Soft Top flew off Jeep at Highway Speeds

[ChaseAlberti]

Hi everyone, had a wild experience last week. I was travelling down I-35 in Texas going from Fort Worth to Austin when I heard some whistling coming from the soft top. I glanced over and noticed the latch well... un-latched itself, I reached up and tried to close it. As I reached up to grab it the driver's side latch popped off. I tried to pull it back down, but the wind caught it and the soft top was ripped from my hand. The top slammed back into the rear and broke 3 of the 4 brackets. I was only halfway to Austin so I had to take the top off and throw it in the bed. Has anyone had their latches pop off while driving before? It just seems so weird.

What the bracket is supposed to look like:

Bad Bracket:

What bracket...

Soft top is now twisted out-of shape:

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[Rahkmalla]

Sorry to hear it. Not a common problem I'm guessing because I haven't seen it here before.

The part that makes me feel the worst for you is what I expect your future dealer experience to be like. I have a feeling they aren't going to take you at your word for how it happened.

Just remember if it goes negative, you're better off buying the parts and doing the "install" yourself. They'll charge you an arm and a leg to R&R 3 brackets and put your top on.

 

[FLGladiator]

I had a similar thing happen as I was leaving an auction with a 1991 Porsche Targa. On the highway the targa top flew up in the air around 50 feet and thankfully avoided any cars and slammed into the ground breaking all the welds. I hope the dealership takes care of this for you, freak thing.

 

[jay21mojave]

Allow a suggestion.. Contact JEEP ASAP.. Report this occurring. Get the name of the JEEP rep that you spoke with and if possible a phone extension.

Jeep complaints contacts

• Call Customer Care on 1-800-992-1997
• Visit Customer Care Contact Form
• Call Headquarters on 1-248-576-5741
• Tweet Jeep Customer Care

Also: This service is available 24/7. PHONE (800) 777-3600

 

[JTDay]

Early JTs had a few soft top issues. What year is your JT? I don't think there was ever a recall for anything, however maybe a warranty fix is available and you get a new softtop.

 

[Shopshirt]

Wow @ChaseAlberti I'll bet that was an eyeopener for sure!

 

[Angler3]

Bro….. that really sucks
sorry to hear .
Thankfully it didn’t fly off and possibly cause a horrific accident !

 

[ArmyMP]

Mine has slowly started to unlatch its self..

 

[GladLad]

Mine has slowly started to unlatch its self..

Yikes, better take care of that before you come back with the same story as OP.

You're not the first, and it may be adjustable per... https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...clamps-while-driving-at-highway-speeds.39858/

 

[ChaseAlberti]

Hey everyone, finally got my jeep back after over waiting for a month. Long story short there was confusion between the dealership, insurance, and Jeep customer service. Looking on the bright side, I ended up with a brand new soft top kit which includes the rear window panel for only $500 (insurance deductible). With the new soft top it is immediately evident that the springs on the latches are stiffer than the old, broken soft top. I was looking at some kind of "backup" solution so that I don't have to get a new soft top every 3 years... I'm thinking of using some kind of clevis pin that has wire attached to the soft top on one side. The pin would slide and lock into the hole where the hard top would be attached. Once I come up with something I'll be sure to post the solution back here.

 

[JTDay]

Mine's been fine but a short bungee cord under the latch with the ends clipped to the header panel is one easy solution I've seen.

 

[ChaseAlberti]

Mine's been fine but a short bungee cord under the latch with the ends clipped to the header panel is one easy solution I've seen.

Bungee chord doesn't sound like a bad idea. As long as it's not from Harbor Freight! Haha

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