Sunrider removal for the winter

[Jkenosh]

Do people remove the sunrider top for the winter and put the freedom panels back on? I bought my gladiator used with it installed and have the two panels for the hardtop

Sponsored

 

[cranbiz]

Up to you. If you live in an area that gets really cold or lots of snow, I would swap them out. Our heaters do work well. My JK stays pretty warm with just the soft top but it's also garage kept.

 

[kevman65]

Being in Wisconsin, yes. I'm in Indiana and I realized very quickly that I wanted that fiberglass and insulation above my head.

 

[Jkenosh]

I took it off. Took 5 minutes. Thanks for the answers

 

[kevman65]

I took it off. Took 5 minutes. Thanks for the answers

You'll be happier.

The soft top guys will say their soft tops do fine in the winter. What they aren't realizing is they have insulation between two layers of top material.
A SunRider is a single layer of the material and no insulation.

 

[Klicht87]

I take it off my wife's JL before every winter.

 

[Mister Lamb]

I have the premium twill and kept it on last year. No issues and with the volcano of a heating core in Jeeps the heat was plenty

 

[dcmdon]

I'm in the Northeast and take it off for 2 reasons.

1)Its cold in the winter and won't get much opportunity to use it.
2) it saves wear and tear on the sunrider
3)Winter means ski season. Ski season means highway travel. The freedom panels are noticeably quieter than the sunder.

With that said, I wait until things get consistently cold before removing it.

The coming week is DEFINITELY SunRider weather.

 

[Mojave Nunzio]

I'm from Western Pennsylvania and I took mine off last week and this is a good time to clean the twill and waterproof it for next year

 

[Jkenosh]

I'm from Western Pennsylvania and I took mine off last week and this is a good time to clean the twill and waterproof it for next year

What do you waterproof it with?

 

[sabinjo]

I'm in the Northeast and take it off for 2 reasons.

1)Its cold in the winter and won't get much opportunity to use it.
2) it saves wear and tear on the sunrider
3)Winter means ski season. Ski season means highway travel. The freedom panels are noticeably quieter than the sunder.

With that said, I wait until things get consistently cold before removing it.

The coming week is DEFINITELY SunRider weather.

I'm in NJ and this is exactly what I do and for the exact same three reasons, with an emphasis on #2.

My logic is, if I only use it half the year and that's half the wear and tear on it than if it was on full time, then I'm doubling the longevity and value I'll get out of it.

 

[Rainman519]

Mine comes off every Thanksgiving, and goes back on every Easter. mid-Ohio winters are very unpredictable (winter snow weight) and besides, it's much warmer with the hard panels on.

 

[MPMB]

For future search reference...

I left it on last winter since Western WA doesn't get a lot of snow and only a few weeks of "cold" weather.

However, if there's going to be a late snow, and if your snow is wet & heavy, it's best to clear it off or have the freedom panels on.

Now that we're in UT, the panels are going on shortly.

The Sunrider is fantastic for when we travel through Nat'l parks, etc., as my wife stands on the seat and takes pictures of the sights. Only a few rangers have told her to sit down.

 

[Labswine]

Yup...mine comes off around Halloween and goes back on around mid-April.

Hard panels for the winter. Saves winter wear and tear on the SunRunner.

 

[Mojave Nunzio]

What do you waterproof it with?

https://a.co/d/3CHpUI8

Sponsored