Jeep Wrangler Gets a Factory-Approved Flip-Top That's Basically Identical to Ford Bronco's
Open-air driving is an inseparable part of the Jeep Wrangler (or Gladiator) ownership experience. To get a dose of that wind-in-the-hair fun with the comfort and security of a hardtop, Jeep Performance Parts has just rolled out a new partial soft-top kit called the Sunrider Flip Top. Interestingly, it's almost identical to an option you can get on the new Ford Bronco, right down to the name and the manufacturer.
The Sunrider Flip Top is sort of a hybrid setup, with a flip-back canvas roof over the front seats attached to a conventional hardtop from the B-pillar back. Constructed from the same twill material used in high-end convertible tops, the accessory top comes straight from Jeep Performance Parts ready to install. Customers can order the kit for any 2018-2021 Wrangler two- or four-door model, or any 2020 or 2021 Gladiator, and they can even have it installed at their Jeep dealer. The kit comes with an MSRP of $895.
Here's the funny part: Off-roading fans will no doubt be familiar with the "Sunrider" name, as it's been used by aftermarket soft-top and off-road equipment manufacturer Bestop for quite some time. And while the Jeep Performance Parts Sunrider kit doesn't carry any Bestop branding on it, a Mopar spokesperson confirmed that the Jeep aftermarket kit is manufactured by Bestop. Assumedly, the two kits are identical, save for the name brand on the label.
Normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but the Ford Bronco makes things a bit more interesting.
The Ford Bronco Outer Banks Fishing Guide concept appeared on the scene back in August of 2020, rocking a nearly identical Bestop Sunrider top. In fact, current Bronco customers can choose from two versions of the Sunrider combination top through the Bronco accessories page—a $1299 twill top like the one available from Jeep, as well as a lower-priced $1139 vinyl version.
Considering the lengths that both Jeep and Ford have gone to differentiate their off-roaders from one another, it's kind of humorous that they both ended up with near-identical factory-approved aftermarket flip-tops made by Bestop. It seems like Ford got there first, as the Sunrider option has been listed for the Bronco for months, while Jeep is only announcing their factory-backed Sunrider offering today. (Maybe that's why Jeep chose to leave the Bestop branding off their version?) Regardless, we're all in favor of easy, breezy top-off driving, and with more ways to get it, we all win.
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