2 door soft top issues

[ZeroTrev]

I had a bit of a scare yesterday, the passanger side of my premium soft top blew open on me! I was driving with a strong side wind and the Velcro came off and the center of the top (above the seatbelts right behind the doors), the center of the top came up enough I was seeing sunlight. All I heard as the Velcro tearing and the it smacking back down. This wasn't something I wanted to hear at 55 mph.

I live in Colorado so I see this being said big issue with blizzards. I really don't want to come out to my Jeep full of snow because my top doesn't work. Has anyone else had issues like this?

It seems to me the tension wires are just not tight enough on mine.

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[ZeroTrev]

So here we are with a blizzard in the Springs today. I get off work and find my seat wet and cargo area filled with snow.

Not very happy that nothing has been done with this. I've spoken to my dealer and he's trying to help but Jeep won't give him any ideas. We looked at both mine and a brand new 2 door with soft top and the problem is in both.

This isn't something I should have to deal with on a brand new Jeep, a Rubi at that.

It's pretty obvious that the snow came in over the top, the roll bar has water spots on it now.

I'm trying to upload a video of the top flapping.

The 2 door top is only held down at the front by the header and the rear by the hinge. This allows the center of the top right behind the doors to just flap away.

 

[ZeroTrev]

Here is the video of the top flapping. It was windy and I Was driving 65 mph but this is IMO uncalled for and a serious issue.

 

[vavaroutsos]

I had a bit of a scare yesterday, the passanger side of my premium soft top blew open on me! I was driving with a strong side wind and the Velcro came off and the center of the top (above the seatbelts right behind the doors), the center of the top came up enough I was seeing sunlight. All I heard as the Velcro tearing and the it smacking back down. This wasn't something I wanted to hear at 55 mph.

I live in Colorado so I see this being said big issue with blizzards. I really don't want to come out to my Jeep full of snow because my top doesn't work. Has anyone else had issues like this?

It seems to me the tension wires are just not tight enough on mine.

I had the same problem with mine. I called Bestop and they told me there are no adjustments, the tops are made mostly by hand, and the cables probably got cut too long. They also said they don't have spare parts for OEM tops. The dealer had to order a new top cloth, installed it, and had the same problem. They put the old top cloth back on and ordered another new top cloth. My Jeep is being replaced for other issues, and I'm going to try the hard top this time.

 

[ZeroTrev]

If my tj and jk tops can be water proof and not have this issue, I think it's a joke that the newest one has it. My dealer suggested some Velcro on the flap of the top and the braces from the soft top (door frame part).

 

[OldGuyNewJeep]

2dr soft top Rubi owner, here. Mine has no such issue. Hopefully your dealer can figure out how to get you a new top ASAP.

BTW, your video says unavailable.

 

[ZeroTrev]

Thanks for letting me know, I'm going to try to reupload it. I've never used youtube to upload before.

I have the premium top too, so that feels like another gut check. My dealer had a brand new vinyl top that had just as much play above the doors. Took it back to a tech that couldn't tell a difference between the two mechanical wise which we all agreed there shouldn't be. It was more to just say its not just "my" top. Dealer agrees it shouldn't be this way but is waiting on Jeep to way in a bit more then "please gather more info"

Video should be fixed now.

 

[vavaroutsos]

Thanks for letting me know, I'm going to try to reupload it. I've never used youtube to upload before.

I have the premium top too, so that feels like another gut check. My dealer had a brand new vinyl top that had just as much play above the doors. Took it back to a tech that couldn't tell a difference between the two mechanical wise which we all agreed there shouldn't be. It was more to just say its not just "my" top. Dealer agrees it shouldn't be this way but is waiting on Jeep to way in a bit more then "please gather more info"

Video should be fixed now.

I started checking all the soft top JL every visit to the dealer. The QC/QA was terrible. They were all over the place. Almost every single one (both 2-door and 4-door) had some wrinkles by the front header bar. Many of the 4-door were sagging and loose all over the place. My top actually fit pretty good, other than the drivers side tension cable. After this I started to check the JK whenever I found one, and I can say the tension cables on the JK were much tighter.

 

[OldGuyNewJeep]

Thanks for letting me know, I'm going to try to reupload it. I've never used youtube to upload before.

I have the premium top too, so that feels like another gut check. My dealer had a brand new vinyl top that had just as much play above the doors. Took it back to a tech that couldn't tell a difference between the two mechanical wise which we all agreed there shouldn't be. It was more to just say its not just "my" top. Dealer agrees it shouldn't be this way but is waiting on Jeep to way in a bit more then "please gather more info"

Video should be fixed now.

Video works, now, and my premium top DEFINITELY does not do that. You must feel air coming in? Were there like hurricane force crosswinds in that video, or just normal highway driving? Have you driven on the highway in the rain, yet?

Warranty issue. Hopefully they make it right before you get more snow/rain.

 

[vavaroutsos]

One thing you can check/adjust is if your top cloth is centered. It looks like the top may be shifted towards the drivers side from the video. There are a couple of screws on each end of every bow. If you loosen all of them, the top can be positioned left/right. There is a plastic piece sewn into the top cloth over each bow that slides into the bow. Tightening the screws clamps it in place.

 

[ZeroTrev]

We checked a couple 4 doors and a couple 2 doors. The 4 doors had a bit of play but the 3 2 doors we tried could easily fit a hand inside without much trouble. These were also in under 50F temps so the tops should be a bit less stretchy too.

The video was taken on Highway 24 out here in Colorado Springs, the wind wasn't any worse then it normally is. It's all plains out here so the wind just goes and goes.

The first time I had any issue with it was during a car wash. The side arm had littler arms on that that spun, well these got soap and water into the jeep. I pulled out and went "huh that sucks" and talked to the dealer. Then I noticed the top flapping like in the video but never had the state of mind to video it. At that point it was more like... did that just happen? I talked to my dealer who agreed it could be an issue, but seeing as it wasn't yet I don't think they took it to serious. Then I got a bit of rain inside, again not a terrible issue as it wasn't anymore then when you open the door in the rain. Now that it's snowing here I was starting to get little flurries in and that hitting your neck is quite a surprise. Then this afternoon I get out of work and find snow in the back and my seat wet from the snow as well.

My other concern is it can't be good for the top long term to flap like that. It was a lot of bows that I'm sure it's stressing out doing this. I have a nice little rattle now over the driver seat but I can't figure out where it's coming from.

 

[OldGuyNewJeep]

We checked a couple 4 doors and a couple 2 doors. The 4 doors had a bit of play but the 3 2 doors we tried could easily fit a hand inside without much trouble. These were also in under 50F temps so the tops should be a bit less stretchy too.

The video was taken on Highway 24 out here in Colorado Springs, the wind wasn't any worse then it normally is. It's all plains out here so the wind just goes and goes.

The first time I had any issue with it was during a car wash. The side arm had littler arms on that that spun, well these got soap and water into the jeep. I pulled out and went "huh that sucks" and talked to the dealer. Then I noticed the top flapping like in the video but never had the state of mind to video it. At that point it was more like... did that just happen? I talked to my dealer who agreed it could be an issue, but seeing as it wasn't yet I don't think they took it to serious. Then I got a bit of rain inside, again not a terrible issue as it wasn't anymore then when you open the door in the rain. Now that it's snowing here I was starting to get little flurries in and that hitting your neck is quite a surprise. Then this afternoon I get out of work and find snow in the back and my seat wet from the snow as well.

My other concern is it can't be good for the top long term to flap like that. It was a lot of bows that I'm sure it's stressing out doing this. I have a nice little rattle now over the driver seat but I can't figure out where it's coming from.

There’s no question, here. Defect. Warranty replacement. Don’t let them tell you it’s normal because they can squeeze their hand under the top of another Jeep. That has nothing to do with the problems you’re having. Tell them you’re not interested in other Jeeps on their lot and how their tops fit, you want yours fixed. Water ingress and flapping are NOT normal. I would PM @JeepCares and start a case to help nudge your dealer in the right direction.

As an aside, don’t take your soft top through automatic car washes if you want it to last. Find a hand wash place or, at the least, a “touchless” car wash.

 

[AnebuR]

I had the same exact thing happen to my premium top in my JL Rubi a few months ago. There was a strong crosswind during a rainstorm and I actually felt the raindrops hitting me in the face from being blown inside my Jeep. @JeepCares this is an obvious design flaw or defect from the factory. This never happened on my JK.

 

[maweber]

No rain drops yet but I have had our flutter up like that in a strong cross wind. My passenger side is noticeably louder, and the velcro on that side doesn't seem to stick or hold that side down as well. I wasn't aware we could adjust them and might try that. I came from a JK with a HT, so wasn't sure if this was normal or not.

 

[ZeroTrev]

I have pmed Jeepcares, just waiting for a response from them.

It just seems like a longer middle bow or a clip of some sort would have helped.

The car wash was because I was in a rush to get a friend, and well... I learned not to rush lol. Least the soaps smelled good.

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