What were your considerations when deciding on mounting your 270 degree capuop on passenger side vs driver side?I guess I'll start with saying that none of the following diatribe is second guessing any of your decisions. Just sharing my experience and my many years of building out Jeeps for camping and wheeling. I currently have 3:
The first thing you should really make sure you consider is function over form. There are lots of cool things made for Jeeps (like fake bed mounted sport cages) that are purely for the aesthetic and not truly functional for what they appear to be. So really do your diligence when considering each part of your build. I've spent lots of money on the wrong things only to spend the money again to make it right. There is an old saying: "Good decisions come from experience. Experience comes from bad decisions".
I'll share some thoughts for what they are worth.
- You mentioned center of gravity, if you haven't bought your 3.5" lift yet, maybe reconsider...My 2020 JTR is on 37's with 2.5" Icon lift and it is more than enough clearance. Every inch of lift will raise your COG, increase your wind resistance profile running down the road, etc. I have taken my rig on some serious, serious trails and yes, my COG is higher than either of my Wranglers, I have yet to put it on it's side (just knocked on wood). The real answer is understanding what your COG is and not trying to do a trail like Pritchett Canyon in Moab or Poughkeepsie Gulch In Colorado. Does an RTT on a full height rack or canopy come with limitations? Sure. But ask yourself if you are really planning on doing ridiculous things with it. "Worry is a dividend paid to disaster before it is due." Be smart about your build and where you take your rig. I've had mine off camber by as much as 22 degrees and not laid it over.
- 3.5" lift is right at the edge of needing to change your drive shaft set up because the pinion angles are a bit steep at that point. I believe I've read that 4" is the magic cutoff but be aware that your 3.5" is precariously close and will increase the wear on those components faster than a 2.5" will.
- My next thought is related to the fact that you are coming from an FSR that fits your family. If you are happy with it, just keep it and mount on a full height or canopy if it is too long for the bed; it can overhang the cab.
- I too wanted to go with a rack initially for similar reasons; keep the weight down, looks cool when done right, doesn't limit bed access as much as a topper/canopy.
- BUT I wheel and camp with guys that have racks with RTT's and the first thing they have to do when we stop is basically clean everything before they can start getting things out of the bed. What if it's raining or worse, been muddy on your trip in to a campsite...
- I think you recognized that you may be limited in using some kind of tonneau-like cover with your fridge. I've read on this forum where guys have found fridges that will work underneath a tonneau, but they aren't as big as 75L
- At the point where you buy a quality bed rack and a quality tonneau and a new fridge that will fit under that tonneau, you are 2/3 or more of the way to a canopy. There are some new canopies out there that don't weigh much more than the rack and tonneau. Check this out: https://venturoustrucktops.com/products/ozark-truck-cap/
- EDIT: I almost forgot security. I'll admit that seeing a nice rack with it's Roto-Pax and shovel and recovery boards hanging off of it looks full of bada$$ery, but it is just an invitation for ne'er-do-wells IMO. My old man always told me to "keep the honest people honest" so hanging all my gear off the side of my vehicle is just a temptation for thieves. Generally, everything of mine is inside the canopy which does have locks, but a thief doesn't know that there is anything inside that he wants without some effort. If they want to try to steal my solar panels or RTT or awning, I hope they brought friends and have a few hours to kill. It can be done but because I know how much effort it took to install those things, I personally would not want to steal them for the effort required. Not saying the canopy is theft-proof but I would wager it is more theft-resistant than what a rack offers.
- My personal preference was to go with a canopy/topper, I have the first gen Alu-Cab Explorer Canopy, mainly because that was probably the best one on the market back in 2020. I just don't have to worry about my gear being dirty or wet or height restricted. Here's some gratuitous pics:
My rationale was based on dividing the Jeep into a “clean” side and a “dirty” side. When I mounted my kitchen in the bed that sort of dictated the clean/dirty sides:
