Soft Top Lowering - Best Practice Question

[aestes89]

Sorry if this has been done already, but I'm a first time Jeep owned with the JL Sport S. I've got the standard soft top, which I love by the way. But, I'm a little paranoid as to longevity after reading some horror stories on here! Seems like some people ALREADY have holes wearing in the material this soon. These Jeep tops are expensive and seems like getting them covered under the 3 year warranty is a nightmare. That said, is there any tips or best practice methods you all could share?

My primary concerns, rubbing. I usually just pop the two clips and flop the soft top halfway back 99.9% of the time. Should I be making sure it folds any certain way to avoid rubbing against the material? Usually I let gravity hold it in place, don't think there's a strap or clip for halfway

Is it ok just put all the pressure on the left or right side when folding it back? (I live alone, nobody to put equal pressure on the opposite "arm").

If I put the soft top all the way back, I'm supposed to hear a "click" and flip the locking lever, correct? Anything more?

Thanks everyone! Fingers crossed to get 5 years or more out of this top, but to be honest, I have no idea how long a soft top typically lasts. It's typically in a garage or parking garage when I'm not driving it.

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[chiggerdude]

This girl is a tad rough on her top dismount, but she has it down perfectly otherwise. lol

You have to slide the manual locks into position after the top is down. I also just let mine collapse and naturally fold where it wants to.
Some people keep pushing down till they supposedly "hear a click" past the point where you use the sliding locks. I have not done this because it seems very unnatural with my Jeep. Your call. If the wind and road bounce troubles you, I'd Velcro or S-strap it for my peace of mind.

 

[aestes89]

This girl is a tad rough on her top dismount, but she has it down perfectly otherwise. lol

You have to slide the manual locks into position after the top is down. I also just let mine collapse and naturally fold where it wants to.
Some people keep pushing down till they supposedly "hear a click" past the point where you use the sliding locks. I have not done this because it seems very unnatural with my Jeep. Your call. If the wind and road bounce troubles you, I'd Velcro or S-strap it for my peace of mind.

Thank you! Sounds like I'm not abusing anything then! Fingers crossed we all get plenty of life out of these tops!

 

[PunknZ]

I had no clue you can unclip the hinges when the top is down.

 

[VA72mlibu]

I had no clue you can unclip the hinges when the top is down.

 

[jeremyjeep]

My primary concerns, rubbing. I usually just pop the two clips and flop the soft top halfway back 99.9% of the time. Should I be making sure it folds any certain way to avoid rubbing against the material? Usually I let gravity hold it in place, don't think there's a strap or clip for halfway

Mine did have two thin velcro straps with it. I bought the dual tops and the soft top was in a box. The hard top was on the vehicle when it arrived. When I have the soft top on and in the "halfway back" mode, I put one velcro strap on each side to keep it from flapping at higher speeds. My concern is that it could wear out that material by rubbing it against something or pop back up with a gust of wind. I'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing and would also appreciate any thoughts on that. I did read in another forum about buying some wider velcro straps to secure it in the back better when it is all the way down to prevent rubbing.

 

[Dubeau9005]

One thing I will warn you about as we had our soft top down a lot this summer, is where the fabric bulges out and rubs on the third brake light. We have two small marks (each “leg” of the third brake light) on our top from rubbing while driving down the highway. Our top is taken off and put away for the winter so I can’t show a picture but just giving you a heads up. We started using two long strips of Velcro and wrapping it around the top when it’s down to hold it closer together so it doesn’t rub on the brake light bracket.

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