Soft top life expectancy?

[Jeephairkindacare]

My Jeep is only a 2020. The soft top came separated from its frame. No idea how. Dealer says its on me and it needs to be replaced for $2500.
Its a lease-so no way Im doing it.
Do soft tops really have to be replaced this often?

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[Soggybottomboy]

I don't even have mine yet and I say absolutely not!
If they had to be replaced that often, at that price, I wouldn't have ordered it. Good luck.

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[Jtclayton612]

A place near me that’s been doing softtop reupholster for decades say most fabrics tend to last an average of 5-7 years if left exposed most of the time. Obviously a garaged vehicle will last longer. This isn’t just for Jeeps though, they work on everything that has a softop, my friends 2009 mustang that was garaged ended up needing a replacement around 2017 and that’s what they had told us.

 

[BXFXJeep]

I ran a soft top on my TJ all year round that took a beating in the winter, aside from some minor scratches on the side, and rear tinted plastic, it didn't have any rips or malfunction, and the JK 2dr took even more of a beating and held up very well over 7 years of abuse.

I do see quite a bit of people running their soft top improperly installed, like flapping like a flag on the highway, which I am guessing could cause it to fail.

 

[BXFXJeep]

A place near me that’s been doing softtop reupholster for decades say most fabrics tend to last an average of 5-7 years if left exposed most of the time. Obviously a garaged vehicle will last longer. This isn’t just for Jeeps though, they work on everything that has a softop, my friends 2009 mustang that was garaged ended up needing a replacement around 2017 and that’s what they had told us.

Depends carwash abuse might lead to premature failure, if you have the premium twill, I would use 303 fabric protectant on it.

People say it's fine to take a soft top through a carwash no problem, I think that is looking for trouble.

 

[Jeephairkindacare]

Depends carwash abuse might lead to premature failure, if you have the premium twill, I would use 303 fabric protectant on it.

People say it's fine to take a soft top through a carwash no problem, I think that is looking for trouble.

Ive always washed it myself-i assumed the windows would get scratched.

 

[Jtclayton612]

Depends carwash abuse might lead to premature failure, if you have the premium twill, I would use 303 fabric protectant on it.

People say it's fine to take a soft top through a carwash no problem, I think that is looking for trouble.

oh yeah, I agree, and that vinyl will scratch if you so much as look at a car wash haha. I use the bestop stuff cause I was lazy which is probably similar enough.

 

[Antonio]

The softtop life expectancy really depends on many factors, such as weather conditions it’s exposed to, storage, if it’s installed correctly every time it’s removed etc etc, honestly I feel like going dual top is essentially your best option cause you’ll have the ability to store your soft top for the winter and letting your hardtop deal with the cold winter weather, from my personal experience when I sold my other jeep I sold the soft top separately and even know it was about 6 years old only using it during the summer it was in great condition, I would say on average using the softtop all year long it should last like 6 to 7 years no problem, on the other hand I’ve learned cause of my old 2 door jeep that had the zipper windows softop and cold weather basically cracked them a few times on me!

 

[Original_Junior]

9 years on my JK and still looking and functioning great when I sold it in August. Half it's life outdoors in the TN snow and weather. The other half garaged at night and baking in the GA sun all day. The key is cleaning and conditioning the top and windows. I also cleaned and lubed the zippers. Soft tops take some work to maintain them.

 

[wcjeep]

Check FB marketplace, Craigslist whatever for used one. At $2500, I'd consider a used hard top.

 

[Jeephairkindacare]

Im really leaning towards just trading it back in as is and accepting defeat from Jeep life. It was fun, but I certainly don’t have the purse or patience for all the upkeep ?

 

[SoCalDriver]

Our 2004 Wrangler Still has its original soft top and it’s in good condition. We keep it garaged and it’s not driven when it’s raining..so it’s only been washed a few times in it’s life (we primarily use detail spray when it needs to be cleaned up.) In the summer, the soft top is off and stored in the house. But I really don’t think they make stuff like they used to.

 

[YJdude]

I am very hard on my 2021 soft top and side & rear windows. The top goes up and down with the weather (sometimes several times a day) and the sides and soft uppers get crammed and rolled behind the rear seat(2-dr). I've only broken the little clip on the bottom of the hard plastic corner and scuffed the shit out of my windows which are both completely on me. Functionally, the JL soft top has put up with more abuse than I expected it would take.
Oh, and I also use the car wash occasionally.

 

[Opus]

I am very hard on my 2021 soft top and side & rear windows. The top goes up and down with the weather (sometimes several times a day) and the sides and soft uppers get crammed and rolled behind the rear seat(2-dr). I've only broken the little clip on the bottom of the hard plastic corner and scuffed the shit out of my windows which are both completely on me. Functionally, the JL soft top has put up with more abuse than I expected it would take.
Oh, and I also use the car wash occasionally.

I've wondered about the longevity of the rear window in particular. The roll and pull action to release that bottom bar sounds like it's snapping something every time and it scares the crap out of me. But if you're putting something in the back that is taller than the tailgate you don't really have a choice.

Otherwise, I understand the plastic will get scratched. It is what it is. I wash the Jeep in a touch-less car wash and so far, other than a little leaking in the high pressure spray, it seems to do just fine.

 

[The Fixer]

Im really leaning towards just trading it back in as is and accepting defeat from Jeep life. It was fun, but I certainly don’t have the purse or patience for all the upkeep ?

It should last longer than two years for sure. My 2018 has the base soft top and lives outside year round in NJ and it still works just fine. Knock on wood, the only issue it has is that the tailgate has worn a hole into the edge of the vinyl where it opens and closes.

There are new-in-box and slightly used soft tops for sale all the time on Craigslist and FB Marketplace for $1500 or less. They're easy to R&R and you'll save quite a bit of $$ compared to buying one from the dealer if you need to replace it. Good luck!

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