How well do the vinyl or vinyl-topped tonneau covers hold up over the years, particularly if the truck is parked outside regularly? Do they fade, crack, crease, or otherwise fall apart or look nasty after a few years?

Reason for asking is that I am considering both the Bakflip F1 and VP covers. Love the seamless look of the vinyl-topped VP, just concerned about durability.

 

I was wondering the same thing. I think, like anything if you take care of it, it will last. I was looking at the VP and G2. Living in Las Vegas and with the truck not fitting in the garage I went with the G2 since it stated some "UV Protection" stuff on it. VP is nice, but I still want a nice looking cover in 7 years.

 

The VP is going to last you a long time without fading, it's rated also as the strongest/impact resistant tonneau on the market. Like TeeJay said, you need to take care of it, but as far as fading it's not going to be an issue. The vinyl top also stays cooler then the fiberglass or the aluminum Tonneaus. PM me if you are interested in getting a quote using the forum discount!
-AJ

 

I've had EXTANG classic tonneau's on all my trucks (until this one which has a full tilt) my 96 S10 has had its current cover on it since 2003 or 4. it has been very durable over the years. I used to consider the truck a "sport truck" so the bed didnt get used for much and therefore the cover stayed on YEAR ROUND. over the last couple years I have found that once the temps go down, I would take the cover off during the winter. but that was only because it was a snap style and once you unsnapped it in cold weather, you werent getting it resnapped unless you had a heated garage.

of course with you ordering a flip style, you wont have to worry about that issue

 

My favorite is proEFX, I have it on my truck and it is outside constantly, very durable and comes off and on with ease...also keeps all water out of the bed. Very happy, much better than the hard cover I had from Ford on my 2010.

https://www.google.com/search?q=proe...w=1260&bih=716

 

I used to have a vinyl cover on my Ram, it was a pain to un-snap and re-snap in the cold weather. Eventually the grommet snaps tear out, and I hated it. I have the Undercover classic on my 2011 F150 and it is awesome, very solid, no leaks. If you are transporting cargo above the bed rails it wont close all the way but I just use a bungee or ratchet strap to hold it down. It also locks securely if you have tools guns, etc