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I also live in Wisconsin. I've never had a soft top anything and stuck with MIC as I was concerned about cleaning snow off the windows. Does snow stick to soft top windows like it does glass? Are there issues scraping ice off? If I switched, I would most likely already have taken delivery, so still potentially regretting the decision with them offering the conversion kit.
That 300+ annual inches of Sierra Cement should be a great test for the soft top, lol. I lived in El Dorado County for over 20 years and we also had a condo in Kingās Beach on the north side. As an avid skier, I know that heavy snow all too well.I guess Iām going to find out the hard way. I donāt have a garage.
Iām waiting for the hardtop but I now live in Minnesota and we get way less snow but itās quite a bit colder than Lake Tahoe.
The safe removal of snow/ice, lack of rear defroster, seems to be the bigger issue
Sure canvas will have different physical properties than the MIC roof in terms of heat/cold but at the end of the day, its not like the MIC is a regular automobile roof, its still just a somewhat thin layer
Sure canvas will have different physical properties than the MIC roof in terms of heat/cold but at the end of the day, its not like the MIC is a regular automobile roof, its still just a somewhat thin layer
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I think the Montana Winters would destroy the soft top with snow and -30 degree months. Thank the car gods I was blessed with a hard top, from San Jose, California lol
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I drove a Wrangler about 20 years ago and remember having success getting snow and ice off of the soft top by first blasting the heat and then smacking the windows from the inside of the car. Flew right off. I would also occasionally throw a tarp over the back if I expected anything nasty overnight. Anyone who says you can't drive a soft top in the winter should get a Sport.
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I had an Isuzu Amigo with the slanted rear in Central PA. It was fine. Do NOT use a snow brush on the plastic. Acquire a foam snow broom like the car dealers use and be gentle. Try like hell to not tilt the back while temps are that cold. That is the only part I'm concerned about.
So this may be a stupid idea but I recently saw a video about the Bimini top and it showed that the soft top could be closed over it, so I am wondering if you could sandwich a blanket of some sort between the Bimini top and the soft top. My original intention was to try this but add a sort of thermal barrier for hot days down here in Florida. It may be too much of a pain in the but or just a dumb idea but I figure it could possibly insulate the top in some way. Anyway just a thought.
i don't think the temperature is much of an issue but the weight of the snow and ice that can form would be. how much snow/ice can the soft top hold? there are a few days in the winters here that you would get a nice thick sheet of ice built up on a car with wet snow on top. i'd say a snow shovel worth of wet snow could be 20-35lbs. something like the pic below could weight 5lbs if it's light fluffy snow or 150lbs if it's wet slushy snow. if i go soft top, i'd be covering my roof with a tarp if there's heavy snow or ice expected.
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Was kind of my plan, for winter time put something together held by Velcro inside to insulate. Not planning on opening the top at -24c ... On my part i went with the hard top and plan on getting a soft-top after for summer time, i am betting we will see some for sale when the Broncos start rolling out, or by after-market.
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Don't worry remote start will take care of that.i don't think the temperature is much of an issue but the weight of the snow and ice that can form would be. how much snow/ice can the soft top hold? there are a few days in the winters here that you would get a nice thick sheet of ice built up on a car with wet snow on top. i'd say a snow shovel worth of wet snow could be 20-35lbs. something like the pic below could weight 5lbs if it's light fluffy snow or 150lbs if it's wet slushy snow. if i go soft top, i'd be covering my roof with a tarp if there's heavy snow or ice expected.
Seriously though, while a soft top is doable for winters (I've done it), it's hardly ideal. Some folks are kidding themselves about winter and soft top vs hardtop.
ya, freezing rain over night doesn't solve the weight of ice build up. that's what my worry is. and sometimes the amount of snow we get over night is immense. is the soft top able to handle the weight? and be realistic, you aren't going out there at 3am to clear the snow. being from chicago i'd thought you'd understand, or maybe here in canada we get much much more snow than you.Don't worry remote start will take care of that.
Seriously though, while a soft top is doable for winters (I've done it), it's hardly ideal. Some folks are kidding themselves about winter and soft top vs hardtop.
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ditching my hard top once I got enough for a proper soft top.
Drove convertibles in winter as well, never had an issue with it at all
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My concern would be the plastic windows. Sub-zero temps are not friendly with soft pliable plastic. For NW Montana it will be a hardtop for me.
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Yep definitely snow/ice/frost, is more of a hassle with soft top compared to hardtop. I use to remove the snow from the soft top when it got too heavy, to avoid over stressing the material.
And you've got to be more careful when cleaning the soft top windows. In fact even non-winter days, getting mud and other grime on the windows, I would always take more care cleaning them, not wanting to have grit scratch the windows.
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