I have always been partial to pickups with toppers and have had one on each of my previous trucks. However I am running into problems. I went today to look at a used one that came off a 2005 Dakota Quad and it was even the right color. It was an MPulse by A.R.E which I just learned is their economy topper. It had the sliding front window which I consider a priority. But it had a lip all the way around the sides and front that slips along side the bed. This is nice because it would allow me to fit it on the same way each time instead of struggling to get the topper adjusted with the bed like all the others I have owned. The problem comes in with the stupid utility rails and the factory rear spoiler on the tailgate. When we were trying to mount the topper, we discovered the rails got in the way of the lip on the topper. I figure, no problem, I will just take off the rails. Well it turns out that the plastic bed caps are attached to the rails and come off when the rails were removed. With the rails off, the topper fit pretty good but wouldn't go flush with the front of the bed because there are little bump outs in the bedliner for the front brackets of the rails. I could probably just cut them out, I don't think that would be too difficult. But the other problem is the spoiler on the tailgate. With that still on, the topper rear door couldn't close. I do not want to remove that because there are bolts on the inside and outside so there would be screw holes left on the outside of the tailgate which would most likely rust out. We thought about shimming the topper enough to clear the tailgate spoiler but then there would be a gap going forward along the entire side.

While on the way home, I was brainstorming. I think the plastic bed caps could possibly be separated from the rails but it looked like torx screws and I didn't have the right tools with. If I could separate them, I think I could mount them using some 3m emblem tape. With those caps back on the top sides of the bed, the top sides of the bed would be flush with the tailgate spoiler and that might just be enough to get the topper door to close. I just don't know. I don't care if I have the utility rails but the plastic caps are probably a good idea to keep. Another problem is that it was a 120 mile drive one way only to be dissapointed. I hate to make that trip again only to be dissapointed again...

Any suggestions? So for those that have put toppers on their 2008+ daks, how did you solve this?

 

You should be able to re-add the Bed caps without 3M tape (unless thats how they are attached), once the Utility Rails are removed.
Take a few pictures, so we can get a better idea. I havnt seen the rails to much

 

Here are some photos. The first 2 show the bumpouts on the bedliner that I was talking about at the front of the bed. There is a plastic angle bracket that attaches the front of the rail to the front of the bed. These are what I was talking about cutting out.

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Now the plastic bed caps are only attached to the top sides of the bed by the utility rails using 5 bolts. The caps have a lip that fits over the inside and the utility rails go over that. However I am pretty sure that the plastic cap lips are attached to the utility rails by a couple torx screws. I didn't try to take them off becuase I didn't have the right screwdriver but I think it could be done. I was just surprised that the caps weren't more securely attached to the bed.

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The above shows one of the bolts used to attach the utility rails. When you remove the 5 bolts and separate the utility rails from the front bracket, the utility rails and the plastic cap come off as 1 whole piece.

In this next pic, You can see the rear of one side. It shows the plastic cap held on only by the utility rail along with a view of the tailgate spoiler. I don't know if you can see it but the plastic cap mounted is equal in height to the rear tailgate spoiler.

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And here is another photo showing the back of the tailgate and the bolts that are on the outside of the tailgate. That is the main reaso that I don't want to remove the spoiler.

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Now the problem is that all the stuff I showed above are factory installed and it gets in the way of installing the topper I was looking at. I don't know if this is exclusive to the 2008+ Laramie or applies to all 2008+ models. I am reasonably sure that I could use some emblem tape to mount the plastic caps independently and then with the topper on, there is no way they would come loose. And with the plastic caps on, the top of the sides are the same height as the rear tailgate spoiler. Also, I might be able to trim the front lip of the topper and leave those bumpouts alone. But I would still have to remove the front utility rail bracket as that would also get in the way of the side lips on the topper. But that way if I was to ever remove the topper, I would easily be able to reattach the utility rails and be back to stock. I am also concerned that if I either modify the bumpouts or trim the topper lip, the topper may be too far forward on the bed. Is there any reason that a 2005 quad bed size would be any different from the 2008 quad bed size or should they be identical in dimensions. If they are identical than then the topper wouldnt be too far forwards. I just wish I had known about these issues so I could have been prepared to try a couple different solutions while I was still looking at the topper. I think I would rather trim the topper than trim the bedliner. However since I wasn't sure, I didn't want to ruin the topper by trimming just to experiment.

 

These caps are only held on by the utility rails and the bolts that go through the rails to mount them on the side of the bed. Without the rails or bolts, they are not held on by anything. I guess I could use the bolts and large washers but then the bolts would not allow the lip on the side of the topper to sit flush with the side of the bed. Im actually kind of surprised at that...

I will try to take some photos of the rails tomorrow removed to further illustrate this.

 

I got a chance to get out to the garage today and I think I may have solved the issue. I am going to give the topper one more try but it's going to take me a couple days to get back to the place. Here are some more photos. I just hate to pass it up because I really want a topper and this one is the same color so I wouldn't have to get it repainted.

As you can see, the bed rail cap and the utility rails are connected as one piece.

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Here is a photo of the back side showing one of the black torx screws that hold the 2 pieces together. It is right in the center. There are a total of 3 on each utility rail.

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I removed all the torx screws and the 2 pieces separated easily. I then added the 3M emblem tape across the backside of the plastic cap, lined it up and pushed it back on. So far it seems like it will work just fine. FYI, there are 2 other holes on each cap (1 front and 1 rear) that match up with holes on the lip of the bed. These are there I guess to make sure that the plastic cap is lined up correctly. On the front holes on each side, there were the plastic ridged rivets. I ended up scavenging 2 more for the rear holes and that helped me to get it right. You can see one of the holes in this photo. It is the black circular indented hole.

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And finally a photo showing length wise the finished install.

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Now the top sides of the bed are the same height with the rear tailgate spoiler. It doesn't look so good with all those extra holes visible but once the topper is put on, they will be hidden by the lip of the topper. I guess if I want, I could drill out some holes on the lip of the topper and remount the rails on the inside. That would help make the topper more secure but would also make it a pain to take it off if I wanted. The only other thing I think I will still have to do is cut the front lip of the topper to accomodate those bumpouts. I have a rotozip tool that should have no problem cutting the fiberglass. Worst case, even if this topper doesn't work because of the lip, I could always keep looking for another kind that doesn't have the lip. And now it would be real easy to reinstall and/or the rails if I ever want. I will keep you posted on the progress...

 

Well I am about "-" this close to finding out if this will work. I am making the journey one more time tomorrow. But let's just say it does work, I will then need to wire in the brake light on the topper. I know not to splice into the left taillight harness because then the topper brake light will flash when the turn signal is on. I thought I had seen mention of finding a bare white/brown stripe wire and that wire is supposed to be activated by only the CHMSL. Now I was looking under the rear of the dak and I found a white/blue stripe wire that was taped off and not attached to anything. I looked at the wiring to the brake pedal and I found several different wires including the white/blue stripe wire. Would it be safe to assume that this is the wire that I want to use to get the topper brake light working properly?

Also, I am fairly certain that the truck side harness will not come with the topper. Does anyone know which type of connector that A.R.E. uses on their MPulse model toppers and where to get it? I forgot to look the first time but I am prety sure that it only has the brake light and not the interior light.

I don't have the wiring diagrams for my truck yet. I am trying to download the 2005 service manual from the links in the forum. I know that the 205 and 2008 have several changes but hopefully the wiring will have stayed the same.

 

BTW, it feels like I am just talking to myself. I can't believe that I am the only one to have problems putting a topper on a 2008 dak. There has been only one response from Reject requesting photos which I did. Actually quite a few photos... I see that 148 people have viewed the thread but no other responses. Maybe the question got lost in my ramblings.

So, has anyone else had issues and if so, how have others mounted toppers on 2008 or newer Dakotas?

 

Well, I don't think I've seen a cap on a 2008 & up Dakota. And only a few earlier year (05-07) members that have or had caps, and then their cap eventually disappears.

Hope you figure it out.

 

Or like me, 3 Caps, Backrack, and then Aluminum Rack in under 2 years

I have seen a 08+ with a Lower-Profile Leer Cap, No side windows Looks great.
But they dont have the Factory Utility Rails, and I dont think they had the Caps and Spoiler either.

I would have done the same to mine, But never found a Cap that was for the 05+ Dakotas or didnt have side windows. Then I opted for my Aluminum Rack

My other question is how did the Rails affect the caps originally? I know someone else had to get Wider C Clamps to clear them. Most caps have Flat bottems, Not L Shaped.

 

I agree with the flat base. All my previous caps were the same way. I just thought that maybe the designs had changed since my last one. Maybe this is exclusive to the MPulse/A.R.E. toppers. I haven't been able to find any info on them. This is the first time I have seen a cap that had the lip. With the utility rails mounted, it was too narrow for the lips to fit in. If it wasn't for the lips, I think I probably could have just used wider clamps. With the utility rails/plastic bed caps removed, the topper slid in easily but the lid wouldn't close. The factory tailgate spoiler got in the way because the topper sat too low. So now that I have the plastic caps reattached with 3M tape, I think I may be in business.

While looking for more info, I stumbled on a place that sells toppers called Kenroy Enterprises that is a little closer. When I was doing a google search on the place, I was checking google maps to locate it. I used the satellite image and zoomed in to see it. The place is just filled with toppers as far as I could see. And then when I went to street view, I saw that there is probably even more than I thought as they are stacked several high on racks. Take a look and tell me what you think. CLICK HERE and make sure to zoom in. I don't know anything about the place but I think I am going to have to stop there on the way to the other one. With all those toppers, I can't see them not having one for my truck but the prices will be the key...

But back to the brake light wire. Was the white wire with the blue stripe the right wire?