Road Noise: Hard Upper Half Doors vs Full Doors
- Thread starter deadbeat son
- Start date
KennethS
TJ Enthusiast
I agree, hard top and full doors is the way to go for highway travel. I have driven both soft top/full doors and hard top/full doors and the difference in highway noise is dramatic. I barely ever used the radio with the soft top, but with the hard top it's quiet enough to actually listen to music.
Something that really helps with a soft top is to turn the fan on when all the windows are closed. The fan will pressurize the passenger compartment so the top and windows balloon out, and that prevents them from flapping. I saw another Jeep on the highway one day and the top and windows were sucking in and flapping. I realized my soft top was flapping just as much as that other one, and switching the AC from recirc to normal made the top balloon out and the flapping stopped.
Something that really helps with a soft top is to turn the fan on when all the windows are closed. The fan will pressurize the passenger compartment so the top and windows balloon out, and that prevents them from flapping. I saw another Jeep on the highway one day and the top and windows were sucking in and flapping. I realized my soft top was flapping just as much as that other one, and switching the AC from recirc to normal made the top balloon out and the flapping stopped.
Does soft top material and brand play a role in road noise?
I may be switching to a soft top soon and wasn't expecting it to be that bad.
C.J. Roberts
TJ Addict
As much as I love the Muddog, I'll never take him on any trips. I drove him from Arizona to Ohio and back twice. NEVER again. After 10 or so hours in a TJ, I really appreciated getting into the motel at the end of the day. Not to mention the fuel mileage, or lack thereof.
The last two times I made the trip, I took my truck, a 2006 Mitsubishi Raider, which is a Dodge Dakota with different sheetmetal. SOOO much nicer. And the mileage was half again better. 17 vs 12 MPG.
The Muddog is my daily driver, but if I ever travel again, I'll drive something else.
I think what you’re looking for is a hard top LJ
Do LJs feel any different on roads than a regular TJ?
I haven't personally compared them side by side, but I've heard that LJs ride nicer due to the longer wheelbase.
I can’t tell a difference in noise between my bulldawgs and the factory full doors but then again my bestop twill soft top is noisy. If there is a difference then it would be more apparent with a hardtop.
The inserts aren’t a big deal to install and they are threaded. This makes the bulldawgs installed very rigid which is nice. They use a large flat screwdriver bit to remove and install which is a little annoying if you are using an impact driver because the bit jumps out easy if you don’t have a steady hand.
All in all I love mine and don’t anticipate ever changing to a different door setup.
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That's what I assumed. Driving 6 hours to and from school with all of my crap a few times a year doesn't sound particularly enjoyable in my Jeep, but it seems bearable in an LJ.
OP
Thanks for the tip! Good to know that the hard top with hard doors is so tolerable; that may be the route I'll go, but I'll have to decide whether to add AC as well, or just get a different TJ altogether.
I've taken the TJ on some trips, but it's exhausting to drive for long durations due to noise. At least I upgraded the seats so my back doesn't hurt like it used to afterward.
Thank you, I appreciate the additional perspective on the Bulldawg uppers!
OP
Yep, Red Rocks next year so I can get my outdoor leadership associates for cheap, and then Fort Lewis for my bachelor's.
I have a built LJ with soft top, half doors with soft uppers. I also have a near stock TJ with full doors and hard top. So not really a direct comparison...
Though I find the TJ to be a bit bouncy on KYB shocks. It's quite compared to the LJ and no wind noise. Though my wife says the engine is loud.
The LJ is much smoother because of all the money in suspension, but it's MUCH louder because of the soft top and uppers. MT tires don't help either.
I do have tinnitus and poor hearing because I had cancer/chemo about 12 years ago. Hearing wasn't that good before that anyway. So the noise doesn't bother me much. Just makes it so I can't hear much while the Jeep is moving. I might be taking a road trip to WA this summer in the LJ, 19 hour drive one way. I will probably borrow the full doors from the TJ even though it will look a bit funky since they're different colors.
I'd say a five or six. On the plus side, visibility with the Bulldog uppers is reasonable. As for tools, just a large screwdriver is needed, but swapping isn't necessarily easy.
OP
This is a very personal choice, but I drive my Jeep an hour one way routinely. I put away the 1/2 doors for the last 2 years and don't miss them. However, when I wheel it's with trail doors.
The noise doesn't bother me too much either. It's mainly just ride quality, legroom, and storage.
I have half doors and full doors; Bestop sliding glass half door uppers and Bull Dawg half door uppers; and a Bestop soft top and Mopar hard top for my TJ. I run the soft top with the half doors and Bestop uppers most of the time. If I put the hard top on, I put the full doors on too. The BD uppers are nice and work fine, but if I am going to switch to the hard top I prefer the full doors. The BD uppers are quieter than the Bestop uppers, and the full doors are slightly quieter than the BD.
If you can find matching full doors, then I would skip the BD uppers (I had the BD uppers before I found the matching full doors).
If you can find matching full doors, then I would skip the BD uppers (I had the BD uppers before I found the matching full doors).
OP
Another vote for the full doors, thanks for taking the time to provide your insights!