Video: Reviewing Mesh Jeep Tops With Extreme Terrain

Jeep owners, are you driving around topless because you want your hair to flow in the wind, only to find the sun roasting you like a chicken dinner? You find your hard top or that vinyl top just too hot? There is an answer to your problems. Have you thought about a mesh top? It combines the comfort of the top for shade with your hair still flowing through the air. Extreme Terrain gives us an inside look at three options offered on their site, and touches on construction, installation, durability and cost as the factors.

The TruShield top, Dirty Dog top, and JTopsUSA top.

First, the TruShield Fullshade top. It’s a budget-friendly top, coming in at about $120. The full-size top covers both front and back seat passengers with one piece of material. This top is made from a PVC polyester material. The outer edging has a single stitch sewn vinyl edge to minimize fraying. The mounting points are metal grommets where you hook the elastic tethers to the roll cage. The center section is secured with a web strap with a plastic slip buckle. It has pockets to store items that you would have stored in the doors and is also a good place to store the tethers and straps when the top is not in use. On the downside, the elastic tethers can stretch after time and the top will flap in the wind as you drive.

Second, the Dirty Dog top. This top is made in two sections. It gives the owners the option to install just the front section for front seat passengers, install just the rear sections to cover kids and/or pets, or both sections to cover both seating areas. It has a more durable holding method by having straps sewn to the top and plastic slip buckles to secure the top on the vehicle. The outer edge is covered with a vinyl cover and double-stitched for a stronger durability to road winds. The front mounts on the outer edges with an elastic cord, which may wear out after time. There are two straps with snaps to attach to the vehicle’s hard/soft top mounts. The great advantage is that this top can remain on the vehicle even while running the hard or soft top. This top comes in about $145.

Last but not least, there’s the JTopsUSA mesh top. This is a one-piece top covering both seating areas. It is built with web edging with double-stitching sewn into the lengths of the edges, as well as a diagonal stitch every few inches for added strength. To add extra strength and optimized wind vibration to the top, aluminum rods are sewn in – one on the front section and two on the back. The middle area uses neodymium magnets sewn into the top, which stick to the Jeep’s body behind the front seats. The mounting straps are web material sewn to the top and use a snap buckle. Lifting them up adjusts the straps; pushing down locks the straps in place. These buckles are designed for a fast install/uninstall. The extra web material slides into a small sewn-in clasp so that they do not flap in the wind.

These are just a few of the tops available on Extreme Terrain. To find out more, be sure to check out their website and Facebook page.

Article Sources

About the author

Scott Spinning

Scott has been freelancing as a motorsports photojournalist for 38 years. he has been published in several national magazines also in a local and national tabloid. He loves the smell of racing fuel and the sound of a large horsepower engine roaring.
Read My Articles