Land Rover ideas for Jeeps

[m-l_johnny]

Today's Land Rover idea for a Jeep - stronger body panels?

In the first photo in my last post, the owner of the featured vehicle is pictured standing on the bonnet (hood) of his Defender. Anyone want to try that with their Wrangler hood? Definitely not me. Photos of people standing or sitting on their Land Rover appear all the time in the magazines, I guess the Land Rover body panels are stronger than Jeep panels.

Almost every issue of both of the Land Rover magazines I subscribe to has one or more photos of people standing or sitting on their Land Rovers.

I stood on my fiberglass flat fenders to test how strong they are but it isn't something I do every day. I definitely wouldn't do this with Jeep factory fenders...

Would be nice if the Jeep factory panels and roof were a bit stronger like the Land Rover panels.

Who says ya can’t sit on a Jeep?

 

[pith helmet]

I posted this earlier in this thread (https://expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/land-rover-ideas-for-jeeps.218029/page-16#post-2840590):

The problem with that idea is that the Jeep's roll bars would restrict how much usable width you'd have in the pop-out.

There was also a few similar Jeep ideas in that post.

Another one I posted early in this thread (https://expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/land-rover-ideas-for-jeeps.218029/page-5#post-2829242):

I liked that idea so I built one:

Actually I built two - a first prototype sewed using a cheap Harbor Freight tarp, and the version above made with nicer canvas.

Thanks! I remember seeing the red one but couldn't remember where. I have some extended outdoor space, but it would be interesting to see what could be done with fabric, minus the roll bars. We have had the rear seats out of our JKU for a few years now. If I didn't think we might need them again at some point, I would be interested in redoing the roll bar to only cover the front seat area.

 

[pith helmet]

I would settle for the high top in fabric or fiberglass.

 

[jscherb]

I would settle for the high top in fabric or fiberglass.

When I designed the JK/JKU Safari Cab hardtop, I planned for alternate hard or soft roofs. The images below show the Safari Cab sides and structure without the hard roof installed along with a concept drawing of a soft roof. I was thinking a taller hard roof might be an option, or as in the images below, a soft roof that would be similar to a tonneau cover. A high soft roof would also be possible.

Also part of the design was a hinged hard roof like an Ursa Minor.

I haven't built any of those options but I did the design work so all of the options would be possible.

It's really too bad that the factory hardtop is one piece; if they had only done a separate roof panel like the Land Rover Series and Defenders

 

[pith helmet]

When I designed the JK/JKU Safari Cab hardtop, I planned for alternate hard or soft roofs. The images below show the Safari Cab sides and structure without the hard roof installed along with a concept drawing of a soft roof. I was thinking a taller hard roof might be an option, or as in the images below, a soft roof that would be similar to a tonneau cover. A high soft roof would also be possible.

Also part of the design was a hinged hard roof like an Ursa Minor.

I haven't built any of those options but I did the design work so all of the options would be possible.

It's really too bad that the factory hardtop is one piece; if they had only done a separate roof panel like the Land Rover Series and Defenders

neat concept. i thought i saw a JLU in my town like that the other day. it was a white hardtop that was black on top. i have heard of people painting the black top white for heat, but couldn't imagine anyone, in Mississippi no less, going from white to black paint. i like to ride in the shade if on 4 wheels, though.

 

[jscherb]

A new product from Norway featured in the March 2022 issue of Land Rover Monthly, shown on a new Defender:

This anim image is from the company's web site (https://www.dropracks.com/):

It's not available in the U.S. yet but the company says they have plans to come here. Not sure how this would adapt to the Wrangler, the fragile hardtop would probably require exocage style mounting.

 

[Paddler Ed]

^That style of rack has been around for a few years in the UK for paddlers - a mate's relatives founded Karitek many years ago (getting onto 20+ years ago)

Kari-Tek Roof Racks - easy-load roof racks for diverse vehicles & loads

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www.teal-es.co.uk

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Roof racks. Cradles. Straps. Trailers. Racks. Clothing. Sea kayaks. kayaking gear. Recreational boats. Used gear. Find it all in one place, online or in our Ayrshire showroom.

www.argyllkayaks.co.uk

 

[wildorange]

New Defender drop down rack will only be from LR approved suppliers despite variations been around for a while.

Might be prudent asking a friendly US 4X4 / LR4 dealer or similar who'd they recommend.

Sent from my SM-T555 using Tapatalk

 

[Lt Dan]

A new product from Norway featured in the March 2022 issue of Land Rover Monthly, shown on a new Defender:

This anim image is from the company's web site (https://www.dropracks.com/):

It's not available in the U.S. yet but the company says they have plans to come here. Not sure how this would adapt to the Wrangler, the fragile hardtop would probably require exocage style mounting.

FYI

Best Rooftop Kayak Carrier For Sale | Single Person Loading

EZ Rec Rack HD offers the simplest way for one person to load their kayak onto the roof of their vehicle. Nothing else like this on the market. The new and improved version, the HD (Heavy Duty) offers the same reliability of our patented system with increased strength, ergonomic design and even...

www.ezrecreationalracks.com

Lt Dan

 

[jscherb]

The Spring issue of Land Rover Owner showed up the other day and this item was featured in it:

They mount on the roof and provide a waterproof way to seal electrical cables running through the roof.

I looked them up on the company's web site:

There are a few other variations, this is the manufacturer's page: https://www.scanstrut.com/marine/power-boat/cable-seal/horizontal. They seem to be intended for the marine market, but using them on a Land Rover roof is a good use for them too. They are available on Amazon.

I found these especially interesting because I recently finished implementing something similar on my Jeeps. Mine are form-fit to the ends of the XJ Cherokee racks I have on my Jeeps, and unlike the ones above, I designed mine to have a 2-pin SAE plug so whatever is powered by them can be unplugged and removed from the roof, for example lights on a roof rack.

On my JKU:

On my (currently road salt encrusted) LJ:

 

[shays4me]

Very clean! These would work well for a solar panel as well.

 

[jscherb]

Very clean! These would work well for a solar panel as well.

I use them for both my solar panel and any lights I might have mounted on the rack at the time. Since I only put the rack on a Jeep (the same rack gets used on both my JKU and my LJ), the power connections are perfect for quickly configuring whatever electrical devices I want to put up there.

In this photo, taken right after I finished installing the power connections on the JKU and was testing them, the solar is charging the kitchen battery through the pod connection on the driver's side and the lights are powered through the pod connection on the passenger side.

The solar panel slides out from under the rack and plugs into the driver's side power connection. On the inside of the Jeep, each power connection runs to the bottom of the B-pillar, where there's another 2-pin SAE connector, which is used to either provide power (in the case of lights on the rack) or route power to the solar controller in the back.

The photo above doesn't show the solar panel very well, here's a video taken earlier showing how the solar panel stows and deploys...

 

[jscherb]

It seems that there's an app for everything these days (from a recent issue of Land Rover Owner)...

I did a little searching and it turns out there are a bunch of similar apps, here's one I came across:

I guess if you're extremely stuck, something like this could be useful to calculate the best way to winch out. I'll have to give one of them a try, although I must not be trying hard enough - the few times I've been stuck extraction has been pretty straightforward.

 

[jscherb]

From a recent Instagram post by Exmoor, for Defenders and Series Land Rovers - front-facing fold-up seats for the cargo area.

Here's what Exmoor says about them:

Designed for easy installation and simple operation, our new Loc and Fold is a sturdy forward facing, folding seat offering great levels of comfort and leg room for all ages.

When not in use, it locks securely away on top of the wheel arch with minimal intrusion into the load area.

I wonder if there would be a market for something like this for Jeeps? Most Jeeps probably don't have enough room in the cargo area for something like this if the factory back seat is in place, but with the back seat out perhaps these could serve as occasional use rear seats if you don't keep the factory back seat in the Jeep.

 

[jscherb]

It's not uncommon to see photos in the Land Rover magazines of Defenders with two spares on the back:

I don't think I've ever seen that on a Jeep in this country. I did a search and came up with one bumper/spare carrier that carries two spares, but it's in Australia (https://www.outbackequipment.com.au/twin-rear-spare-wheel-carrier-to-suit-jeep-wrangle)

Not sure I'd really want all that weight hanging off the back of the Jeep, but there aren't many places in a small Jeep to carry more than one spare anyway.

I usually carry two spares on off-road expeditions, not because I expect two flats, but because I don't want to interrupt my plans to get a tire fixed or buy a new tire. With two spares I can keep to my plan if a tire gets damaged; with only one spare I'd have to solve the problem before continuing.

Usually I carry the extra spare up top:


Hard to carry an extra spare up top when the RTT is up there so if I need to carry one with the RTT is ends up inside, which isn't ideal.

On my trip up the Dalton Highway in Alaska, I carried 3 spares because it's said that lots of random metal fall off the trucks traveling the Dalton and flats are very common. I did get a bolt in one tire on the Dalton but it held air until I got back to Fairbanks.