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DAN EDMUNDS: When we purchased our Jeep Wrangler,
one of the things we bought was the dual top option.
So today, we're going to show you
what it's like to remove the hard top
and install the soft top.
I can't help but notice that there's
one thing that was missing in that box,
and that was instructions.
So we're going to have to figure it out as we go along.
The first step is to remove the freedom panels.
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Every new Jeep Wrangler comes with a tool kit
so that you can fold the windshield, remove the doors,
and swap the tops.
It's got everything you need right here.
So these are the only tools we expect to use today.
This top bolts on, and already I can see three bolts here
in the back on this side and three more on the other side.
So we've got six, but there's got
to be something up front that holds the front of the top on.
So I'm going to go look for that.
Yeah, there's one right here, and another on that side.
So it looks like all together I've got to remove eight bolts.
There are two torques bolts in the kit, a 40 and a 50.
This is the 50.
Well, that's not very tight, but I guess they don't need to be.
They just have to compress the gasket enough
so it doesn't leak.
You don't want to crack anything.
So I've removed eight bolts, and these are not
anything I want to lose.
I think there might be a place on board
where I can store them.
It's good to know that there's no empty holes here.
These are for the windshield and these are for the doors.
But we're not quite ready to take the top off
just yet, because this has a defroster, a rear wiper, which
you can see here, and a washer nozzle.
And so, there's some connections in this corner
that I have to undo before we can lift the top off.
All right, well, I haven't done this
before on the JL, which is this new 2018 Wrangler,
but this looks easy enough.
Push that in.
That came off real easy.
Doesn't drip.
Boom.
We've got the electrical connector and the water
hose disconnected.
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I didn't think about this, but Jeep did.
The things we just unplugged here just kind of flop around,
but looks like--
I didn't know what this was at first, but now it's obvious.
This goes in here theoretically.
Maybe this way is better.
There we go.
And that goes there.
So now those things are clean and tidy and out of the way.
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I think I figured this out, surprisingly enough.
These bolts appear to go through here.
Because this is threaded on this side, and it looks like it's
going to sandwich this around the roll cage structure.
So let's see if I'm right.
That seems to be the trick.
These also look like the smaller T40 torques bit, not the 50
we used to take the top off.
So I got to switch that.
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Well, putting those on made it real obvious
what these parts are.
Same thing, but over the driver's
seat in the front passenger.
So let's go put them on.
These pieces here go behind the rear door.
And this is where the rear window will attach,
and this is where the rear door will be.
And it fills in the gap that's below the pieces we just
put on.
Probably, I should have put these on first,
but it doesn't look like a tragedy.
And if any, I can just loosen something if I need to.
This is where the instructions would have been nice.
So this piece has to go in there.
I'm going to have to take this back off.
Maybe loosen this so I can slide this in.
So when you do this, put this piece
on first with a little rubber gasket on there
and you won't have this problem.
There's no bolt here.
This little noise is probably something
that once the windows is on here, it will pull it taut
and it won't matter.
Close this right there.
We are putting little corner pieces on here.
And these corner trim pieces right here.
That one goes on that side.
This one goes on the passenger side.
We'll do this one first.
And it looks like it's going to be this bolt, which requires me
to switch to the T50 bolt bit.
Here we go.
This piece removes.
It's got a couple of clips.
I can feel it.
It's just a little bit tight.
This on in the front especially.
There it is.
And one of these, we'll figure out soon
in a minute, maybe both, is related
to the hinge for the top.
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So as we remove more pieces, it becomes more obvious
what we have to put on.
These are the hinge plates.
This is left hand.
And looks pretty obvious, this up.
So I think I know exactly how to put it on.
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These are the last four bolts and we have the top.
Those are all parts for the side windows and the back window.
So this is the home stretch.
I'm going to need some help on this part,
though, because this is going to be a little awkward.
Maybe if I've done it two or three times
I'd be able to do it myself, but maybe not the first time.
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This part is a two-man job.
You just got to get the two sides aligned
before the bolts will go in.
There's some pretty good lineup aids here,
but you got to have one set of eyes
on each side to make sure everything's
where it needs to be.
This other one goes down here.
Now, those were the last bolts.
Pretty much, were done.
I mean, if we were running with the top down,
it would look like this.
The side windows and the back window
that we haven't put on yet, wouldn't
be on if we were driving around like this.
So now we can put the top up, and button it up
with the side and back windows.
I think I hear something in the back.
First time-- what's going on here?
Everything looks right.
Just can't quite get the latches to match up.
There we go.
The top is up.
We're in Safari mode.
But let's put on the side windows and the back window
and seal this up.
So here's a side panel.
And these are different from last year.
What you've got here is a groove that slides onto a rod,
and that'll support the weight of the entire thing
and hold it up while we insert these
into clips along the front and back and sides.
So this is the key.
This is what makes this soft top easier to do than last year's.
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The final piece is the rear window.
And like the side panels, there's no zippers involved.
This has a sliding hinge and clips around the side.
So again, you don't have to worry about dust
getting in the zipper.
Big problem before.
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And this piece here, this is the bottom of the window.
This gives it its shape along the bottom edge.
Once I have this installed, I probably
won't take it off next time I remove the window.
I'll probably just leave this part on.
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So this goes in there.
Close the bottom.
And the final thing is tuck this up in here.
Get this started at the top, and then fold it on down.
Easier said than done the first time.
Brand new top.
Things haven't stretched out.
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There we go.
Well, that wasn't too bad.
I didn't have instructions, so I struggled a bit.
So it took me about an hour.
With practice, I could probably knock that down to 30 minutes.
I'm still going to need a friend's help
to get the hard top off and get the soft top on.
With all the little brackets and bolts, that's a one-man job.
Anyway, I'm good to go for the summer.
I can run with the sides and top down if I want.
And next winter, I can put the hard top back on.
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