Which is the best soft top for D-90?

[bbandit]

I know this may cause a little controversy, but I've only had my 1997 D-90 for a few months (some very cold ski trips this winter I might add). It's a 1997 with 26k miles on it. My son and I love it, my wife and daughter hate it. That's OK with us :-).

I'm about to take the fiberglass hard top off for the summer and was wondering if I should get a different soft top other than the LR soft top that came with the car. I like the look of the Badger bikini top with the door tops, drop curtain, and tonneau cover.

I guess what I'm really looking for is a top I can put up in a hurry if it starts to rain. It seems to me if I take the LR soft top down (off) I will get very wet when it rains.

Are the badger tops easy to get on and off? Are there any other tops that anybody can recommend?

[Glenn_Guinto]

William,

In the summer, we always have the top off on our D90. I keep the surrey top folded in the back since it folds into a small enough square to easily stash behind the seats. When it rains, it's easy to install the top.

Badger stuff is great. Just a little way out of my budget for the D90 at the moment.

Goodluck.

[bbandit]

Glenn,

I live on Long Island. We get a lot of sunny days but we also get our share of rain and cool weather. I just can't imagine showing up to work soaking wet. probably wouldn't sit well with the partners. what about passengers in the back? I would think they get awfully wet with the surrey top

[Burke]

Without a fully enclosed top of some kind, you are going to get wet! I have a surrey, and a bimini, they are pretty much good for shade (and they look cool):) I guess the question is, how wet are you willing to get? One nice thing about the full soft top is that I can roll up and secure the back flaps (or unzip them in your case). This gives you quite an airy feel, and a very quick fix in the rain. Good luck!

[Glenn_Guinto]

William,

I'm not too far from you (NJ), and yes, you are correct, we do get our fair share of rain. Last summer, I always kept an eye out on the weather reports, If I knew there was going to be a torential (sp) downpour, then I put the full softtop the night before. The surrey is just for emergencies when you get caught on the rain. Oh, and I also do not take the door tops off for added rain protection.

On sunny days with the top off, I also flip the seat bottoms facing down so I don't burn my butt when I sit after parking it under the sun for too long. :)

I can also roll the windows on my 94 Tickford softtop easily if I wanted some ventilation.

[Craigd]

After growing up in the midwest where it rains every other day I finally found the solution that worked the best for me. I was tired of putting the top up down up down so I bought a car cover. I used a bikini (bimini for British folks) top to keep of the rain while driving and when I would get to work on goes the car cover. Takes less than 30 seconds to put it on and away I go.

[Ragland]

If your wife and daughter already hate the Defender, you'll end up like a reverse Brady Bunch by riding around with only a bikini or surrey top on during summer rains. Riding in the back seat, it's worse than a day on the log-ride at Disney.

I'd try the suggestion of using the regular top with the roll-ups. Here in south Louisiana we get lots of rain during the summer, so my surrey top hasn't been used very much at all.

[yellowrover]

Craig,
What kind of car cover did you get and from where did you get it?? The springs over here in northeast get wet and i hate having the top on in the spring and summer....but hate having my amp blow up from water so i have to keep the top on a lot :mad , also does anyone know how well the badger coachworks tonneau cover works at keeping water out of the back??

[Craigd]

You can get car covers made for the D-90s at Atlantic British

[ron]

Mike if you use the badger drop curtain with the tonneau the back stays weather tight / no problem.
If you don't have the curtain then water will run to the front of the truck and splash your wet.

William run the surrey top with the drop curtain . both are easy to attached in a hurry and you'll stay moderatly dry if it rains .
Ive run this set up in torrential rains and been relatively dry and my 8 year old daughter and 9 year old niece didnt complain once

[Ntajeep]

The trio of badger bikini, drop curtain, and tonneau work great with me. You might get a little rain coming in from the sides so be picky when you park, face into the wind!!!! When I drive out when it is raining, i have the windows in and that leaves a three inch slot where water can come in, but going at any speed completely negates the opening. The stock bikini attaches like the soft top and even with the windows in the water will follow the curve of the top and drip into the car and on your legs. The badger goes all the way outside of the roll bar so the water drips off at that point.

Hope this helps!

-Matt

[bbandit]

Thanks for the advice guys. I think I'm gonna try the badger combo that Matt mentioned. Anybody know what the prices are for the badger bikini, drop curtain, and tonneau? I've called and e-mailed a couple of times but haven't gotten a response yet.

[Ragland]

Badger is not a large operation like Bestop, so maybe they're out of town. The owner is friendly to chat with, and seems honest about delivery times given whatever backlog might exist. I've had decent luck with my Tickford top, but he'll be the one to re-make it soon.

[bbandit]

I just got a very nice e-mail back from Badger. Apparently he was sick for a while and then was playing catch up. Got all the info tho. thanks for help.