When the Summer months come around, there's nothing more enjoyable than removing the doors and then removing the soft top from my Jeep and cruising around town.  But sometimes the sun can be a bit much on your skin not to mention your noggin.

Bikini tops, sometimes called "Safari tops" are made of the same heavy duty Haartz fabric used in the soft tops so they can take some abuse.  They're available for most topless vehicles including Jeep CJs and Wranglers, early Broncos and Scouts, early Toyota Landcruisers, Suzuki Samurais and others.

Basically, all you need is a plastic U-grooved channel attached to the top of the windshield and a roll bar.  The front section of the bikini top has a plastic piece that slides into this channel to keep it from flying off the vehicle.

*Note: if you've already got a soft top installed on the vehicle, you won't need another windshield channel as the soft top comes with one.  The only time you'll need to purchase a windshield channel is if the vehicle has only had a hard top.  If you continue to use your hard top in Winter months, you'll need to remove the channel so the hard top can use the same windshield area for attachment.

In some bikini top applications, it attaches (via two straps as pictured above) to footman loops on the rear of the body tub.  There are bikini tops called "strapless" that simply attach to the roll bar via nylon straps that wrap around and cinch down on the bar via metal buckles.  I prefer the strapless bikini (never thought I'd ever utter those words in public) because they don't make as much noise.  You see at a certain speed, those two straps start flappin' around in the wind.  The vehicle already has enough wind noises, why add to it?  Also, I have seen people cut or burn their hands when grabbing the nylon straps.

One thing that the bikini top does do is stabilize the windshield - like a soft top would.  The rear view mirror tends not to shake as much.

As far as finish options go, the bikini tops come in the same factory interior colors to match your soft top, doors and roll bar pad cover - such as black, black denim, spice and nutmeg.  There are other companies that make others like a see-through mesh screening, a pirate flag, a tie-dye design and others.  Some even make matching spare tire covers for those who need to accessorize their vehicle.

A word of caution about the "black denim."  At night, this color looks black but during the day, the color looks more like a dark gray.  Something to think about when planning the color scheme of the tops and doors of the vehicle.

Cleaning the top is as easy as warm soap or dishwashing fluid and water.  Bestop also makes specially formulated cleaners for tops and windows that work as well but cost a bit more in the long run.

All in all, the bikini top is not really necessary when you can remove the windows of your soft top and have a longer "bikini top" in essence.  But the bikini is a quick shade top for any off-road vehicle that takes up very little storage space.  Just make sure to bring along plenty of sunscreen because the bikini is only really effective when the sun is high in the sky.

Bikini tops are available through any off-road store like 4 Wheel Parts or online at Quadratec.com, JCWhitney.com and on eBay.


* * Please visit www.JeepRiver.com * *


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