Bed mat or Bed liner? Help!

[CanuckRanger]

I recently bought a new 2011 Ranger sport 4x4 (pics soon to come) and it didnt come with a box liner or anything. Now obviously I want something to protect the bed, and ideally I would put in a spray in liner, that is sort of costly on a just starting Ford parts man salary. I am looking at getting a Ford licensed liner, or a bed mat. its about a 100 dollar price difference, and I'm not looking at doing a whole lot of hauling, just moving furniture the occaisonal time and camping and stuff. (I'm only 20 and have a desk job so its not a work truck lol) what do you guys think I should do?

 

[Nate W.]

If I was to do anything to protect my bed, it'd be a bed liner. Only time I put the mat in is if I have the canopy on. Bed mats trap water under it, making rust after a while. That's how it's always worked for me.

 

[fastpakr]

Just keep an eye on Craigslist for a drop in bed liner. I can't remember for sure, but IIRC mine was free from a guy that just needed it out of his yard. You can always go back for a spray in later when money is a little less tight.

 

[96dangeranger]

Bed liner would protect more but the mat would keep things from sliding around in the bed.

 

[cody93]

i have both a liner and a mat, both have there pros and cons, liners arn't that expensive, i got mine for free from a friend. and all ranger liners for all years fit, altho some stick out on the sides, well in my case, using a gen 3 liner in a gen1. mats are easy to clean out, liners can actually hold moisture worse than a mat sometimes, i generally take the mat/liner out once a week to clean the bed out with.

TBH, the only times i need a liner is when im hauling sharp stuff, like scrap metal or building material, the rest of the stuff or just running around town gets to use the mat, or if i dont plan on hauling anything, i take the mat off.

mats only protect the floor and not the wheel wells or sidewalls, but mats keep things from sliding around.

personally id use a mat if i was you, but a bed liner will work too, and there plentyful

 

[straycat]

Some bed liners can trap water as well. Bed liners can also scratch the paint and some do make noises as well since I had one on my 99 Ranger when I bought it new in 99. That squeak, squeak, squeak drove me crazy for sometime and then I pulled it out...cut it into several pieces of scrap. I put in a bed mat and love it. A bed mat is easy to remove after you wash the truck if you are worried about water staying under it. After a heavy rain or washing the truck the bed mat does not leave water trapped under it for long. It dries quickly. I have removed the bed mat three times a year and the paint is still looks really good. You can see the areas were the bed liner has worn some of the paint away. All my buddies who have used bed liners say the same thing......liners cause those scratches and stupid squeak noises....lol

The best thing is to is get spray on or rool on bed liner. I am doing mine this summer and I will do the rockers as well (smooth texture on the rockers).

 

[CanuckRanger]

Well I already have a tri fold tonneau, so I was thinking yeah, a bed mat might be the way to go for now.

 

[robertc1024]

My 2 cents - I've got a liner in one truck and the mat in the other and I honestly hate the liner because it's so slick. I'll load stuff in the back by the tailgate, step on the breaks once and all the stuff is now by the cab. With the mat, things tend to stay in place a lot better.

 

[Bennybooster]

I could have given you a liner for free a month or so ago

 

[killj0y]

Protect bed and spray in/roll on bedliner don't mix since you have to scratch up the finish to get it to adhere...

 

[MJ'sBlkBII]

I have used the mat, drop in, spray in, and rugs. I haul lots of camping gear, auto parts on occasion, and my Harley quite a bit (it's coming along, so not much as of lately). The spray in is the way to go for me. More slip resistant, oil/grease resistant, and durable. The rug was nice to keep things from moving much or marring what your loading while giving full coverage. Oil and grease was an issue though, adn I don't like loading my bike on it. The mat was effective but it kept rolling on it self from wind current untill I lost it one night on the highway. It still left the wheel wells and sides exposed to damage from camping gear and wood. Drop in gave full protection of the bed but can get slick when wet expecialy after having oil and grease coated on it (hard to get it off).
If I may, my suggestion, what I did with my truck, is go for the drop in then go spray in when money is available. The spray in will cover the wear from rubbing of the drop in. As a side note, while I have personaly not used the roll on liner, I have seen bad results from others that have. It may have been operator error, but there are seversl examples in my area as well as online of peeling/fading/failing applications.
Good luck!

 

[Lucifer sam]

The plastic bed liner in my f150 saved the inside of my bed.
First time i took it out it was completely rust free, even though the bed liner rubbed through the paint and bare metal was exposed.
For what its worth the f150 has 225,000 miles.

 

[azreb]

I have tried them all. When I bought my Ranger it had a liner. I pulled it off and found enough hay underneath it to feed a goat for two days (the previous owners raised goats for a while). I wasn't impressed with the fit. The spray in liner is by far the best way to go. FWIW, the effort to prepare the surface is likely to be greater on a used bed, so if you want to go that way don't wait too long. I would not recommend the DIY roll on liner. I did that on a truck several years ago and found it a lot of work and not very satisfactory when done. My Range now has a camper shell and I find a mat to be ideal. It is easy to crawl around on and keeps things from sliding around.

 

[CanuckRanger]

Thanks for the advice guys, I really wish I could get the spray in right now, but its like 400 bucks for me to get it done, which is crazy cause I can get a new drop in from my dealer for 195 bucks.

 

[fastpakr]

Like I said, grab a drop in for the time being. You should be able to get a used one for next to nothing. Save up your money and buy a spray in when it's not a burden.