RSI Smart Cap Questions

[MickeyG]

Thinking about picking one of these up but I have a few questions :

Do you have to add a leaf or beef up the rear suspension at all?

Do they have a big effect on mpg?

I've never had a camper shell on a truck, does the rearview mirror become useless?

Thanks in advance

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[Colo_Ranger]

Thinking about picking one of these up but I have a few questions :

Do you have to add a leaf or beef up the rear suspension at all?

Do they have a big effect on mpg?

I've never had a camper shell on a truck, does the rearview mirror become useless?

Thanks in advance

You don't need to beef up the suspension. Its not that heavy. No heavier than a normal topper.

No change in mileage.

Rearview is decent. You loose some, but... you can still see.

 

[gwhalin]

I actually did and up replacing my rear shocks with beefier ones in my Tremor. Found that I lost around an inch in the rear and was hitting bump stops more than I liked after the cap (I also carry probably 50-60 lbs in the bed). I put Deaver HD Expedition leafs on and am very happy with my decision. I also would say the rear view is pretty useless so I added a wolfbox dashcam with a rear camera.

 

[Brett Fields]

I went with Icon leafs and Bilstein 5160's. It's probably a safe assumption that if you're putting on a Smartcap, there's something in the bed to cover, something on the top to carry, or both.
FYI, 80-20 extruded aluminum makes killer crossbars. Don't get sucked in to overpriced silliness.

 

[BladiRanger]

You don't need to beef up the suspension. Its not that heavy. No heavier than a normal topper.

No change in mileage.

Rearview is decent. You loose some, but... you can still see.

Did you need to install a J braces or brackets? I heard that on 6G Ranger they need to install those braces for anything heavier than 88Lbs.

 

[MickeyG]

Thanks for all the info!

 

[RangerPNW]

Thinking about picking one of these up but I have a few questions :

Do you have to add a leaf or beef up the rear suspension at all?

Do they have a big effect on mpg?

I've never had a camper shell on a truck, does the rearview mirror become useless?

Thanks in advance

Being in the great white north, I've seen several reports of issues with the latches on the RSI smartcap in the cold/snow. Might be worth diving into before pulling the trigger.

I have a Leer canopy, and i will say the rearward visibility decreased quite a bit, but i've mostly adapted to it. One perk to the Leer option I got however is the rear latch is integrated with the electronic tailgate lock. Really like not having to pull out a seperate key to get into the back. The side windows still need a key, but nice to have the main one linked with the main locks.

 

[Colo_Ranger]

Did you need to install a J braces or brackets? I heard that on 6G Ranger they need to install those braces for anything heavier than 88Lbs.

I did not. Just the supplied mounts.

 

[gwhalin]

Being in the great white north, I've seen several reports of issues with the latches on the RSI smartcap in the cold/snow. Might be worth diving into before pulling the trigger.

I have a Leer canopy, and i will say the rearward visibility decreased quite a bit, but i've mostly adapted to it. One perk to the Leer option I got however is the rear latch is integrated with the electronic tailgate lock. Really like not having to pull out a seperate key to get into the back. The side windows still need a key, but nice to have the main one linked with the main locks.

The latches on my Smartcap did initially have problems with getting gunked up in winter months. I installed some aftermarket covers for them and occasionally hit them with some lubricant and that keeps them working great.

 

[gwhalin]

I did not. Just the supplied mounts.

Yeah, the 6G bed support option was never an issue with 5G Rangers as far as I know.

 

[RangerPNW]

I actually did and up replacing my rear shocks with beefier ones in my Tremor. Found that I lost around an inch in the rear and was hitting bump stops more than I liked after the cap (I also carry probably 50-60 lbs in the bed). I put Deaver HD Expedition leafs on and am very happy with my decision. I also would say the rear view is pretty useless so I added a wolfbox dashcam with a rear camera.

Can you post how you've got the rear camera mounted? Looking to do the same on mine. I'm also on the fence about the Deaver expedition leafs as i'm running into the same issue with blowing through travel, but i was thinking it was just my Fox 2.0's being useless (which they still might be)

 

[gwhalin]

Can you post how you've got the rear camera mounted? Looking to do the same on mine. I'm also on the fence about the Deaver expedition leafs as i'm running into the same issue with blowing through travel, but i was thinking it was just my Fox 2.0's being useless (which they still might be)

I have the crossbars on top of my cap for hauling my kayak. Ran the rear camera cable through the vent behind the rear seat and mounted the camera on the bottom of the rear crossbar.

I have Fox 2.5s on my truck and had a fair amount of sag (I took measurements from ground to wheel well at various stages of my build) after the cap was put on. The Deavers have me back to factory ride height.

 

[RangerPNW]

I have the crossbars on top of my cap for hauling my kayak. Ran the rear camera cable through the vent behind the rear seat and mounted the camera on the bottom of the rear crossbar.

I have Fox 2.5s on my truck and had a fair amount of sag (I took measurements from ground to wheel well at various stages of my build) after the cap was put on. The Deavers have me back to factory ride height.

Ah that makes sense. I'm looking to try and do something without installing cross bars on my cap... might have to get creative then.

Maybe i'll try the deavers then before i swap out the Fox 2.0s, i quite liked them before i put the cap on so reason stands i might like them again after the new leafs (unless of course the wife gives me approval to get an F-150, growing family and all that)

 

[Colo_Ranger]

(unless of course the wife gives me approval to get an F-150, growing family and all that)

That's the excuse I used to buy a bunch of Ranger parts... Couldn't scale "reason" up any more.

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