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Half doors

9K views 31 replies 13 participants last post by  Dirty Backroads 
#1 ·
Is there a place I can buy metal half doors for my 98 wrangler. How much would it cost. Are there cloth half doors I could buy for cheaper. I'm not looking to buy now I would just like some place and info
 
#2 ·
Craigslist is your best bet for factory half doors. They're hard to find and typically quite expensive.

You can find alternatives: tube doors, tube doors with hard siding, soft doors. The major Jeep online retail stores will have listings.

I have Bestop soft doors. The latches are a pain, the uppers flap at high speeds, but I'm glad I have them during the summer (I mostly do without my full doors all summer, the soft doors are useful for bad weather or long trips).
 
#5 ·
Craigslist is your best bet for factory half doors. They're hard to find and typically quite expensive. You can find alternatives: tube doors, tube doors with hard siding, soft doors. The major Jeep online retail stores will have listings. I have Bestop soft doors. The latches are a pain, the uppers flap at high speeds, but I'm glad I have them during the summer (I mostly do without my full doors all summer, the soft doors are useful for bad weather or long trips).
Pics?

I've been flirting with the idea of getting some before summer but haven't asked anyone about them.
 
#13 ·
Keep your eye out on your local Craigslist and you'll eventually find a good deal on factory half doors. Took me about 3 years, but I ended up finding some last fall for $80, in good shape. Then I bought the uppers from a friend for $50.

 
#16 ·
... Just have to be patient and you will eventually find a good deal somewhere... .
I agree.
But have your money ready. When you find a great deal, you have to be ready to jump on it.

I found a set of metal half doors on CL for $300 a few years ago. Painted them to match my jeep.

Summertime, my jeep hardly ever sees my full doors.
 
#19 ·
As for factory half doors. I went through this myself. I sold my factory full doors and wanted good, useable half doors. There are a few options out there. It depends on how close to factory you'd like.

Nothing beats the factory but they are rare/hard to find. Ebay, Craigs List or some used Jeep parts places might have some and they will likely need repainting/refurbishing. Also try the For Sale sections of the Jeep websites (like this one and Jeepforum).

I looked into other options for half doors. The Bestop Highrock Element doors came to mind. These looked like the coolest things! A tubular door that can be built up and used as an actual solid half door complete with a window like the factory (they even have these nice storage bags you can hang off the doors). I was all set to buy this set up but the reviews were terrible. Supposedly they do leak and once they are put together it's a major hassle to take them apart to use as tubular doors. And they supposedly rust, are noisy, etc..And they are NOT cheap. And you can't use them with factory uppers..only the Bestop Element uppers. But they are an option.

HighRock 4x4 Element Doors by Bestop - Quadratec

I also looked at doors like the Warrior half doors which can be used with factory soft uppers. But I was told these make for a poor door to be used day to day on the street and aren't great at sealing out the weather/elements..a lot like the Element doors. Supposedly they are mostly for trail use. Still, they are an option..and a lot cheaper than the Element set up.
Search Results - Quadratec

I was lucky. I found a set of factory half doors about an hour away for $375. They were exactly the same color and the interior panels matched too. I painted the interior panels because it was a bit scuffed up but I'd bet most wouldn't have bothered. The original owner didn't have the key so I also had to have the locks rekeyed to match my lock (about $60 if you bring the cylinders to a locksmith).

My used factory half doors also did NOT have mirrors or hinges. Fortunately I was able to get both from Quadratec...but it added another $150 or so to the price. My $375 doors quickly became $500-600 doors if you add the costs of hinges and mirrors and that's without the upper windows. But they are rust free and match my Jeep and work great so I'm happy.

My factory doors also did NOT come with upper windows. Instead I bought Bestop sliders because I wanted sliding windows and better sealing from the elements. I'm glad I got them. They are quieter than the soft windows (though not as quiet as the full doors) and if you disengage the interior lock (you can only lock/unlock with the key) they are more secure. However they aren't cheap but the money I got for my full doors covered the cost of my used half doors and the sliders. You can often find these used too but make sure they don't leak.
Bestop 51787-15 - Bestop® Upper Door Sliders for 97-06 Jeep® Wrangler TJ & Unlimited - Quadratec

That's pretty much the result of all my research that I did last spring. My advice is to have money on hand and start looking now, before spring when the doorless fever hits, on places like Ebay, Craigs List, parts vendors, etc and maybe you'll luck out.

If you live in a warmer climate, have a garage and invest in a good trail cover you might be able to get away with just using the Bestop 2 piece soft doors all year round. I considered this but I plan to be moving to where winter is a real thing so I invested in the factory half doors. However the cost of a good Raingear Jeep cover to throw over the top and doors is much cheaper than hard doors. They are also much easier to take off and on. The factory half doors are much lighter than the full doors but they are still bulky, especially with the sliders.

You can even buy the latch kit that comes with a keyed lock to make the soft doors more secure (kinda) http://www.bestop.com/products?view=product&id=53

Here's a pic of both my soft doors (you can see the CJ-style relocated mirror here and it can be removed easily) as well as my the used factory half doors with Bestop sliders I installed. I later put the Quadratec factory style mirrors on the upper hinge.
 

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#21 ·
I've gone through the complete cycle as far as half doors go.
My Jeep was as a hardtop only, full door model.
I wanted factory half doors, but were not easy to find for a reasonable price.
I never gave up looking, and finally scored a set last year. Black too!
All my finds were Craigslist or on local Jeep forums.
First find was Bestop soft doors..


A year later I bought a used set of Bestop Element doors with hard skins, soft uppers, and storage bags. They are heavier than factory half doors, and the latches rattled. But, they served me well for many years as my summer trail doors. I paid $400 which is about half the cost of new for everything I got.




I finally found my factory half doors. Paid $200, and came with uppers, tonneau cover, wraparound Windjammer, and a bikini top with header. Score!
Don't stop searching.
 
#27 ·
Yep, full steel doors. I liked those CJ style replacement mirrors. I got a birthday coming up here next month, I do believe I'm going to try and snag those mirrors and some money for the soft doors.
 
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