Jeeps have been around for many decades, and it’s safe to say that they can take a beating. Thanks to clever engineering and premium materials, these vehicles are perfect for off-roading and pushing through mud, snow, bushes, and trees. However, nothing lasts forever, and unless you’re super careful, you’ll end up damaging the stock doors on one of your adventures.
Over time, the paint will “fall off” and you’ll see scratches here and there, making the four-wheeled monster look bad. Good news: a new set of doors won’t cost you a fortune. But wait – how do you remove the factory doors on your own? Is that even possible? Of course, it is! Join me, and I’ll teach you how to take the doors off a Jeep Wrangler!
Step #1: Why Remove the Doors in the First Place?
Before you park the Jeep in the garage, close the doors, and get to it, it’s very important to ask yourself: why do you want to do this? Well, here are the top four reasons:
- The stock doors look (and work) bad. As I mentioned in the intro, while the Jeep doors are very sturdy, they do wear out eventually. Plus, if you’re an avid driver, I bet the doors have had their fair share of collisions with fellow off-roaders, wild animals, sharp rocks, and whatnot. So, if you’re having a hard time opening and closing the doors, that can also be a very good reason to replace them.
- You want to go with tube doors. The factory Jeep doors are very heavy, thick, and, as a result, keep the interior nice and warm. However, when it’s hot outside, and the sun is high up in the sky, the Wrangler’s cabin will feel like an oven. There’s a great solution to this problem: with the Best Jeep half tube doors, you’ll feel the wind in your face and get an extended view of the road.
- To reduce the weight and improve mileage. This one’s pretty obvious: without the doors, the Jeep will weigh less. And, it will get faster and burn less fuel. One more thing: without the doors, it’s gonna be much easier to enter and exit the vehicle. This modification is very popular among professional hunters.
- Local laws demand it. Last, but not least, many US states have very strict laws when it comes to doors. An officer will have the right to write you a ticket or maybe even suspend your license if you’re driving around with damaged doors or if there aren’t any doors on the Jeep, to begin with. That’s right: simply removing them won’t be enough – you’ll have to install a brand-new set.
Step #2: Preparing the Doors
Alright, now that you’ve learned the answer to the question – Why Would I Take the Doors off my Wrangler – it’s time to get to work. Put on a pair of protective gloves, and let’s start with the mirrors. Fold them in so that they don’t get damaged while you’re busy with the doors. I don’t want you to remove the mirrors: just push them in towards the doors.
Next, roll down the windows. This way, it will be much easier to grab the doors. Make sure the windows are all the way down. Otherwise, you’ll run the risk of breaking them and (potentially) hurting yourself. With that out of the way, don’t forget about the safety straps. You’ll find one on each of the Jeep doors. They have one job: to keep the doors in place and prevent them from opening too wide/far. Unhooking these is very simple.
If you’re the proud owner of a high-trim Jeep, I bet it has door locks and power windows. Well, these are powered by a bunch of cables that need to be unplugged. You’ll see a thin black cloth running from the doors to the dashboard. The wire pigtail will have a release – press and gently pull it to free the wires.
Step #3: Getting Down to Business
With the mirrors, windows, straps, and wires “handled”, we can finally move on to the main event and figure out How To Remove the Doors on a Jeep. Each door will be attached to the SUV with a pair of bolts (from the outside). They’re an integral part of the hinges but shouldn’t be hard to remove. First, get rid of the nuts, and the bolts will come off. For most Jeeps, a wrench with a 13mm socket should do the trick. Remember: turn the nuts counter-clockwise!
Now, if you’re planning on using the same doors and hardware later, be very careful not to scratch the paint off the nuts. True, you can always paint them over, but it might actually be pretty hard to find the exact right paint. With the nuts out of the way, there will be nothing preventing you from taking the doors off. Remember we rolled down the windows? Well, put one of your hands through and grab the handle from the inside.
With the second hand, grab the handle from the outside to get a strong grip. The idea here is to pull the door up a bit to free it from the brackets. I have to warn you, however, that Jeep doors aren’t exactly lightweight. The front doors usually weigh +/- 70 pounds (that’s 30+ kilograms), while the rear ones are around 45lbs (20 kilograms). So, if you’ve got a friend that can help you out, that’d be great.
Step #4: Finishing Up
Do you have a set of door hangers in the garage? If you do, that’s great news. But, most of us don’t even have enough space in the garage! So, I recommend using a blanket (just wrap one around each door) and storing them that way. Lay a blanket on the floor, and place the door carefully on top of it. Make sure that you’ve got the exterior side of the door facing up.
Repeat the same process with the second door. Owners of the Wrangler Unlimited will have to do this four times in a row (because it’s a four-door SUV, of course). Wrap all doors in soft, yet thick blankets. Keep the hardware (nuts and bolts) in a tiny box or something like that, in a moisture-free room. Alright, now you know how to take doors off Jeep!
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