as the AutoLatch II, the Slide Lock certainly protects anything stored in your truck bed from prying eyes.

AutoLatch Locking System with Slide Lock is stock on all LiteRider Tonneau Covers. 

Trigger Latch with 2 Slide Locks

With a simple push to lock, pull to unlock design, these patented slide locks along with a locked tailgate provide the ultimate protection for your truck bed and your gear. A single finger opens the cover, & it auto locks when closed.

Trigger Latch system with 2 Slide Locks is included on Vanish & Tonnosport Covers. 

Premium XT-Dial Tension Adjuster

Tension Adjustment 

While both of the Tension Adjusters require no tools to tighten the cover, as you can see there are some subtle differences between the two systems. The Premium has an easy to turn dial to help you fine tune your tonneau's taughtness. The Standard EZ-Dial has a grooved dial that must be manually adjusted to do the same task. Both work in very similar ways, but the XT is a little easier, in our opinion, to adjust tension with than the EZ. The differences are pretty slight. If you absolutely must have the XT-Dial, check out these tonneaux: the Limited, Original, Lorado, Toolbox, and Vanish. If the EZ will do just fine, take a look at the LiteRider and the Tonnosport.

Standard EZ-Dial Tension Adjuster

Storage Straps

Not to be overlooked, storage straps are what keeps the tonneau rolled-up when you need access to your entire truck bed. Some slight variants here may lead you to upgrade your selection in order to get easy to use straps that are also best at protecting your cab and keeping that roll-up cover in place and secure. All the storage straps get the job done, but not all straps are created equal: in other words, some are simpler to use with quick clips and others require a bit more effort to adjust. Seeing as this might be an important part of your truck bed cover purchasing decision, we've decided to include these in our overview analysis of Access Cover tonneaux too.

Premium Storage Straps w/ Cab Guard

The premium option includes the quick clip technology, designed to make securing the tonneau easy. The Cab Guard shown above keeps the cover from rubbing the cab.

Premium Storage Straps w/ Cab Guard on these covers: Limited, Original, Lorado, & the Toolbox Edition Tonneau Covers. 

Quick Clip Storage Straps

The Quick Clip straps secure the rolled up truck bed cover at the front of your truck box or bed. These storage straps easily clip into place to prevent the tonneau from unfurling when the truck is in motion. A simple yet elegant design.

The Quick Clip Storage Straps is stock on: LiteRider and Tonnosport Tonneau Covers.

Adjustable Storage Straps

While simple, for most users these very simple adjustable straps with a hook and loop connection work just fine. While it isn't as simple to use as the Quick Clips, the hook is quite effective at securing your tonneau.

These Adjustable Storage Straps come standard on the Vanish Tonneau Cover. 

Bonus Items! What?!

While the big winner here is obviously the Limited Cover, the addition of the Element Seal Gasket on the majority of Access Cover's Tonneaux is simply great value.

Ready to Shop Access?

Check out all 6 Product Lines Here:

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