Well, i'm about to put my soft top on this weekend for the first time and have a few questions. I've seen a thread in the past about people screwing up while putting the top down, and it dents the back gate somehow when closed? I saw a jeep with dents on either side of the rear gate and it reminded me to ask. Can people show me pics of what causes this, and what I need to do to prevent it? Also, what other tips/tricks do you guys recommend? Thanks in advance!

 

No pics, but to prevent the top from smashing down on your tail gate, make sure that you open the tail gate before putting the top down.

 

So the top edges of the gate being dented are from people putting it down with it closed? That thing must come down with the force of hiroshima

 

careful when tightening the bolts for the door surrounds. finger tight is good enough, any tighter and you risk stripping the bolt out of the plastic knob.

 

my Jeep is new to me and I have the top down when ever I can. I also leave the tail gate open and I've had no issues with damage. The first few times I had someone help me so it lowered easily and I knew what to expect but I easily do it on my own now.

Do most people leave the top folded down or remove it from the jeep all together if you want it down for an extented period of time? Is there any damage to the canvass if folded for a long time?

 

A friend of mine has a 2006 Wrangler Unlimited (the two door long model). After the first year he took the soft top off and stuck it in his garage. Last year my neighbor was looking to get a soft top so I introduced them to each other. He came out and took a look, everything looked fine. About six months later he finally went over to buy it and a mouse had made a nest in it. I think as long as you guard against the mice and other critters it should be okay folded up (probably should avoid high temperatures, too).

 

Are there any different seals I need for the soft top? I don't have any different seals for it....just the door surrounds, and the actual soft top with mounting hardware.


Also, those dents in the gate were protruding outwards, after giving it some thought how can that happen from the softop falling down on it? It looks like something was in the wrong place, and someone closed the gate hard bending the top right and left edges out. Any info on this? (I don't want to make any of these mistakes) I already did the dent in the hood from letting my door open all the way, so I'd like to leave that as a first and last time that I dent my jeep

 

I put my soft top on for the first time yesterday. It went pretty easy and took half an hour or so with no instructions. The window frame things attach to the side roll bars with three thumb screws. On the JKU they are two pieces on each side that go together. The center thumb screw holds the common end of both pieces. Then the top frame mounts to the rear roll bar with two torx bolts on each side. The rail for the rear window has a grove for the bottom edge of the window and will fit the two little plastic rails that go on either side of the tailgate. Maybe slamming the top down on these with the rear gate open could dent it somehow. Pull the top forward, attach the sail panels under the rails, and fasten the latches on the windshield. Then you just zip in the windows and fit them under the rails.

 

What causes the outward dents on the rear tailgate is from closing the tailgate with the rear window seal installed wrong. It looks like it goes in 90 degrees rotated from what it should be. My wife asked our neighbor to help her put the top back on one day when I was at work. When I got home, the damage was done. The tailgate will close with it in the incorrect position. That's what pushes the dents out on each corner.

 

If I plan on having my top off for a while I hang it in the garage. I installed the quick release knuckles shortly after I bought the jeep and love them. Makes it crazy simple to remove/install the whole top.

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