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my friend gave me a running 94 cherokee for the price of scrap, and i was looking to have a little fun with it including a metal saw and visions of it being a convertible. it is not a daily driver so if it gets jacked up then no big deal. engine also has 320k miles on it.
just wondering if anyone has cut the top off their XJ before and may have pointers. im not concerned about rolling it and installing a roll cage, its not going to be going far from home and not offroading, its not set up for that. my other jeep is.
i also want to be sure removing the top is safe and wont lead to windshield collapse or other structural issues, which is my biggest hesitation. any one done this kind of thing before? thanks for any input.
my friend gave me a running 94 cherokee for the price of scrap, and i was looking to have a little fun with it including a metal saw and visions of it being a convertible. it is not a daily driver so if it gets jacked up then no big deal. engine also has 320k miles on it.
just wondering if anyone has cut the top off their XJ before and may have pointers. im not concerned about rolling it and installing a roll cage, its not going to be going far from home and not offroading, its not set up for that. my other jeep is.
i also want to be sure removing the top is safe and wont lead to windshield collapse or other structural issues, which is my biggest hesitation. any one done this kind of thing before? thanks for any input.
You cut the roof completely off then a cage is MANDATORY. It'll going to flop around like a wet noodle without it.
You'll be removing 80% of the structural integrity of the body.
A while back there was an episode of Top Gear UK that the guy cut the top off an XJ to make a convertible. He drove it across Alaska.
Looks like it can be done.
It was the US version.
And, while it CAN be done, doesn't mean it SHOULD be done. You gotta remember, they made that show for entertainment purposes only. It may have made it, but what kind of shape was it in when it got there? See, that's the part they don't show...
Don't do it, OP. It just isn't safe, without a full and properly tied in cage.
I used to have a youtube link that I'd post here if was still working. XJ was cut like the one in the pic above, and they drove the front onto a rock for a poser shot, and the floorpan twisted like a burrito. No suspension movement on the other wheels, the floorpan just twisted up to absorb the stress, path of least resistance
05-07-2015, 12:07 PM
making my 94 cherokee a convertible
