I've had to do the mods on my Jeep on a budget and wanted a roof rack for hauling camping gear and other uses. I've been very pleased with the functionality of the rack that I chose. I bought a "Rage" roof rack from Discount Ramps. They have two sizes and I got the large one for $109 plus shipping $35. My Jeep is never going to be back to stock so I wasn't worried about drilling holes in it. I didn't take photos of the installation process, but the attached photos show how it looks installed. I drilled 8 holes in my hard top in the raised ribs on the top. You just need to measure the grid pattern on the rack base to determine where the holes should be in the ribs. The U bolt hardware that comes with the top is used upside down from its intended use (see photo). I spaced the rack above the roof with 1 3/4" X 1 1/2" X 1" rubber stoppers from Lowes. This 1" spacing leaves enough thread inside to use the thumb screws that come with the rack. I used 8 stoppers at the mounts and sealed the holes with silicone sealer. There are 6 - 1/4" bolts that fasten the upper rail to the lower platform. I drilled a 1/4" hole about 1/4" deep in the center of 6 more of the rubber stoppers and installed them under the rack platform where the bolts protrude below the rack. These supports are very near the outer edge of the top where there is lots of support. I installed the rack all the way toward the back of the top so the 2 supports in the back are just above the rear window where the top is very strong as well. With this installation the weight of the rack and load is well distributed on sturdy parts of the roof. I've carried a lot of weight on this rack with no problem. The rack did show some rust after about a year and a half, so I took it off and sprayed it with a couple of cans of bed liner. I would suggest that be done before the initial installation and the bed liner has held up really well. These instructions and the attached photos should be enough for other forum members to use this idea for their rig. The freedom panels can be removed easily.

 

I used this method on my previous 07. Only I used a 48" wide Rola brand roof rack. Ill confirm for light loads it works just fine. Mine never leaked or had issues. I used T-bolts instead of U-bolts. Using the rubber pucks is cheaper than a rail system for a fixed mount rack.

 

That is the kind of stuff I am looking for.. Thank you, I love the logos on the hood, I and my wife may steal it, with a little change

 

By all means, feel free to steal the hood logo idea. I get lots of compliments on my Jeep.