Bright Ideas: Spray-in Bed Liner

When the new Nissan Titan pickup hits dealership in December its bed will be of particular interest to truck drivers who don’t like the durability of their dropin bedliner.

This new for ’04 model has an optional (standard on the LE version) spray-on bedliner that is more durable than a traditional drop-in bedliner and stronger than other aftermarket spray-on bedliners, according to Steve Younan, Nissan marketing.

Applied by a robot at Nissan’s new Canton, Miss., plant, the Durabed Liner was developed by PPG with input from Nissan. It is made “from a high performance elastomer coating formed by a two component system that when combined reacts to create a polymer chain that crosslinks with other chains to form a tough, high, light and moisture resistant coating,” says Nissan.

It was developed out of a need for high bed protection but also compatibility with the company’s tie-down channel system. The bedliner is applied after the truck has been painted and resists gauging by tools, shovels or sharp objects placed in the truck. Since it has a non-skid surface, bed cargo will not move around during transit.

Because it does not “sit” on top of the bed, rust will not develop beneath it like traditional drop-in bedliners. It also avoids road noise and vibration and dampens sounds unlike drop-in units.
 
The weatherproof bedliner is factory applied and therefore warranted by Nissan. The company plans to sell repair kits in the event something does scratch or gouge the bedliner.

Nissan has not announced pricing on the spray-on bedliner but estimates that it will probably be about a $1,000 option including the Utili-Track Channel system.