It's supposed to rain all this week, so I'll get to really test it out. So far, it's not that bad, noise-wise. No worse than my TJ was back in the day.

 

OK, so I may missing the obvious, but I can't tell where to shave. Can you describe a bit more? I'd rather have the new 09 replacement header, but at 200 clams (since it's not under warranty), I'm not too keen on shelling that out until I've at least tried "modding" this one. Help?
thx

 

a little bump

 

If you have the soft top on and latched down, you can easily see where the footman loop contacts the header. See the cutout in the plastic header where the footman loop is supposed to go? They shifted the footman loop over in 2009, so it won't line up with the 2007/2008 cutout. It's close though, so if you shave off enough to lengthen the cut out a little bit, it will fit.

It would be easiest with the top on and folded up so you can see exactly where it's contacting. I would then get a utility knife, heat it up a little bit, and slowly take a little plastic off until it's no longer contacting the footman loop. If that makes an opening in the plastic (like if it's hollow inside), a little JB Weld or something applied nicely in the opening wouldn't look too bad.

 

I just recently put a soft top off from a 2007 on my 2009. They are right about the footman loop shifting a little toward the drivers side. It looks like it caused mine to stick up a little bit in the center where it contacts the loop, but not that bad. I noticed it leaked a little right in the center when I washed it so I put a little strip of weather stripping across the front edge of the header where it meets the windsheild. Seems to have taken care of the leak.

Good luck.

 

I would think that with it bowed up in the middle for a long period of time, eventually it will warp like that. There wouldn't be that much that needs to be trimmed for it to close all the way, is there?