NEW JL Accessory Ideas for Manufacturers

[jcwalp]

Retrofit Offroad has now asked me to go ahead with the engineering JLU and JL hardtop slider window kits. The kit will follow the same design as the current Retrofit kits for the JKU and JK, but of course with different dimensions and details specific to the JLU and JL. Probably will do the JLU kit first but that's not decided yet. I've got a meeting set up with the window manufacturer in two weeks to get the window engineering started; I'll be doing the engineering of the rest of the kit between now and then and plan to turn over the design of the hardware components to the hardware manufacturer about the same time.

For the record: I am not an employee of Retrofit Offroad (or any company). I am a Jeep owner and one of my hobbies is design; I help Jeep and offroad companies with product design for my own enjoyment.

That is fantastic news, of course I'll be biased towards the 2 door JL vs 4 door JLU, but movement on this front is great to hear! I'll reach out to Joel to share my support for this work. :-D

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[N8213]

I want some brush guards, headlight guards, hell maybe even the whole front bumper made like the picture here - all 3d printed titanium or aluminum and carbon fiber tubing.

 

[N8213]

I want some brush guards, headlight guards, hell maybe even the whole front bumper made like the picture here - all 3d printed titanium or aluminum and carbon fiber tubing.

I saw some of their stuff in person at an additive manufacturing trade show - they are trying to print the entire car frame - I see a lot of potential just in accessories.

 

[jscherb]

That is fantastic news, of course I'll be biased towards the 2 door JL vs 4 door JLU, but movement on this front is great to hear! I'll reach out to Joel to share my support for this work. :-D

Retrofit Offroad had their JLU in the Smokey Mountain Jeep Invasion show and they were showing a JK 2dr slider...

And on the slider they wrote this:

They were also showing this preproduction tailgate hinge mounted Rotopax:

And this preproduction side mount Rotopax from MORryde:

And this preproduction tailgate HD Molle panel in canvas and leather and really nice production canvas and leather bags from Overland Outfitters:

Lots of interesting new stuff on the Retrofit Offroad JL.

 

[AnnDee4444]

Something that could be a product... "quick release" side windows. Here's a JK prototype installed and removed:

This is really cool. I wonder if there could be an easy way to remove the rear window also.

 

[D60]

This is really cool. I wonder if there could be an easy way to remove the rear window also.

This makes me think of the Jeremy Renner commercial where rear windows inexplicably appear and disappear

 

[jcwalp]

That is some pretty sweet stuff in the pipeline.
How's the work on the slider windows? Our dog (and my wife) were asking ;-)

Retrofit Offroad had their JLU in the Smokey Mountain Jeep Invasion show and they were showing a JK 2dr slider...

And on the slider they wrote this:

They were also showing this preproduction tailgate hinge mounted Rotopax:

And this preproduction side mount Rotopax from MORryde:

And this preproduction tailgate HD Molle panel in canvas and leather and really nice production canvas and leather bags from Overland Outfitters:

Lots of interesting new stuff on the Retrofit Offroad JL.

 

[jscherb]

That is some pretty sweet stuff in the pipeline.
How's the work on the slider windows? Our dog (and my wife) were asking ;-)

Good timing asking that question - I'm meeting with the window manufacturer on Tuesday - they've got a prototype window ready for me to inspect. Assuming they've got it right, I'll ok it for production. I'll post an update and hopefully photos of the prototype window after the meeting on Tuesday.

A few other new JL products I've been helping companies with since I last posted:

Coming soon from Retrofit Offroad, door hinge mounted Rotopax carriers (shown here on a JKU but also fit a JL).

And from Overland Outfitters...

"Saddlebags" which fit over the inner fenders, this is the 2-door version. There's also a 4-door version that fits over the inner fenders just behind the rear seat on a JLU. Their products are made from heavy duty military grade canvas and real leather.

"Backpack" Messenger Bag, hangs on the seat headrest posts and removes with a zipper. Also comes with straps so it can be worn as a backpack or as a shoulder bag. Quadratec is carrying some of the Overland Outfitters gear now and more to come soon: https://www.quadratec.com/search/overland outfitters

Headrest Molle:

And coming soon from MORryde, a JLU version of their Overhead/Swing-Down Molle panel. Mounts to the roll bars and fits in the space above the roll bars - out of sight when stowed but swings down for quick access. JK version shown in these photos, but the JL version is in engineering right now and they tell me will be available this fall. The JK version has been out for a while: https://www.quadratec.com/p/morryde/fold-down-molle-panel-jeep-wrangler-unlimited-jk.

 

[four low]

Those 2 Dr Sliders will be perfect for Spring, 2020 ! The "kids" are waiting...

 

[jscherb]

Yesterday I met with the RV window company that's doing slider windows for JL factory hardtops for Retrofit Offroad. I left the meeting with a preproduction sample JLU slider window frame to test fit, the frame looks good and fits perfectly in the retrofit kit for the factory hardtop. We discussed a few minor changes to the frame so I expect they'll make a few more prototypes before they're ready for production.

We also discussed cargo hatch windows, this photo shows one they manufacture for pickup caps. Over the next few weeks they'll be making prototypes of these for testing in JK hardtops. The one in this photo has glass in it; we also discussed doing solid panels instead of glass. if there's interest I'm sure Retrofit will consider producing these for the JL and JLU as well.

 

[df007]

Proper steering gearbox that works with factory electronic pump.

 

[jscherb]

Retrofit Offroad posted this photo of a preproduction JLU slider frame on Instagram the other day. It's not installed, it's just being held in place for the photo.

 

[four low]

Nice ! And for the 2 door JL ?

 

[jscherb]

Nice ! And for the 2 door JL ?

The JL 2dr kit will be the next slider kit to be done.

 

[jscherb]

These showed up today...

This pair is intended for the factory JK 2dr hardtop, but that's just because I had that window profile handy to give to the window company that made these samples. I'll be installing them in a JK 2dr hardtop for testing. If there's demand these can be made to fit for any of the JK or JL factory hardtops.

For the record: I'm just the designer, I don't sell anything, so if these are to come to market it won't be me selling them.

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