Sunrider owners - MY mess-up, or theirs?

[ShadowsPapa]

or maybe just had a stack up of tolerances that got through Quality checks but only become noticeable when the Sunrider comes into play

I am wondering about that bit myself.
Since there are other sunrider owners, both Jeep labeled and BesTop labeled, with Jeeps going back in model years, I would expect we can rule out a "factory change" by Jeep.
I also measured with a probe through the cage mounting holes that sunrider uses to mount to the cage, up to the bottom of the freedom panels on my 25JT and our 23 JLU and found the measurements to be the same.

The panels use the exact same clip and clamp locations through all years, starting in 2018 with JLU up through 2025 with JT and JLU. So, why, when my sunrider is OPEN, not clamped up front, do the rails fit perfectly, yet when closed and attempting to clamp, does it take so much force to get the clamps closed (it takes a lot) and it pulls the sunrider down so hard it distorts the side rails and pulls them down, distorting seals and getting right up close and personal with the door tops.
Unlatched/unlatched and open, looking at the sides, you'd think - PERFECT, the sides fit exactly like the panels do (after modifying the sunrider mounting points at the front of the side rails, of course)
So we have two things going on?

There's a number of pictures in this thread, and that I've seen in the Wrangler forums and just out there on the internet in general (youtube and so on) showing others with similar issues.

I've been in communication with Bestop via email, forum PM, and they are watching this thread. It's been both an engineer and Crystal.

If I lived next to Dubuque instead of Des Moines, I'd likely just drive my truck up to their MI location.

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[ShadowsPapa]

My JT goes back to dealership Thursday/tomorrow for them to try a sunrider with the original part number. It took them days to find out and they said "there was only one left in the country and they got it". STAR said "find an original and try that".
We'll see - I doubt it will be a fix, but at least then maybe Bestop can move forward with what they are doing.
Best case - it gives STAR and Bestop more info. Hard to imagine it being a fix unless Bestop made some major change between their original release and the current release.
Worst case - it does nothing.
So we'll be down to just my two cars - wife's JLU is in because the charging indicator lights on the dash don't work, and they had to order the part.

 

[Trollboogie]

Bestop sent me some new latches that pull the front down more. The original had almost no resistance. You can tell they pull it down a little more, but not a lot. Like you said.... pull it too much then it will pull the front sides down. I still get the air noise from the front. I was thinking I might try some 1/8 flat rubber weather stripping under the front edge. Here are some pics of how the sides of mine sit. I tucked the muckets so you can see the spacing. I know it is hard to tell on black, but it is about 1/16 lower in the front.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

@Bestop - my JT is back at the dealership. They will try the original part number sunrider and go from there - may take a while knowing how sleepy Jeep is. Takes hours or days for them to wake up and say anything even to the dealers.

I was told they will try it as it comes out of the box - which means they'll probably have to assemble it and deal with all of that. They won't be trying any shims or other mounting pads unless you tell them to.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Yikes! Service advisor just sent out pictures of the NOS (new old stock) sunrider they found and the fit is far WORSE. In fact, the right front edge sticks up while the side rail gap above the door disappears going forward and the left side looks like the rear end of the rail is sticking way above the roof rail. The right side also doesn't seem to fit well at the rear. It's worse than the one my JT came with.

 

[Trollboogie]

Yikes! Service advisor just sent out pictures of the NOS (new old stock) sunrider they found and the fit is far WORSE. In fact, the right front edge sticks up while the side rail gap above the door disappears going forward and the left side looks like the rear end of the rail is sticking way above the roof rail. The right side also doesn't seem to fit well at the rear. It's worse than the one my JT came with.

Makes you wonder if you're the only guy with a jeep branded Sunrider.

 

[Gatorized]

Yikes! Service advisor just sent out pictures of the NOS (new old stock) sunrider they found and the fit is far WORSE. In fact, the right front edge sticks up while the side rail gap above the door disappears going forward and the left side looks like the rear end of the rail is sticking way above the roof rail. The right side also doesn't seem to fit well at the rear. It's worse than the one my JT came with.

I hope that isn’t the first Sunrider they have dealt with at the dealer. Those z-clips are not the same as what you got on yours…

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Here's what I discovered -
When Jeep said "the old part number" - the meant the old part number with the Jeep label on it.
So it was a Jeep labeled sunrider, and it comes pre-assembled and it fit horribly. Almost worse than my original.

I asked what's next.........

Service advisor says STAR is done, they say "it's an accessory problem" and it has to go through the accessory people.
Well - hold on here - Jeep literally INSTALLS the tonneau cover at the factory, isn't that an accessory?
To get the sunrider, you have to buy the rail package OR the tonneau cover. And it's sold with the next vehicle as part of the price on the window sticker and it's on the build sheet.
What if these came installed at the factory? What would they do with a fit like this? They need to consider that thought.

It has a sales code and comes with the Jeep.
So - Jeep is still ultimately responsible.

The more we get into this, the more Bestop tries, and the fact that THREE (3) different tops have been tried on it, it makes me wonder if there isn't something about this truck that's different. Hard to believe that 3 different tops don't fit worth a shit.

I've had it in the shop 3 times now, no resolution., not to mention the time and effort I've put into it.

So I'm going to go back and chew on @JeepCares a bit - this is absolutely a Jeep problem.
JeepCares has totally dropped all communication.
So much for a "case manager" - now they are saying there is no case.

Not acceptable. Jeep can't just drop this.

 

[Trollboogie]

If I remember correctly.... the HighTide Wrangler came with a Sunrider and 35's

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I wonder if I can force this through their warranty bits - and claim it's a structural flaw with the truck.
Right now, I'm back at like it was in June with no one taking care of things.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

 

[Gatorized]

They should try all those experiments bestop sent you on the replacement top to see if there is any improvement.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

They should try all those experiments bestop sent you on the replacement top to see if there is any improvement.

They said Jeep wouldn't allow or cover that. It had to be a new, out of the box, unit, unchanged.
I took the box of parts with me along with ALL of the instructions and drawings from Bestop but they said that Jeep didn't allow that.

I think a call to Jeep customer service is in order tomorrow. JC isn't worth squat on this - zero communications.

IMO, Jeep still owns the problem. I'm seeing if I have the warranty info on accessories.

 

[JeepCares]

Here's what I discovered -
When Jeep said "the old part number" - the meant the old part number with the Jeep label on it.
So it was a Jeep labeled sunrider, and it comes pre-assembled and it fit horribly. Almost worse than my original.

I asked what's next.........

Service advisor says STAR is done, they say "it's an accessory problem" and it has to go through the accessory people.
Well - hold on here - Jeep literally INSTALLS the tonneau cover at the factory, isn't that an accessory?
To get the sunrider, you have to buy the rail package OR the tonneau cover. And it's sold with the next vehicle as part of the price on the window sticker and it's on the build sheet.
What if these came installed at the factory? What would they do with a fit like this? They need to consider that thought.

It has a sales code and comes with the Jeep.
So - Jeep is still ultimately responsible.

The more we get into this, the more Bestop tries, and the fact that THREE (3) different tops have been tried on it, it makes me wonder if there isn't something about this truck that's different. Hard to believe that 3 different tops don't fit worth a shit.

I've had it in the shop 3 times now, no resolution., not to mention the time and effort I've put into it.

So I'm going to go back and chew on @JeepCares a bit - this is absolutely a Jeep problem.
JeepCares has totally dropped all communication.
So much for a "case manager" - now they are saying there is no case.

Not acceptable. Jeep can't just drop this.

Hi Bill,

We can understand your frustrations. We have opened a new case for your sunrider concerns and a case manager will be contacting you shortly for further support. Thank you for your patience.

Blair
Jeep Cares

 

[brsnow2585]

My '20 Sunrider fits perfectly on my Overland (ordered 5/19, delivered 7/19). No leaks even going through a car wash. Installation is very easy. Must be some slight changes in model years of the JT vs. Besttop products.

As far as getting one's hair all tussled and tangled from the wind, I have found that driving with the top open, all four windows PLUS the rear slider open, really helps in that vein. One gets more of a 'flow through' vs. a whirlwind inside with the rear slider open.

4 windows down is decent, 4 + back slider kills the buffeting or the thunder pounding in your ears, just like you said, flow through. I put my sunrider on my '22 gladiator, just needed a little wiggling the first time. Had it on and off several times, no leaks. Currently have it on, without the back shell and no doors without problems. It could use a shim of some kind on the back bracket, it does have a bit of a gap where the back shell fills the space on the roll bar. Now that I've done it a couple times, I can get it swapped out solo in 10 minutes.

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