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Ninjak

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from all the pics and vids they had posted...it did not seem to be squared off at all and had more slant than the ADV.

and to be fair, when they said they were "hoping" for a Q4 delivery it was a turn off as Anderson of course told me 12-16 weeks. Of course that turned into my like 28 weeks...but that's a different story all together.

I really was hoping the Armadillo would be good, and I was online and priced one out and they sent me a code offering me a discount on top of the discount for being the first 10, but I just couldn't pull the trigger after seeing it, it really failed the eye ball test to me. Again...YMMV
The videos and the recent pics being posted IS the Slantback. They have not posted anything for the squareback. They decided to do the slant back first, so that is what is out media wise. Even with that, it has undergone a re-design for the better IMO. The square back will be worked on once they move the slant back to delivery.
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BroncoBoy22

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as far as "denying" the receipt, OP ordered in April and just got it at the end of November. That's 7 months. Anderson is stating they're closer to 9 months now. Would anyone really want to wait additional time? Maybe Anderson moves him to the front of the line to repair/replace, but realistically that's till 2 months out.

And if Ford had done this from the get go, the after market wouldn't have the opportunity. If Ford had done a color, or a white top on all models people would've gladly done it. Instead Ford said no, and then did it for the Heritage only, and you still can't buy a factory top. You can't walk into a dealership, or even a 3rd party and ask them to order you a top. So if you took delivery of a soft top with the hard top kit in the hopes that Ford would deliver a hard top later as they said...well you got bamboozled. If you got a soft top, and decided later that you wanted a hard top, you have no course of action but to go with a 3rd party. And so far, IMO, the Anderson one looks the best. ADV with their slant doesn't appeal to me, I was hoping Armadillo would be good, but both their styles are still slant back. Anderson really is the best looking top, and available in white IMO...IMO. YMMV.
This.

Me personally I was never going to be satisfied with the MIC because of the color. Even if I was fortunate to get one that was good quality, I can’t stand the gray. So I was always going to have to shell out more $$ to get the finish I wanted since the MOD top was vaporware. Aftermarket was the only way to go for me. With the extra cost and lying of ADV, the logo on Turn Off Road, AC is my fav so far. Armadillo is overbuilt for my needs. But I’m glad there are options out there for everyone!
 

timhood

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as far as "denying" the receipt, OP ordered in April and just got it at the end of November. That's 7 months. Anderson is stating they're closer to 9 months now. Would anyone really want to wait additional time? Maybe Anderson moves him to the front of the line to repair/replace, but realistically that's till 2 months out.

And if Ford had done this from the get go, the after market wouldn't have the opportunity. If Ford had done a color, or a white top on all models people would've gladly done it. Instead Ford said no, and then did it for the Heritage only, and you still can't buy a factory top. You can't walk into a dealership, or even a 3rd party and ask them to order you a top. So if you took delivery of a soft top with the hard top kit in the hopes that Ford would deliver a hard top later as they said...well you got bamboozled. If you got a soft top, and decided later that you wanted a hard top, you have no course of action but to go with a 3rd party. And so far, IMO, the Anderson one looks the best. ADV with their slant doesn't appeal to me, I was hoping Armadillo would be good, but both their styles are still slant back. Anderson really is the best looking top, and available in white IMO...IMO. YMMV.
A lot to unpack here, but I think you're laying too much blame on Ford. The initial quality problems with the hard top are pretty well-known. That meant Ford was behind in production from the beginning, meaning there was a shortage of tops just for production demand, let alone replacements. So, buying one from the parts counter wasn't going to happen for a bit. With a huge backorder of new Broncos to sell (continuing even today--I've got a friend who ordered one a while back and was told next August), choices have to be made. Getting customers their Broncos over customers who want a second top is always going to be the priority, both for financial and customer service reasons.

The same is why the white top didn't happen for a couple of years, and even then, only on the Heritage. The Heritage is constrained by the tops, so Ford certainly can't offer white tops as a separate part, either. The solution isn't just as simple as bringing another supplier in. There's a large investment in tooling, etc., and continual demand needs to be strong for many years down the road.

But the bigger point is you suggest that there should be no need for an after-market hard top, and I say that's against the very nature of the Bronco. First, there's no way to make one vehicle fit everyone's wants and needs. It's not economical for Ford to offer multiple hard top material options. Besides, don't we as enthusiasts welcome having lots of third-party options like the Jeep community has?

That said, yes, there are plenty of ways Ford messed up, and one was being way too optimistic about getting hardtop production ahead of demand and letting customers think a hardtop could be ordered separately before very long. Frankly, given how many people live in areas that have cold winters, I would have made the hard top the default and told my suppliers to ramp up for double the production they originally planned. I would have made the soft top an option.

I do feel for people that really wanted a hard top and settled for the soft top and are trying to figure out what to do.
 

userdude

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It is aesthetically superior. If you don’t care about aesthetics I guess that’s not a big deal for you.

As for measurables, like sound, I would love it if someone did a comparison between these and the MIC tops. Based on my first hand inspection of them side by side I’d bet good money the Anderson is quieter. The liner on MIC looks like a rug pad, and the AC is thick cross stitched leather like material that has a significant padding.
I don't think I've actually seen the Anderson liner, but I'm sure it's nicer than the pubic hair rug they put in the Ford top. However, sound deadening is more about trapping and smothing sound waves, and smooth(er) surfaces aren't necessarily better at sound deadening than something rough. To wit, many of my "punk band in the garage" friends in high school spent a weekend gluing Wheaties to their garage walls for sound deadening. Cheap is generally just as effective outside of pro materials.

I suspect Ford is using what they did cause it was cheap and easy to source. But yeah, other than the squeaks and rattles coming from the top itself, not sure it helps that much except with reverberated sound waves and heat dissipation.
 

Canadian5.0

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I’d never complain about a bit of the scaling look on the mic top if the only other option was this Anderson top , unreal that’s what was sent out the door for big money to a customer , cut out the window opening kid with this jigsaw and spray it , customer is waiting
 

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pakrat

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I don't think I've actually seen the Anderson liner, but I'm sure it's nicer than the pubic hair rug they put in the Ford top. However, sound deadening is more about trapping and smothing sound waves, and smooth(er) surfaces aren't necessarily better at sound deadening than something rough.
The headliner definitely looks better but I really wish we could get some decibel readings. Pictures may not do it justice but it doesn't look to be fully secured to the edges leaving gaps for air and noise to circulate (maybe that is a benefit I don't know). Hopefully it is more than an aesthetic improvement.

I got my refund from pre-ordering the overpriced ADV top which is now being made in China and looking at other tops. How much difference if any, does the AC top weigh compared to the MIC?
 

BroncoBoy22

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I’d never complain about a bit of the scaling look on the mic top if the only other option was this Anderson top , unreal that’s what was sent out the door for big money to a customer , cut out the window opening kid with this jigsaw and spray it , customer is waiting
Agreed they should not have let that top get delivered without fixing it first, but that is only finish/cosmetic problem which can be redone. Scaling is due to the outer layer of MIC being too thin. Which is a more serious issue
 

RoLyMa27

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unreal that’s what was sent out the door for big money to a customer
First impressions are everything. If I am the owner of Anderson Composites and making aftermarket tops are my specialty, I am personally looking at the first 50 or so tops that are made and they would not leave until they are 100% perfect!
 

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Click this picture so it will zoom. The paint and edges look like hot garbage. No quality control. I'd be pretty pissed.

123_1-jpeg.jpg
Terrible.
 

Bronco21fan

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Is anyone making white 2 door hardtops yet
 

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GroovyGeek

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Don't dig the white color, but that sound deadening looks good.
 

nolimits

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Am I missing something here? Why did you even need Auto Addict to install your top?
 
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OP

Busyhands

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Am I missing something here? Why did you even need Auto Addict to install your top?
You can’t do it yourself, and I don’t have any friends near Anaheim.
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