Driving without doors legality

[yuh67]

so I have a question for all you PA residents. After 3 years of working on my FJ I am finally going through the nessary s*** to get it road legal awaiting some insurance quotes and whatnot can't wait to get it on the road the only question I have is can I drive it without the doors on? Or do i need something there in place of the full door (half doors,tube doors etc)?

 

[JohnnyC]

Legal to drive with doors off afaik in pa ... But... You still need side mirrors... Do you have them on doors or windshield hinge? Side body?

 

[Howard705]

How about the windshield down?

 

[whitey45]

Windshield down ok, if you have eye protection, at least here in cali. Just dont open your mouth for too long, you might get some lunch, ask me how i know!

 

[yuh67]

The mirrors are on the doors but I'm about to order some that attach to the windshield hinge.

 

[hairy_apple]

Windshield down ok, if you have eye protection, at least here in cali. Just dont open your mouth for too long, you might get some lunch, ask me how i know!

Really? I always assumed it wasn't legal to drive with the windshield folded down. I see a guy in a flatfender all the time in town with the windshield down and always thought he was nuts... although it did look fun.

 

[subzali]

Really? I always assumed it wasn't legal to drive with the windshield folded down. I see a guy in a flatfender all the time in town with the windshield down and always thought he was nuts... although it did look fun.

It's only fun up to about 25mph, and then it just becomes work. And loud.

 

[brian]

i could never could get a straight answer about windshield down in pa, so i never tried it.
side mirrors are a gray area. i drove a 77 almost 15 years with no side mirrors. soft top in winter, topless and no doors in the summer. never had an issue getting it inspected. never had any roadside conversions either.
this past summer i had a parking lot conversion with the man, after he decided he needed a few answers about a registration that appeared 40 years out of date. and an inspection sticker 20 years expired.
during the conversation he mentioned the lack of side mirrors was a no no.

 

[fhawk5]

i could never could get a straight answer about windshield down in pa, so i never tried it.
side mirrors are a gray area. i drove a 77 almost 15 years with no side mirrors. soft top in winter, topless and no doors in the summer. never had an issue getting it inspected. never had any roadside conversions either.
this past summer i had a parking lot conversion with the man, after he decided he needed a few answers about a registration that appeared 40 years out of date. and an inspection sticker 20 years expired.
during the conversation he mentioned the lack of side mirrors was a no no.

I did not realize they were still inspecting there. I grew up there and it was a scam.

 

[shelfboy1]

been driving in pa without doors for 44 years now never pulled over ,windshield down is another story they cant see your inspection sticker ,ok if you have antique plates no inspection required

 

[cjgoode]

If you can go without the doors in your state, you can most likely go with the windshield down, but most states require you to have eye protection. We use to put the windshield down in Va and cruise all the time, especially in or after a big snow storm, makes you drive at much lower speeds. No fun at higher speeds, something you will only do a couple of times if you have to go over 35, especially if bugs are around. Seems much worse then driving a motorcycle at the same speed for some reason.

A few years ago my teenager son and I took the cj8 out and he wanted to put the windshield down. At 35 mph, went a few miles and he said that was real cool, and now lets put it back up.

 

[RolandFJ40]

Been driving for years in both PA and NJ without doors and side mirrors... I might try the windshield down this summer

 

[smooth]

Been driving in PA for 35 yrs with no doors in various vehicles. Never had a problem until recently. I've been stopped by PA State Troopers twice recently during the last two summers. Both incidents were late at night and I suspect they were looking for a reason to check for DUI.

Both troopers said it was illegal to drive without doors. They stated if your vehicle came equipped with doors then they must be "ON". They insinuated you wouldn't drive without a hood or fenders? Tried to argue my points while trying to stay out of trouble. In both cases I did not receive a ticket.

One argument is if the vehicle is sold with removable doors as an option then it should be permissible? I'm willing to argue that in court if necessary. Checked the PA inspection regs and there are some "grey" areas although I'm not a certified mechanic.

 

[JohnnyC]

There is plenty of literature showing trucks topless and without doors ... There was a guy who had to goto court several years ago that I helped out with literature/factory pictures that had no doors ... He was successful

Here's one that is the usual to show ... The topless option

There is also the 'factory door straps' that go in place of the doors when they are off... I usually run these when ever the doors are off

 

[shelfboy1]

nice i have that same add in my glove box in a tupperware container since the milcreek cops in erie pa have been pulling over all the newer jeeps without doors .so far they just smile at the cruiser

 

[yuh67]

so i ordered the mirrors that attach to the windshield hinges from cool cruisers and I'm extremely let down. i thought the mirror heads were backed with metal turns out its a s***ty rubber. also the arms are poor quality metal with the coating peeling and blistering off them pretty disappointed

 

[lcwizard]

Certain aftermarket ( Chinese ) knock off's need to be avoided... fuel pumps, hydraulics, mirrors, weather stripping, window rubber, turn signal assemblies, radiators.......anyone with other input? Maybe this needs to be the topic of a stand alone thread....What OEM to buy, what non-OEM to avoid. Email Beno here and buy the Toyota part..money well spent. It will last for 40 years like the original ones did

 

[shelfboy1]

i dont have a photo but the mirror arms off an m 211 or m135 army truck work well and are very strong .i drill and tap the hinge and bolt them on ,a true fst would have the mirrors on the cowl above the side vent a nother surplus item that was probably copied after ww2

 

[Howard705]

I assume that any of these cops mush have all the serious problems with criminals whipped-and towns all cleaned up except for a few loud mufflers...

 

[Fast Eddy]

so i ordered the mirrors that attach to the windshield hinges from cool cruisers and I'm extremely let down. i thought the mirror heads were backed with metal turns out its a ****ty rubber. also the arms are poor quality metal with the coating peeling and blistering off them pretty disappointed

You can still get the originals from Toyota.