So you’re looking for a decent guide on Jeep hardtop removal? Well, you’ve found it. In this article, we’ll be talking all about the hardtop on Jeeps. The different kinds, how to remove them, and so much more. First thing’s first, we want to point out how fragile your hardtop roof is. It may seem sturdy at first, but it’s actually quite lightweight and fragile. This is because the Jeep manufacturer didn’t want to weigh down the roof and ruin the vehicle’s off-road capabilities. Typically your hardtop roof is one of the most expensive parts on a Jeep, meaning you want to do this right. Replacing it isn’t going to be fun.
So to start, I’m sure you’ve seen how easy it is for some people. All they do is lift their roof right off the Jeep, and place it somewhere in their garage. All by themself. That isn’t all that realistic. You’d need to be in super good shape to do that. It’s difficult with just two people. Plus, in the case that you accidentally drop it or bang it against something, you’re looking at some hefty repair costs. So how do the majority of people do this? It’s simple. They have help! The first and definitely most cost-effective way of taking your roof off is getting a buddy to give you a hand. If you have one or two people helping you, all you’ll need to do is disconnect it. Walk it backward carefully, and place it wherever you want to store it. But what happens if nobody wants to help? Or there simply isn’t anyone around?
Introducing the hoist idea. A lot of people will use something to simply hoist the roof right off their Jeep. They’re kind of like mini cranes. The most common is a free-standing hoist. It kind of looks like a basketball net. The base is on wheels and just needs to be slid right under the rear of the vehicle. The crane portion will rest above the roof of your car. All you need to do now is hook the straps up to where the manufacturer suggests, and start cranking. The roof will come off super easy, and you won’t have to worry about breaking anything. Just be sure to take off all the fasteners before you do this.
A lot of people will use custom made hoists. These are pretty simple to make if you’re a little handy, and shouldn’t cost too much if you pay someone to do it. You can actually just mount a hoist to your roof in the garage. It’s very cost-effective, doesn’t take up much space, and is super easy to use. Simply hoist the roof upwards, drive out of the garage, and lower the roof onto where you were parked. When you want to put it back on simply lift the roof, drive underneath it, and lower it onto your vehicle. It’s a super simple, very safe, and ultra-reliable method. Plus, if you enjoy building things (like most Jeep owners), this may be a fun project.
Before you start building your own hoist, we definitely recommend you get a professional to come in and look at how strong your roof is. You’ll want to suspend the hoist from a certain point, so get someone to take a look and tell you where the strongest area is. There’s nothing worse than hanging something from your roof and have everything cave in!