Tonneau open or closed during snow?

[André]

My one major irritation with the system so far is how often the tailgate freezes to the tonneau gasket… with almost no place to grab hold of the tailgate firmly enough to break the frozen seal. I’ve used my AAA card the last couple times (swiping down the length of the gasket/tailgate top), but as soon as things warm up I’m going to try a wipe on product I’ve heard prevents freezing: Gummi Pfledge Stift (which sounds make-believe, I know lol). I’m hoping that improves the charge port door and frunk freezing I’ve experienced a few times, as well as the almost daily tailgate freezing thing. I swear these cars must have been designed in California or something… ? oh, wait ?

WD40 will also do well for that.

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[Greg Chick]

We assumed garages were for bicycles and clutter you haven’t needed in decades.
What a great idea- vehicle in garage.
Not for this family cursed with the OCD of hoarding

My wife is Japanese, I am not allowed to hoard. My tools and hardware are organized in clearly labled bins/shelves Etc. OCD, OMG WTF, it works. Even the truck is happy. Al least I get to buy organizing bins and a nice lable maker!

 

[bike123.com]

My wife is Japanese, I am not allowed to hoard. My tools and hardware are organized in clearly labled bins/shelves Etc. OCD, OMG WTF, it works. Even the truck is happy. Al least I get to buy organizing bins and a nice lable maker!

Can you send her this way?
Or a good psychiatrist?
You come too with your label maker.

 

[Ohm Boy]

If you have nothing in the bed, and you don’t mind clearing a little snow out of the bed, open has the benefit of your tonneau not icing over/jamming. I always leave it closed, and just deal with the fact that I often can’t open my Tonneau in the winter due to it being iced up ??‍

Closed is really easy to clear if it’s light snow/freshly landed and you have a good extendable snow tool (not all are created equally, and by far my favorite is this one that True Temper makes). The flat surface makes snow clearing a breeze. Frozen rain or refrozen slushy snow can render your tonneau inoperable if it’s closed (it won’t open until it thaws), but I also don’t use my bed nearly as much in the winter, and when I do, I don’t mind sliding things in and out from the tailgate if the tonneau isn’t working. I actually often use the aforementioned extendable true temper snow brush to slide boxes/bins in and out when needed.

My one major irritation with the system so far is how often the tailgate freezes to the tonneau gasket… with almost no place to grab hold of the tailgate firmly enough to break the frozen seal. I’ve used my AAA card the last couple times (swiping down the length of the gasket/tailgate top), but as soon as things warm up I’m going to try a wipe on product I’ve heard prevents freezing: Gummi Pfledge Stift (which sounds make-believe, I know lol). I’m hoping that improves the charge port door and frunk freezing I’ve experienced a few times, as well as the almost daily tailgate freezing thing. I swear these cars must have been designed in California or something… ? oh, wait ?

Ahhhh, but where in California, 1000 miles from stem to stern!! Uhhh, yeah, you nailed it. Irvine. It ain’t snowing there any time soon. ?

 

[Greg Chick]

Can you send her this way?
Or a good psychiatrist?
You come too with your label maker.

She is a retired Psychrist MD. I am glad you understand the situation.

 

[bike123.com]

She is a retired Psychrist MD. I am glad you understand the situation.

Loud and Clear - once I have their attention I’d get a twofer and ask about workaholism

 

[onesoil]

Thanks for the recommendation on that extendable brush scraper.
Surprisingly priced below my eBay sources , though we don’t like HD much.
For STICKY SEALS doesn’t pre-treating regularly with something like Prestone silicone do the trick?

Yeah, I actually try not to buy things from them either. It was just the quickest link I found to show the tool, not so much the source.

The best part about this tool is that it has these foam blades that wrap 360º around the paddle end so you can use various differently shaped edges to get in areas like between the mirrors, in the (very inconsiderately designed) windshield wiper area, etc., and the foam doesn't feel like it runs any risk of damaging paint either, which is nice.

I recently bought two from Amazon (gasp.) after failing to find one locally, and they were delivered by either Ohio Power Tool or Acme Tools. I can't recall which, and I regretted not just buying directly from one of them.

I think it was probalby Acme, since I can't find it on OPT. It said on the box, which I promptly broke down and recycled, as one does.

https://www.acmetools.com/true-temp...inMr6HE1dXVaIxuTwp_Pg7nk-JagI3saUBmgyQwCwYZA3

 

[onesoil]

Ahhhh, but where in California, 1000 miles from stem to stern!! Uhhh, yeah, you nailed it. Irvine. It ain’t snowing there any time soon. ?

This is true—my New England ignorance is showing! I have traveled around California a bit, but not enough to experience the snowier bits. I still doubt there's as much freeze/thaw/slush as winters seem to be in VT increasingly. At least when I was a kid, it was generally colder and drier, so less slush and ice, more fluffy stuff that brushed (or blew) right off your car.

A more grievous mistake with these trucks whatever team decided it was "good enough" to not have heating elements under the windshield wiper resting spot and not to figure out some heated headlight solution. Both can result in dangerous lack of visibility, and honestly, if DOT can mandate a blindingly bright backup camera (or eyeball searing smudge of meaninglessness most of the winter, thanks to no camera sprayer), then why don't they mandate all LEDs be heated, and that windshield wipers have heating elements in the glass they sit on? My 2005 Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT had this—not sure how they missed this feature, since it's been a standard winter package item from a lot of manufacturers for a long time.

The least they could do is give us a feature where the blades rest at the top of their stroke when you put it in Park in Snow Mode—that way when you preheat the truck, the blades get heat from the windshiled, and don't act like an ice dam (water from the melted ice on the windshiled going down to the freezing wiper blades to freeze on contact).

/end grumble

 

[Greg Chick]

We assumed garages were for bicycles and clutter you haven’t needed in decades.
What a great idea- vehicle in garage.
Not for this family cursed with the OCD of hoarding

This is true—my New England ignorance is showing! I have traveled around California a bit, but not enough to experience the snowier bits. I still doubt there's as much freeze/thaw/slush as winters seem to be in VT increasingly. At least when I was a kid, it was generally colder and drier, so less slush and ice, more fluffy stuff that brushed (or blew) right off your car.

A more grievous mistake with these trucks whatever team decided it was "good enough" to not have heating elements under the windshield wiper resting spot and not to figure out some heated headlight solution. Both can result in dangerous lack of visibility, and honestly, if DOT can mandate a blindingly bright backup camera (or eyeball searing smudge of meaninglessness most of the winter, thanks to no camera sprayer), then why don't they mandate all LEDs be heated, and that windshield wipers have heating elements in the glass they sit on? My 2005 Subaru Legacy 2.5 GT had this—not sure how they missed this feature, since it's been a standard winter package item from a lot of manufacturers for a long time.

The least they could do is give us a feature where the blades rest at the top of their stroke when you put it in Park in Snow Mode—that way when you preheat the truck, the blades get heat from the windshiled, and don't act like an ice dam (water from the melted ice on the windshiled going down to the freezing wiper blades to freeze on contact).

/end grumble

Maybe they think because we are EV we are not ICEy. My idea is, when not in the garage, put a canvas tarp over windshield and wipers.

 

[onesoil]

Maybe they think because we are EV we are not ICEy. My idea is, when not in the garage, put a canvas tarp over windshield and wipers.

That's a good idea. I will probably still just try (and almost certainly faile) to remember to put it in Wiper Service mode every time I park, and continue whining in the hopes that someone will hear me and include both heating elements under the wipers and heated headlights for Gen 3. Not because a canvas tarp isn't a good idea, but moreso because I'm not sure I want to deal with a potentially wet/frozen tarp every time I need to go for a drive.

Also, the tarp would help with parked precipitation (a mild annoyance, to be sure), but it wouldn't do anything for accumulation of slushy snow, frozen rain, and/or the salty slush mist (or whatever we want to call the stuff that accumulates while on our highways when there's a vehicle anywhere in front of you).

 

[bike123.com]

Yeah, I actually try not to buy things from them either. It was just the quickest link I found to show the tool, not so much the source.

The best part about this tool is that it has these foam blades that wrap 360º around the paddle end so you can use various differently shaped edges to get in areas like between the mirrors, in the (very inconsiderately designed) windshield wiper area, etc., and the foam doesn't feel like it runs any risk of damaging paint either, which is nice.

I recently bought two from Amazon (gasp.) after failing to find one locally, and they were delivered by either Ohio Power Tool or Acme Tools. I can't recall which, and I regretted not just buying directly from one of them.

I think it was probalby Acme, since I can't find it on OPT. It said on the box, which I promptly broke down and recycled, as one does.

https://www.acmetools.com/true-temp...inMr6HE1dXVaIxuTwp_Pg7nk-JagI3saUBmgyQwCwYZA3

I broke down after local ACE ( where we try to shop) only had a cheapo imitation. HD will have 2 here Wednesday free shipping .
ANOTHER WINTER TIP?:
We leave visors flipped toward windshield to help trap dash air near glass when motoring along (we DO motor, ICEfolk engine along)
Small effect.
EVEN BETTER TIP:
When we park in winter, windshield towards sun’s path - and visors back up and away.
20-30% more sun comes in front than back due to angle and tint.
In summer, ass end toward sun path and windows cracked.

 

[Laserboy1054]

She is a retired Psychrist MD. I am glad you understand the situation.

I'm with @bike123.com : my garage is so full of personal treasures (I'm pretty sure the Ark of the Covenant is back there somewhere!) that squeezing vehicles in is...let's just say "a challenge." We got the convertible Mini in and a VW Golf, so that's good. But the truck can join the feral cat and possums we've been feeding (I'm an opossum fan--love the ugly little darlings) and just deal with the weather. It's a truck, after all. But the tchotchkes in the garage maybe have gotten a bit much! We may need a bit of Marie Kondo at some point.

 

[bike123.com]

I'm with @bike123.com : my garage is so full of personal treasures (I'm pretty sure the Ark of the Covenant is back there somewhere!) that squeezing vehicles in is...let's just say "a challenge." We got the convertible Mini in and a VW Golf, so that's good. But the truck can join the feral cat and possums we've been feeding (I'm an opossum fan--love the ugly little darlings) and just deal with the weather. It's a truck, after all. But the tchotchkes in the garage maybe have gotten a bit much! We may need a bit of Marie Kondo at some point.

Many moons ago (2011) while Mrs was away I spent a full week carving a tunnel in the garage to allow her to pull the Volt in. It was a rat nest since moving here in ‘95. I called the mobile as she drove up and opened the door.
Sadly the space lasted barely a month but the 1772 L2 EVSE from eBay China has most surprisingly lasted through 7 EVs and is delivering 6mpg to the R1T as I type.

 

[not_a_car_guy]

heating elements under the windshield wiper resting spot

I believe there is a heating element where the wipers rest and you activate it with the rear defrost button (odd UX choice I think).



I’m with you on the headlights although someone posted about a recent patent Rivian filed to address that issue. Unclear it will show up in a real product but at the very least, they are aware of the situation.

 

[Ohm Boy]

I'm with @bike123.com : my garage is so full of personal treasures (I'm pretty sure the Ark of the Covenant is back there somewhere!) that squeezing vehicles in is...let's just say "a challenge." We got the convertible Mini in and a VW Golf, so that's good. But the truck can join the feral cat and possums we've been feeding (I'm an opossum fan--love the ugly little darlings) and just deal with the weather. It's a truck, after all. But the tchotchkes in the garage maybe have gotten a bit much! We may need a bit of Marie Kondo at some point.

A recent visitor to laser’s garage:

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