I’m a hard top switching to an OEM soft top. Are all of these parts that I need sourceable from the soft top donor or must I purchase any of them on my own?Just did a roof swap on these two today, thanks to your post it went smooth as butter. Appreciate the write up. Cheers
Right but can the soft top donor include them all from his/her own vehicle or must any be purchased from parts?
Remove the Soft Top. Install the Hard Top.
thanks
Does anyone have the part number for the Rear cargo panel with cutout for softtop, on the left side ?Rear cargo cover removed on hardtop
Bolts for bracket behind rear cargo cover
Bracket for behind rear cargo cover
Bracket installed
Rear cargo panel with cutout for softtop, Right Side
I am researching going from HT to ST to HT etc. I saw your ordered the same as me. I just got my Bronco last week. The HT was already on. The ST was in a million pieces stuffed behind the front seats
Right now the ST is stashed in the garage. So it’s been a year for you now. I’m curious to know what you ended up doing? After seeing all the ST parts it seems a bit overwhelming for me to assemble and install.
The top took about 3 hours to completely install. There are a bunch of brackets and I wanted to make absolutely sure everything was right.I am researching going from HT to ST to HT etc. I saw your ordered the same as me. I just got my Bronco last week. The HT was already on. The ST was in a million pieces stuffed behind the front seats
Yes the ST’s are a bit louder than the HT’s and you definitely can’t carry on them. But they are fun in the summer. I’ve swapped tops wicked easy on my Jeeps for the last 30 years. But this is gonna be different with the Bronco. By the time it gets a new transmission (that’s another topic) it should be summer time and I’ll be ready to slap that top on! Thanks for your feedback.The top took about 3 hours to completely install. There are a bunch of brackets and I wanted to make absolutely sure everything was right.
We ran it all last summer and while we really liked it, we ultimately decided to sell the top. The Bronco is my wife’s daily driver. The soft top had a bit more wind noise and it did make the cabin a bit hotter when it was hot and a bit colder when it was cold. Also, my wife wants to be able to carry her kayak with ease. The hard top just fit what we wanted better. Also, if it wasn’t kayak season during the same time as soft top season, we would have kept the top.
Really hope they get this transmission issue fixed quickly! Was really looking forward to swapping tops
Do you know the part numbers for the Rear Cargo Access Panel Covers ?[UPDATED to include the rear cargo panel location reference and frame bolt/bracket section]
[UPDATE2 to include the roll bar brackets and the rear latch brackets]
2 group members decided they wanted to swap tops. For the most part it was pretty straight forward, however there were a few items not covered in the resources I've seen to date. This is largely due to the resources covering top removal, not swapping. There are a few parts that need to be swapped than planned. While not a big deal with a straight swap with both vehicles on site, it is a bigger deal for anyone with a hard top opting to get the soft top. These additional parts would need to be sourced in addition to the top.
Soft Top Side Window Channels:
After swapping the tops and moving on to the victory lap of installing the side soft top windows, we realized that Ford does not include the front side window channel (shown below) brackets on the hard top models:
With window channel:
Without window channel (Note the @GearShade Jeep lurking in the background):
It is a simple 3 bolt swap for each bracket.
Rear Cargo Access Panel Covers:
The final step in the process was to reinstall the rear cargo access panels. When trying to reinstall the panels on the hard top donor, we could not get the panels to fit properly. That is when we noticed the panels are different between the models.
Notice the relief cuts on the bottom covers from the soft top:
The relief area is required for the soft top frame:
Additional noteworthy items:
Frame Bolts and Bracket:
The 3 bolts highlighted were not included in the hard top as well as the bracket the top 2 bolts attached to:
Top bracket location (sorry no pic if the bracket itself):
Roll Bar Brackets:
Both the brackets and the screws will need to be swapped over. These do require some adjustment. Our approach was pretty simple and seemed to be affective. We simply left the screws loose enough to allow for lateral bracket movement. We then closed top and adjusted the brackets to where the top latch and side silver post matched. It took a few ups and downs to get it set. In the end both brackets were pretty much adjusted to the rear as much as they would go.
Rear Latch Brackets:
The 2 rear latch brackets were the last items we needed to swap. They too needed some adjustment. Again we left them a bit loose, closed the top, let them latch and tightened accordingly.
Everyone pitching in @GearShade @mtap:
THE END (FL6G Meetup)
I am planning on buying a soft top from a guy that swapped his OEM soft top for the Bestop one. Does the Bestop soft top use any of the Ford parts? He attached these pics, I am just trying to make sure I have all the parts.
