Can we please get a hard top convertible...?

[Black Jeep Convertible]

We test drove a soft top when we were looking at our jeeps and we much prefer the hard top over the soft top.

how good is that top at keeping the water out when you go through an automatic car wash or heavy rain?

That’s not the factory soft top. Factory soft top is very thin.

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[Black Jeep Convertible]

how good is that top at keeping the water out when you go through an automatic car wash or heavy rain?

Not a single drop has gotten in through all the north eastern storms and auto car washes are not recommended for any soft top, but I have no garage and the roads are heavily salted here, so I have no choice. I did the same thing with my convertible Mustang for 5 years and the soft top was fine, but then again, these are premium soft tops with multiple layers for dedicated convertibles since they're meant to be used year long.

 

[Bestop]

This may sound like a crazy thing to even consider, but I live in the mountains and you can go from 75 degrees to 50 degrees in nothing flat and I don't like having to keep taking off my top and then putting it right back on the same day. If they can figure out a hard top convertible for a sports car that folds into the trunk, surely they can figure out how to make one for the Jeep... I've gotten pretty quick at removing it and putting it back on using a ceiling mounted hoist, but it's a pain to drive through the mountains and be 2 hours from home and have to try to beat the rain/cold home to put it back on.

Sky Top is not an option for me, I prefer the whole thing to come off, but I like the quiet interior of the hard top. I'm really contemplating a soft top, but I don't care for the road noise.

Has anyone come up with a solution for this?

Hey @JSFoster75
Have you tried one of our Twill tops? I hear you with the mountain living, I'm up at 8,550 feet asl myself. The Twill is excellent at both heat and sound insulation and can be found on some of our exceptionally fast to put up or down tops like the Trektop Ultra or Supertop Ultra.

Lee
- the Bestop team
www.bestop.com

 

[DanW]

I've got both the twill (premium) soft top and the hard top as well as the Sunrider for Hard Top. The soft twill soft top is every bit as quiet and warm as the hard top. If I had it to do again I'd have saved a couple grand and just gotten the soft top.

None of the three combos I have leak in car washes, btw. But so what if they did? A few drips in a car wash is no big deal. My JK's Sunrider for hard top drips in car washes but never leaks a drop in the natural world.

Sounds like OP just needs to decide which is closest to the desired mark, go for it, and enjoy the Jeep. Nothing in life is perfect but some things get pretty darned close.

 

[JSFoster75]

I've got both the twill (premium) soft top and the hard top as well as the Sunrider for Hard Top. The soft twill soft top is every bit as quiet and warm as the hard top. If I had it to do again I'd have saved a couple grand and just gotten the soft top.

None of the three combos I have leak in car washes, btw. But so what if they did? A few drips in a car wash is no big deal. My JK's Sunrider for hard top drips in car washes but never leaks a drop in the natural world.

Sounds like OP just needs to decide which is closest to the desired mark, go for it, and enjoy the Jeep. Nothing in life is perfect but some things get pretty darned close.

I don't mind a few drops, I had a convertible once that would absolutely soak you in the car wash... Certainly don't want that end of the spectrum LOL.

 

[DanW]

I would be all over this. No reason it can’t be done.

I could live with just the premium twill soft top here in Indiana. It'd be even easier in Tennessee, for sure. You all have significantly more top down weather than we do, Lol!

 

[DanW]

That’s not the factory soft top. Factory soft top is very thin.

The twill premium factory soft top is actually pretty thick and I don't perceive any significant difference in warmth compared to the hard top, and I've experienced both in sub zero weather. There is a reason they offer Hot Heads and products like that for the hard top. It isn't as great a difference as people assume.

 

[Chemy350]

I have the soft top for this reason... 4 Jeeps and only ever owned a soft top. The road noise on the premium soft top vs the hard top isn't that big of a difference actually. If you haven't driven a premium soft top yet, I would suggest giving it a shot, you might be surprised. Also, I love din Boston with tons of snow, never had a problem with the soft top holding up either.

 

[AnnDee4444]

This is what I want: https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...-for-manufacturers.16236/page-12#post-1105903

Orange = telescoping mechanism
Green = folding mechanism (rotates forward towards front of Jeep to bring tops down)

 

[Hothead Headliners]

This may sound like a crazy thing to even consider, but I live in the mountains and you can go from 75 degrees to 50 degrees in nothing flat and I don't like having to keep taking off my top and then putting it right back on the same day. If they can figure out a hard top convertible for a sports car that folds into the trunk, surely they can figure out how to make one for the Jeep... I've gotten pretty quick at removing it and putting it back on using a ceiling mounted hoist, but it's a pain to drive through the mountains and be 2 hours from home and have to try to beat the rain/cold home to put it back on.

Sky Top is not an option for me, I prefer the whole thing to come off, but I like the quiet interior of the hard top. I'm really contemplating a soft top, but I don't care for the road noise.

Has anyone come up with a solution for this?

Hi Scott, this is something I think all Jeep owners contemplate when deciding on which kind of top to buy. If you've heard of our Hothead Headliners for hardtops, we have recently started selling Soft Top Headliners for soft tops that may satisfy your needs with reducing unwanted road noise.

Good luck and Happy New Year!

-Mark

 

[blnewt]

Just get one of these and go to town!

 

[Heimkehr]

Just get one of these and go to town!

Yes, please, if only to ground the conversation a bit.

The matter of add-on insulation kits for soft- and hard tops is interesting. Wranglers have for years now had superlative heaters. The coldest I've driven my new JLUS, with the standard sailcloth soft top, has been 6°F at 55 mph average. The wind chill conversion is -23°F. I was just as warm as I would have been on a pleasant summer evening. All I had to do was turn the fan speed knob to the right by one or two detents. Done.

If said kits do decrease perceived road noise a bit, great. How that is even possible on a properly installed and taut soft top, when the thin vinyl windows remain in situ, is perhaps grist for another debate.

 

[JSFoster75]

Hi Scott, this is something I think all Jeep owners contemplate when deciding on which kind of top to buy. If you've heard of our Hothead Headliners for hardtops, we have recently started selling Soft Top Headliners for soft tops that may satisfy your needs with reducing unwanted road noise.

Good luck and Happy New Year!

-Mark

How does the soft top headliner affect the way it folds down? I prefer to be able to use the rearview mirror as normal...

 

[Hothead Headliners]

How does the soft top headliner affect the way it folds down? I prefer to be able to use the rearview mirror as normal...

It doesn't. They're installed using Bungee cords separate from the soft top. They take us about 2 minutes to install/uninstall after the initial installation, which requires a little additional work.

Here's a quick Installation Video for the JL Soft Top to give you a better idea.

-Mark

 

[Gee-pah]

This may sound like a crazy thing to even consider, but I live in the mountains and you can go from 75 degrees to 50 degrees in nothing flat and I don't like having to keep taking off my top and then putting it right back on the same day. If they can figure out a hard top convertible for a sports car that folds into the trunk, surely they can figure out how to make one for the Jeep... I've gotten pretty quick at removing it and putting it back on using a ceiling mounted hoist, but it's a pain to drive through the mountains and be 2 hours from home and have to try to beat the rain/cold home to put it back on.

Sky Top is not an option for me, I prefer the whole thing to come off, but I like the quiet interior of the hard top. I'm really contemplating a soft top, but I don't care for the road noise.

Has anyone come up with a solution for this?

A starting point..?

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...-isnt-offered-by-anyone-yet.26701/post-986968

You'll probably have to make the top of the hard top into pieces as well. My guess, it will be a leaky train wreck...but hey...go for it. Prove me wrong.

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