I have a hard top and have thought about getting a soft top for summer, quicker and easier to take off? May be?
the aftermarket soft tops I've seen say that you need the factory soft top mounting hardware or brackets, I don't remember the exact wording, is there a good aftermarket soft top that includes the parts needed to change from a hard top?
But then again, the hard top isn't really hard to take off, but you can't take the parts with you if you decide to put it back on when you're 30 miles from home and it looks like rain.
What are y'all's thoughts on changing from one to the other?

 

My jeep is pretty much a toy now, but being just to your west I have the same weather. When mine was a daily, I still preferred hard top, and I am/was topless most the time. I just kept a closer eye on the weather and I had an emergency top in case of, well, an emergency rain shower. Those aren't really worth the money for as flimsy as they are, but oh well. I have used it a couple times. The soft tops just aren't worth it for that type of use IMO, although, the story may be a bit different for a 2dr. They are more effort than they are worth on a 4dr. Assuming you have a garage to park in overnight, we can go weeks at a time here in TX without a top, even for a DD. Gotta have a decent sun screen like a spiderwebshade though.

@karls10jk - do you put the top on your 2dr up/down all the time? pretty easy on a 2dr? I'd think the windows are as much of a pain as the 4dr version.

Here in DFW, it's rare to see a soft top as the majority are hard tops, and it's extremely rare to see a soft top that is down.

 

The soft top is much easier on a 2dr pull the windows, hit the two releases on the door surrounds, give it a light pull and it basically folds itself down (nicely, I should mention) and it takes 30 seconds at that point.

Now....do I drop my top as much as I used to? No, I don't. I have a zipper that needs replacing which for me entails swapping the whole top and cutting someone a deal on my used one with a known issue. I also didn't work in the most secure area so I tended to keep the top up. My current job has less foot traffic so I anticipate dropping the top more frequently or even removing it entirely now that I've got a place to park at night and safe storage for my doors....which was not that case at the apartment.

I've contemplated going hard top multiple times but I really enjoy being able to open the top without getting out of the vehicle. I've made trips where we'll open the top, see rain ahead, close it by just slowing down to 25, then get back on the highway. I did have the Bestop Trektop hybrid pro and it was legit. Slider windows for the rear, actual glass, not much with work involved in going to bikini mode- the piece I didn't care for was how it looked on my Jeep. Some can pull it off, I didn't feel like I could. Turned it around and sold it after 6-8 months.

 

Y, I guess for you 2dr guys, there is a lot less frame and fabric that is folded down on your tailgate as well. My hard top is on/off in about 5 minutes, and I can do it in formal business attire if I had to (and I have). I park in the garage at night, and a parking garage at work, so that makes a big difference as well. Like....if I know it's going to rain mid-day and clear up all while I'm at work, then nbd. I just really enjoy the look of being completely topless.

 

I have a Bestop and love it. You can remove the entire thing in under 3 minutes for a complete topless option. You can remove just the back and sides and have a nice top for shade and still can flip that back to have a "sunroof" and leave some shade for the dogs in the back. Number of ways to do it and still be able to save the day is you get caught in a storm.

 

I haven't put my soft top on in about 8 years if that says anything. I just prefer the hard top as a daily driver. I also like my AC too much so unless it's in that 60-75 degree window I rarely take the panels out, but I do drive around with the windows down. With the black interior it ends up getting real hot and you can't even put your arms down on the center console. If I had a garage with a hoist I would probably just take the whole thing off when I felt like it.

 

Hey, good morning. As little as I know , I think Best Top is the OEM roof supplier to Jeep. Maybe someone can resolve this. I will need a new softop soon and am thinking of going with the Bestop soft top replacement.

 

Yes, Bestop creates our soft tops and then they're put into Mopar boxes and the price doubles. I'd recommend searching Craigslist and Facebook marketplace before you buy a new one from a vendor.....though my understanding is that Bestop has an awesome warranty if you buy their super high dollar soft top.

 

" Our soft tops". That's great.! Thanks for the quick reply. I found many issues with Jeep/ MOPAR products. Last year I purchased OEM/Mopar Sahara/Rubicon Rock Rails , for my '15 JKU . If purchased separately the price was over $ 600 for each one. I continued to swipe and on the last page I found that for Rock Rails purchased for both sides together the cost dropped to @ $ 715. The operator never did explain that one. Just said patience pays off. Have a great weekend !

 

Bestop's customer service is first rate. They stand behind their products like few companies I've seen do lately.