Pro-Tec bed owners

MountaineerTom · March 24, 2002

Some of you may know of this already, but I was down at the Chevy dealer this morning looking around, and they had 3 trucks with the Pro-Tec bed. Since I hadn't really seen one up close before I wanted to check them out. I noticed when I lowered the tailgate on all 3 trucks, the outside edge of the tailgate rubbed on the inside edge of the bed side, down near where the hinges are. They all rubbed enough that it made a squeaking sound. That's what actually caught my attention to make me notice it. I don't know how it would effect the paint on the Pro-Tec beds, but I would imagine it would rub it off in that area over time.

Just wanted to give a heads-up, so you check it out on your trucks.

On a side note, I really like that built-in bed liner looking floor/walls.

HillHound · March 25, 2002

Tom,

So what did you think of the Pro-tec beds? I like them, but I don't think I'd buy one right away-maybe I'd wait a year or two to make sure there are no short-sighted quality concerns which need to be ironed out. Would be nice to buy a truck for a change and not have to worry about a bedliner or mat or spray-ons!!

Plus the bedsides and tailgate would be dent and rust resistant since they are made of the same plastic.

MountaineerTom · March 25, 2002

I kind of liked it. Like you though, I'd like to see how they work out. Saturn's were the first vehicles that I ever knew about having those types of fenders (other manufactures may hae had them before, but I never knew about it) and after seeing a few friends that had them, I was pretty impressed with them. We seen a kid wreck a bike right into one of the fenders, and you could never tell it (other than the dust/dirt on it). Once he washed it, it still looked brand new. Luckily the kid didn't hit it hasrd with a pedal or something and gouge it. The kid was ok too.

carguru · March 25, 2002

Tom, I thought I was the only one to do that when I saw the Protec bed. I had the same experience. GM had tons of problems with the beds. They actually delayed production for 1 1/2 years from when originally announced production date. I'm with you guys. I don't think I'd buy one until they work all the bugs out. Not sure about it because on one hand, it is lighter so you could haul a bit more payload, the tailgate is a bit stronger than the steel one, and it is dent proof inside and out so you don't need a bedliner and it would never rust. On the other hand, since the rear of the truck is lighter, you would have to put a bit of weight to get more traction, especially in snow and ice.

GreenRado · March 25, 2002

Interesting, they must now be in wider production - I just checked one out last weekend as well. Didn't notice any tailgate rubbing/squeaking, but all-in-all I thought it was a pretty good implementation.

I also especially liked the integrated liner, but thought it would be a little slicker when wet than I'd like - seemed closer to the standard drop-in bedliner in terms of texture and grip ability. The only other issue I noticed, and I was lucky to have a good sun angle, was a slight wavyness down the outside, relative to a steel-body one setting right next to it. You wouldn't even notice it, though if the sun angle wasn't just right.

Generally, I guess I am with the majority here in that I'd rather wait to see how the long-term durability looks. I would be concerned about squeaks, rattles, etc when it gets older.

MountaineerTom · March 25, 2002

Kyle (Kansas Kid) brought up something that I don't know about. He mentioned that the bed is molded in that color. I don't know one way or the other if it is or not, but I guess the paint, or lack of, would hold up better to the rubbing than painted metal. Either way, I don't think I'd want mine rubbing. ???