Off-road vehicles such as the Jeep® Wrangler® and CJ® are popular among outdoor enthusiasts because of their rugged build and appearance and their consequent ability to move over terrain where other vehicles cannot tread. In addition, the Wrangler® and CJ® models have open or exposed passenger compartments and an open rear compartment that are typically protected by a roll cage and a windshield. Factory soft tops are available for these vehicles that can be manually attached to the vehicle with snaps or a belt rail system, locking tabs, and the like, to enclose the front and rear passenger compartments. Factory tops, however, are cumbersome to install and can require several minutes for complete deployment.
Often when off-roading, owners of off-road vehicles such as those models mentioned above need to carry provisions, supplies, cloths, and other items for comfort and survival in the wild. While these vehicles have a rear cargo compartment behind the rear passenger seats, this compartment is relatively small and can be inadequate for storage of all the needed gear. The rear passenger seating area, where present, is thus sometimes taken up with provisions and gear, which reduces passenger seating. Further, provisions or gear that are used only at destinations or while camping are often mixed in with items that may need to be accessed while driving, such as water, food, clothing for inclement weather, and the like. This can make the immediately-needed items difficult to access absent advanced planning when packing of the vehicle.
Aftermarket roof or luggage racks are available for off-road vehicles such as the aforementioned Jeep® brand vehicles. Most of these racks comprise metal frames that mount to the vehicle in various ways and that extend upwardly on the outside of the soft or hard top of the vehicle, if installed, to a top platform configured to support luggage, provisions, camping gear, recreational equipment, and the like. Users can strap a large quantity of provisions or gear to the top platform. This preserves the passenger space in the vehicle itself for passengers and for the items that may need to be accessed while driving, and which can be conveniently stored in the vehicle where they are easily accessible. However, one problem with these prior art roof racks is that they are separate from and reside on the outside of a soft or hard top when such a top is mounted to the vehicle. This can make it even more difficult to remove the top when desired and requires that both a top and a separate roof rack be purchased and maintained.
A need therefore exists for a roof rack for off-road vehicles, and especially Jeep® brand off-road vehicles, that provides ample exterior space for strapping provisions when needed and that incorporates its own attachable and detachable soft top so that a separate soft top need not be carried along. The soft top should be easily removed when open-air motoring is desired and storable in a small area when not in use. It is to the provision of a such roof rack with a removable soft top that addresses these and other needs that the disclosure is primarily directed.
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