Hard vs. Soft top

[Broganbms]

If I had a heater and a aftermarket AC which would be better for temps between 20 degrees and 110 degrees?
Which would be better for highway noise?
Which are harder to maintain?
Which leaks the least?
Assuming I had stock full doors, pre-75 cruiser, and a soft top like this.

Thanks guys

 

[brian]

hard top for the win, all day long, twice on sunday

 

[G-Cat]

If I had a heater and a aftermarket AC which would be better for temps between 20 degrees and 110 degrees? HARDTOP
Which would be better for highway noise? HARDTOP
Which are harder to maintain? SOFT TOP
Which leaks the least? HARD TOP
Assuming I had stock full doors, pre-75 cruiser, and a soft top like this. OEM-Style Soft Tops are awesome
Which is harder to find? HARD TOP

 

[flee]

I've had both and I'm currently looking for a hardtop to put on my 40.

 

[Catching Neutral]

Your going to get opinions on both sides. My first 40 had a hard top which I took off in March and put back on In November. But I live in Florida where we have a 30% chance of rain on most summer days. So it limited the days that I could drive it to work. My current 40 has a hard top Which I plan on replacing with a soft top next year. Super hot in the summer. I love the look of the hard top but I am more interested in having a set up which will allow me to make it more of a daily driver and I love the wind in my hair feeling. You have to ask yourself how you plan on using it. If I lived in the northeast or out west I would probably wouldn’t consider taking the hard top off.

 

[Mopdog]

OEM soft tops look best to me. That said, if you have AC the Hardtop is the way to go. 100 plus degrees with a hardtop is special kind of uncomfortable.

 

[DangerNoodle]

With heater and A/C hard top all the way. It's quieter, less leaky, and will allow you to either heat or cool the cabin much easier.

 

[cruiserkev]

As much as I admire the FST look, the hard top is the most useful and secure option. Mines on from November to April most years. Bikini top for me most other months.
Damn, it's November now, time to get it back on.....

 

[Broganbms]

Thanks guys, decided it was worth trying to find a hardtop.

 

[Frikkadel]

Wish I could drive mine with no top (or maybe a bikini top which is not available here) year round, but in a place with long wet winters it is just not practical.

 

[mattcamp]

I have a soft top year round. The older I get, the more I think I should finish repairing my hard top.

 

[FJCowboy]

I have a soft top and bikini top, full hard doors, soft doors, and soft half doors. It is not a DD, but it gets driven. I've been rocking the half doors and bikini top for over a year and don't foresee me going back anytime soon. As mentioned the point (IMO) of a 40 is to have the wind in your hair. Yes, there have been cold wet days, but I always keep a set of clothing in the rig for when that happens. The other thing worth mentioning with hardtop is they can be tricky to get on and off. It all depends on your set up, storage, overhead lift, helping hands around the house, etc. I think I will try and find a hardtop eventually and would probably run it with the half doors. Just my .02 for the morning.

 

[Suntreemcanic]

The hard top is a lot of work to take off and finding a place to store the top but the doors come off real easy. We drive it that way during the summer and that gets the wind in your hair.

 

[bhsdriller]

Hardtop even with how hot it is and no AC.

Given that I pretty much park mine in the summer. Would probably be my last choice for a daily driver here either way

I kind of think soft tops are ugly

 

[Living in the Past]

Wish I could drive mine with no top (or maybe a bikini top which is not available here) year round, but in a place with long wet winters it is just not practical.

Would be interested in knowing more. I know engine swaps, seat changes and seat belts have to be inspected and certified in Australia. If a cruiser is a hard top does that mean you can't remove the top?

Think what is missing with responses is location. Certain parts of the country running with a soft top year round would be ridiculous. Bought a new Kayline top for factory bows in the mid nineties. Even during the summer at 7,000' in north half of Arizona needed to unroll the sides and back window in the afternoon when it started to cool down because the windows were getting stuff. Can't see a soft top lasting very long in a climate where it gets below freezing at night and warms up well above freezing during the day. Northern Arizona is used to test new types of pavement. Extreme cold is bad but huge temperature swings daily is just as hard things. I have homes in the desert area and pines trees in Arizona if I had to choose just one if would be a hard top.

 

[brian]

I would go hard top in early 40s... I HATE the 75+ ambulance doors. They provide the worst blind spot dead middle. I never liked it on my 75.

And that is why this setup is the greatest.

 

[Ocho77]

And that is why this setup is the greatest.

View attachment 2484360

I’d love a hard top with my tailgate. Nice setup!

 

[Living in the Past]

And that is why this setup is the greatest.

View attachment 2484360

I’d love a hard top with my tailgate. Nice setup!

My 73 FST came with a hard top when I bought it. Purchased a tailgate my 68 FHT years ago I never installed. Have everything ever offered in the US market.

No combo is perfect. While the ambulance doors pillar block the rear view mirror it's the only setup the passengers in the back can grab and handle and just let themselves out. Want to grab something in the back ambulance doors make it easy. Soft top could unzip the back. Hard top with a hatch have to open the spare to open the hatch. Tailgates are nice to a place to sit but have to reach over them to get into the back. All have an advantage and disadvantage.

 

[Ocho77]

My 73 FST came with a hard top when I bought it. Purchased a tailgate my 68 FHT years ago I never installed. Have everything ever offered in the US market.
View attachment 2484387View attachment 2484388View attachment 2484389View attachment 2484390View attachment 2484392
No combo is perfect. While the ambulance doors pillar block the rear view mirror it's the only setup the passengers in the back can grab and handle and just let themselves out. Want to grab something in the back ambulance doors make it easy. Soft top could unzip the back. Hard top with a hatch have to open the spare to open the hatch. Tailgates are nice to a place to sit but have to reach over them to get into the back. All have an advantage and disadvantage.

Love that pollux orange...my favorite color!!!

 

[brian]

I ran a soft top for years....they look cool.
I would never go back to one.