I'm buying an '08 Wrangler...trying to decide between a soft top X or a hard top Sahara. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

Depends where you live and will you be putting the top down>.If in cold weather than get a hard top> Theft is more on soft tops>

Answer 2

Consider your top separate from your model. Both tops will fit on all Jeeps as long as you dont have the half metal doors.
Get either the X or the Sahara depending on your needs, then buy the top separate if you have to. If you end up wanting the hard top but dont need the Sahara that can save you some cash.

As was said above, you can also purchase both tops together with the Jeep on at least some models (Freedom Top).

Answer 3

My brother and also a best friend had one, and I learned several things about jeeps from them.

Test drive it on the highway with the soft top on. It's so loud you can barely have a conversation. This is how it will always be on the highway unless the top is down, then it's worse.

If you are going to be parking outside, it's fair game for thieves.

The soft tops last about 5 or so years before the door window zipper gives out, or the stitching seperates.
At that point, it's very difficult to repair, and very expensive to get a new one.

Obviously, I'm on the side of hard tops, and I have a removable hard top on my car (targa top supra), but soft tops do have that jeepish charm and convenience of being available all the time.

What you get will depend on your priorities, where you park, your lifestyle, and the weather where you live. (obviously, if you live in San Diego and park in a garage, a soft top is almost a non-problem aside from it's noisy). If you live in Michigan, it's another story.

-Kevin

Answer 4

Depends on taste, mostly.

The advantage of the soft top is that you can put the top down a lot easier than you can take the hard top off, plus you can have the soft top available if it rains.

The newer soft tops in the last few years aren't as noisy as the soft tops prior to around 2003, but they are noisy. Of course, the main advantage to the soft top is taking it off and it's even noisier with the soft top off.

Heat probably isn't a serious issue. The Jeeps have a good enough heater that you're not going to get cold in front seat. My dog usually sits in the back seat, so I can't give an authoritative answer about the temperature in the back. The weather where I live is also fairly mild in the winter. It might get below 10 degrees very rarely and we have had temperatures below 0, but that was before I bought a soft top. I wouldn't vouch for performance somewhere like Minnesota.

The soft top has problems with the zippers almost right off the bat if you take them off roading. However, you only have the problems if you don't take the time to clean the zippers with a toothbrush once in a while. I would imagine that would eventually be a problem even for people who don't take their Jeeps off road - it just takes long enough they think the zipper has worn out.

The windows are a problem. You need to be careful with them to prevent scratches from building up. There's stuff you can clean them with that helps with the scratches, but they're going to slowly degrade if you're just tossing them in the back seat.

Locking your doors with a soft top is stupid. The smart thieves will simply unzip your windows. The dumb ones will slice your top open with a knife. Buy the sentry lock to prevent the Jeep from being stolen. Quit carrying anything in your Jeep that you'd hate to see stolen. (i.e. - if you want CDs to listen to, copy your store bought CDs and carry the copies in your Jeep - you're only out the cost of the blank CDs instead of losing significant parts of your music collection).

Edit: I did look at a car security system that's sold in South Africa, but it probably wouldn't be legal to use in the US. It's a keypad lock and any attempt to open the door without entering the code results in a flame being sent out on both sides of the vehicle. The flame isn't supposed to last long enough to be life threatening, but a potential thief could be blinded for life if he were unlucky. It may serve him right, but I'm sure you'd get sued anyway in the US - especially if an innocent bystander (especially a kid) happened to be standing on the other side of the vehicle.

Answer 5

the soft tops are noisier than the hard tops. you can buy either hard or soft and buy a top seperate if you want both. if you do that i would recommend buying a hard top jeep and buy the soft top seperate, because the hard top with wiring kit costs over $3000. i will warn you, if you get a hard top, it WILL leak. i have yet to see a hard top JK wrangler that did not take a few hours worth of leak testing and building up the seals from behind. the drain channels are poorly designed, and the water will run in on top the center console or on to the radio. it can be fixed, but it will annoy you that your brand new jeep rains on you the first time you go through a car wash.

Answer 6

The Sahara is a bit fancier but how much more is it to own the ultimate factory Jeep, the Rubicon model over the Sahara.
The last time I looked the Sahara was not that much different in price than a Rubicon which will be twice as good off-road or better and will hold its value better.

My bet is on the Rubi !

Answer 7

Congrats on the new Jeep! It doesn't matter which model you get, opt for the freedom top: you get the soft one AND the hard one. Also, remember that Jeep is a lifestyle, community and there are tons of jeepin brothers and sisters out there. If you have owned one before, then you know to wave to other Wranglers and CJs. If this is your first, then please visit a jeep forum online to see how many Jeep lovers there are!

Answer 8

Hard top is definitely the way to go; the 08 hard top comes off in separate panels; so its easier to take off, put back and store. I had the 01 and then got the 05; can't imagine life without it.

But of u live in an area where the rain is unpredictable, then soft top is the way to go.

Answer 9

If you buy one with the new freedom top, it also comes with a soft top.

Answer 10

hard top any time