Turn Offroad | Aftermarket Hard Top NOW AVAILABLE

[604Bronco]

Here.

A temp fix.

Thanks!

I like that your towel matches your Bronco colour.

Sponsored

 

[CTwaterfowler]

Thanks!

I like that your towel matches your Bronco colour.

matches my cyber orange lolololol

 

[kingcon99]

Hello everyone again! I wanted to make a post regarding some hard top noises I was having that seems unique to those posted thus far in the thread.

First off, Cole spent 3 pages worth of back and forth with me trouble shooting and offering solutions. Once I was finally able to isolate where the noise was coming from, he assisted with sending a how to video on adjusting the rear glass which ended up being the culprit. If any of you are hesitant to pull the trigger on this top, or anything from this company, DON'T BE. Hands down the best company I have ever worked with.

Anyways, the issue was the alignment on my back window which essentially squished one of the gaskets down too much and was "bouncing" over abrupt bumps on the passenger side. After the troubleshooting I ended up using the below adjustment points with the hinges to manipulate the window as tucked "up" as I could and towards the driver's side. I did have remove the gas struts so that I could freely move the glass around without pressure resistance, which was a helpful tip from Cole.

I also added a little extra padding inside of the gasket on that side with some foam insulation and the sound is gone (for now!). Thanks again to Cole for helping figure it all out!

 

[604Bronco]

adjust the gasket

Sorry, follow-up question: Can you add some context as to what you mean by "adjust the gasket"? I crawled into the back of my Bronco and pushed on the hard top near the C pillar, and alas, have the same issue it seems. This sound doesn't always occur, but it's lower speeds, over bumps, and seems to be temperature dependant too. My hard top isn't bolted down too tight, as I have Rockwerkz thumb bolts, so they're tight enough, but not over tight. But I don't understand the adjusting of the gasket.

Thanks in advance.

 

[BoverW]

Sorry, follow-up question: Can you add some context as to what you mean by "adjust the gasket"? I crawled into the back of my Bronco and pushed on the hard top near the C pillar, and alas, have the same issue it seems. This sound doesn't always occur, but it's lower speeds, over bumps, and seems to be temperature dependant too. My hard top isn't bolted down too tight, as I have Rockwerkz thumb bolts, so they're tight enough, but not over tight. But I don't understand the adjusting of the gasket.

Thanks in advance.

you need to lift the rear section and push from inside.
I still don't think this can solve the problem in the long term, but we will see. These two panels should not be put under pressure.

This sound doesn't always occur, but it's lower speeds, over bumps, and temperature-dependent, too.--> Exactly!! It appears more obvious in the morning when the temperature is low.
I have been tracking this noise for quite some time and after I made some adjustments in the middle of the day, it is gone and I thought I solved it. The next morning, it comes back.

@Turn Offroad.

 

[BoverW]

.... After the troubleshooting I ended up using the below adjustment points with the hinges to manipulate the window as tucked "up" as I could and towards the driver's side. I did have remove the gas struts so that I could freely move the glass around without pressure resistance...

Is it the second figure? I notice that the nylon nut to the back is slightly eccentric, when you tighten the bolt, the rear window will tilt slightly.

 

[604Bronco]

you need to lift the rear section and push from inside.
I still don't think this can solve the problem in the long term, but we will see. These two panels should not be put under pressure.

This sound doesn't always occur, but it's lower speeds, over bumps, and temperature-dependent, too.--> Exactly!! It appears more obvious in the morning when the temperature is low.
I have been tracking this noise for quite some time and after I made some adjustments in the middle of the day, it is gone and I thought I solved it. The next morning, it comes back.

@Turn Offroad.

Thanks. I see where the gasket seems a little caught up on yours. Mine doesn't seem to be bunched up like that along the top, however I can replicate a similar issue from inside the vehicle where the hard top seems to be rubbing against plastic or something, creating that noise at low speed/bumps/corners.

Here's mine:

 

[BoverW]

.... After the troubleshooting I ended up using the below adjustment points with the hinges to manipulate the window as tucked "up" as I could and towards the driver's side. I did have remove the gas struts so that I could freely move the glass around without pressure resistance...

Do you mean the second figure? I notice that the nylon nut in the black box to the back is slightly eccentric, so when I tighten down the bolt, it will tilt the window as well.

 

[BoverW]

Thanks. I see where the gasket seems a little caught up on yours. Mine doesn't seem to be bunched up like that along the top, however I can replicate a similar issue from inside the vehicle where the hard top seems to be rubbing against plastic or something, creating that noise at low speed/bumps/corners.

Here's mine:

hmmm... Looks like your top has better tolerance than mine. Do you notice if noise comes from both sides or only one side? From the figures, it looks like the driver's side ( second figure) may have this noise, the passenger side has plenty of space.

I have noise from both sides, and I did the driver only yesterday. When I drove this morning, the noise was gone. So I think it could work for some time. I know it is painful to do this kind of adjustment (I have a full rack ) Maybe let me test it over this weekend, and report back if it still holds.

The concern is that when you do offroad, the frame will twist again, and the top will move more. It will hit the panel again.

 

[604Bronco]

hmmm... Looks like your top has better tolerance than mine. Do you notice if noise comes from both sides or only one side? From the figures, it looks like the driver's side ( second figure) may have this noise, the passenger side has plenty of space.

I have noise from both sides, and I did the driver only yesterday. When I drove this morning, the noise was gone. So I think it could work for some time. I know it is painful to do this kind of adjustment (I have a full rack ) Maybe let me test it over this weekend, and report back if it still holds.

The concern is that when you do offroad, the frame will twist again, and the top will move more. It will hit the panel again.

My noise is coming primarily from the drivers side. I don't really hear anything from the passenger side.

So how did you fix your one side yesterday? Can you just undo the 3 rear bolts on that side and prop it up just slightly, or do you have to remove all the bolts? After you do that, can you simply use a trim panel tool to get in there and adjust it?

I have a half roof rack on mine, so I don't think I'll need to do anything with that.

 

[BoverW]

My noise is coming primarily from the drivers side. I don't really hear anything from the passenger side.

So how did you fix your one side yesterday? Can you just undo the 3 rear bolts on that side and prop it up just slightly, or do you have to remove all the bolts? After you do that, can you simply use a trim panel tool to get in there and adjust it?

I have a half roof rack on mine, so I don't think I'll need to do anything with that.

Yesterday, I unlatched the targa, unbolted front 2 and back 6 bolts. (but not the rack, my fault). Put down the rear seat, use my shoulder to raise the top by half an inch or so, and use my finger to push the gasket. You have a half rack so it won't be a problem.

I don't think you can do it with a panel tool only, it is right behind the roll bar. Hard to reach and it may puncture the gasket? But you do have a larger gap so maybe you don't need to lift it. I don't know for sure.

Today I unbolt the rack as well, and now it is easier to push the top with my hand.

 

[604Bronco]

Yesterday, I unlatched the targa, unbolted front 2 and back 6 bolts. (but not the rack, my fault). Put down the rear seat, use my shoulder to raise the top by half an inch or so, and use my finger to push the gasket. You have a half rack so it won't be a problem.

I don't think you can do it with a panel tool only, it is right behind the roll bar. Hard to reach and it may puncture the gasket? But you do have a larger gap so maybe you don't need to lift it. I don't know for sure.

Today I unbolt the rack as well, and now it is easier to push the top with my hand.

I just went into the garage and undid the three bolts on the driver side at the back. I was able to lift the top up ever so slightly to wedge something underneath it to keep it elevated. I’m talking like a centimetre, if that.

This opened up the gap above the C pillar, and I tried to use a trim tool to move the gasket. It’s so compressed it really didn’t do anything. But I did take a moment to add some lubricant like you did as well.

We shall see if that did anything. I’m not holding my breath though. I’m wondering if there’s a way to lower that plastic trim piece below the gasket, but I doubt it. I think doing so would allow some water in.

Edit: Well, @BoverW you're definitely onto something. I went for a quick spin around the block to test it out after. And it seems things have improved (for now). I'm not sure if it's the graphite dry lubricant I put in that area, loosening the hard top bolts a bit more, or stuffing a rag into that top corner like you did, but it seemed to help. I'm not thrilled with this, but if it holds up and this fixes it, I'll live with the rag tucked up there. I don't anticipate removing my hard top, other than the targa top during the Summer.

We'll see how the next couple of days goes. Thanks again for at least narrowing this down to the area of concern. Hopefully @Turn Offroad might have a long-term solution, albeit I'm not sure what can be done considering it's sitting on a plastic panel that I don't think can be adjusted.

 

[BoverW]

I just went into the garage and undid the three bolts on the driver side at the back. I was able to lift the top up ever so slightly to wedge something underneath it to keep it elevated. I’m talking like a centimetre, if that.

This opened up the gap above the C pillar, and I tried to use a trim tool to move the gasket. It’s so compressed it really didn’t do anything. But I did take a moment to add some lubricant like you did as well.

we shall see if that did anything. I’m not holding my breath though. I’m wondering if there’s a way to lower that plastic trim piece below the gasket, but I doubt it. I think doing so would allow some water in.

Yes, this top is 'flexible', so a bump could cause deformation and hit the panel, that is my understanding.

I am not sure this solution is worth the effort. It may come back again after a weekend or so. I will be the guinea pig for it. Cole said he would investigate this and update.

Look back to OEM design, they leave a few mms (I like metric, lol) at the corner. Maybe they have tested and know it will happen.

lower than plastic trim--> maybe grind it down as a slope or something?

 

[604Bronco]

Yes, this top is 'flexible', so a bump could cause deformation and hit the panel, that is my understanding.

I am not sure this solution is worth the effort. It may come back again after a weekend or so. I will be the guinea pig for it. Todd said he would investigate this and update.

Look back to OEM design, they leave a few mms (I like metric, lol) at the corner. Maybe they have tested and know it will happen.

lower than plastic trim--> maybe grind it down as a slope or something?

I updated my reply you quoted just now.

I sure hope grinding down that plastic trim piece isn't the solution. I almost want to stuff a tiny piece of adhesive neoprene in that spot, maybe rolled up, to act similar to the gasket. @Turn Offroad uses this stuff on their roof rack to prevent scratching where it mounts to the hard top - Maybe this is a solution that they can test. But it doesn't sound like their hard top is having this issue, so maybe it's not a wide spread concern?

 

[Brisco2]

Has anyone heard anything about the white tops? Saw something a few pages back, but nothing more. Email said May 9 or so for shipping, I thought. @TURN Todd , @Turn Offroad . Think the white top would look great on the Bronco for a lot of us.

Sponsored