Soft top to hard top...

[smw89]

Anyone who has made the transition from soft top to hard top, or vice versa, any regrets? I have a soft top and love that I can take it down on a whim, but I also hate the increased road noise and the visibility issues that come with plastic windows (scratches, no defrost, etc.). I also live on the east coast and with winter approaching I'm wondering if it might be prudent to switch for that reason too. I live in an apartment with no garage so I can only keep one; storing either top would cost extra for a storage unit. Any thoughts on this decision?

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[Turchman]

That's a tough one. I have never gone through Winter with a soft top, or Summer with a hard top. The hard top is definitely better in the Winter, but you will lose the true top down feeling in the Summer.

 

[smw89]

I know there's a sunrider option for the hard top which would give a bit of that same feeling, I just wish it was easier to store the full hard top. If I had a garage this would be a no-brainer.

 

[Heimkehr]

Anyone who has made the transition from soft top to hard top, or vice versa, any regrets? Any thoughts on this decision?

No garage, public parking lot, Northeast winters?

Hard top, no question.

 

[tshaw2009]

So here's the deal. If you buy a Wrangler with the hardtop, it already has all the connections for defrost, wiper, and washer fluid. When you go from a soft top to a hard top, you have to establish all those connections yourself which can be a major pain in the neck. If you have no garage and live in a climate with harsh winter and lots of snow, that is all extra weight coming down on the soft top and does cause strain on both the fabric and mechanism. You don't have to worry about that so much with a hard top as they are just more durable. It's easier to start with a hard top and convert it to a soft top in the summer.

 

[MacJack]

Well here an off the wall suggestion.... Rent a small storage unit for $30 or less... like 5'wide and 10' long or so... so you can put either of the tops in plus you bike and other stuff that you are using your apt as a storage unit. Some Apt complex have garage for rent but to expensive I think as my daughter never used them once they got it. Hope this helps.

 

[sconrad24]

My previous JKs had softops, winter isnt that bad with them, just clean them off if snow is piling on them. Oh and dont use scrappers on the windows. The only thing that made me switch to the hardtop is so I could carry things on top. I know theres racks out there but nothing appealed to me. I did put some hooks up to store the hardtop in my garage but I only used it once or twice. My tops came off some much more when I had softops. So I'd say stay with the softop if you put the top down alot.

 

[Pinky Tuscadero]

Sooooo.... I've been wondering about those plastic windows for actually seeing through them and folks are like "oh, its the same" yet they certainly don't look like they could be the same and you've pretty much answered that now - thank you
I never thought about the snow problem either
Road noise - its a Jeep and it will never lack that
Soft top is def more Jeepy but hard top is more practical I suppose
The front freedom panels are much easier than the JK ones too so you'll have that
If you can get one cheap do it and then sell the soft - don't worry about hooking up wipers and defrost quick as you don't have that now anyways

 

[smw89]

Sooooo.... I've been wondering about those plastic windows for actually seeing through them and folks are like "oh, its the same" yet they certainly don't look like they could be the same and you've pretty much answered that now - thank you
I never thought about the snow problem either
Road noise - its a Jeep and it will never lack that
Soft top is def more Jeepy but hard top is more practical I suppose
The front freedom panels are much easier than the JK ones too so you'll have that
If you can get one cheap do it and then sell the soft - don't worry about hooking up wipers and defrost quick as you don't have that now anyways

The visibility thing isn't too bad, but I do notice at night that it always looks just a bit too foggy, and then of course long-term damage would make them harder to see through. The noise from the soft top isn't super distracting for me so if the hard top doesn't provide a night-and-day improvement I won't use that as consideration.

 

[smw89]

Well here an off the wall suggestion.... Rent a small storage unit for $30 or less... like 5'wide and 10' long or so... so you can put either of the tops in plus you bike and other stuff that you are using your apt as a storage unit. Some Apt complex have garage for rent but to expensive I think as my daughter never used them once they got it. Hope this helps.

I definitely COULD do a storage unit, just trying to avoid having to unless absolutely necessary. Right now I don't have anything else to put in a unit and that's a bit of money to spend just to keep one part.

 

[MikeyK]

Hard top this time (JT and JLU), all the wiring is there, adding a soft top later.

The most convenient was the dual top option I ordered on my 12 JKR.

 

[five9dak]

Get your local detailer to cut and buff your vinyl windows once a year. Lay them down on a table on top of a towel, tape the fabric up, and hit them with the buffer.

I had a soft top TJ stored outside for 7 years and daily drove it. The soft top was a non issue.

 

[aldo98229]

Renting storage is a big waste of money.

 

[Punkn89]

https://www.quadratec.com/p/mopar/hardtop-wiring-harness-conversion-kit-wrangler-jl

Maryland guy here - driven through MA and PA winter storms with my soft top, no issues. I’ve always had a big spare tire so I can never really see back there anyways lol. Road noise is def a little louder, but that never bothered me. Hardtop will be quieter and maybe a little more insulated, it’ll make a nice dining table when you need to bring it inside for the warmer weather!

the wiring kit above isn’t completely necessary when you switch to a hardtop - only if you want the defrost and wiper options. If it’s a temporary winter top, I wouldn’t bother with it, it is a pain to install.

 

[Punkn89]

Just found this on CL too - https://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/pts/d/herndon-jeep-hardtop-for-newer-jl/7531682841.html

he would take trades!

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