Jeep Enthusiast Forums banner

Homemade tailgate vent? Newer hardtop on older body

11K views 28 replies 12 participants last post by  quadna71 
#1 ·
I have an '01 TJ Sport, and just bought a hardtop off an '04. Bought the wiring pigtale from JeepsareUs, so no issues there. My problem is a lack of vents. I read all the posts on here about pressure, whistling, venting, cracking a window,hvac efficiency, etc., but decided to give it a try anyway ($500 for the top, excellent condition-- couldn't pass that up. I live near Boston if that sounds expensive to you southern gents; crap costs more here, annoyingly). Some people had no issues with no vents, some had all of them, some had a few. I have all of them. The top is seated perfectly, with all door / tub / window seals even and air tight. With no vents, however, when I shut the door it requires decent effort and pops the tailgate window. I can crack a door window when I'm in it, but not when I want to leave the vehicle and have it watertight. And I don't want to buy above-window rain guards. There is no whistling until I turn on the heat or ac above speed 1, after which is forces the rear window open to allow for the as-designed pass-through airflow, and whistles. If I crack a window this goes away, too, but the goal is to not have to crack a window. I could deal with the whistling if that were the only issue, but it's not. If on AC, the air does not blow cold unless i have a window cracked for proper ventilation. If on heat, the air does not blow hot unless a window is cracked. I had read this before, but didn't believe it would be "that" big of an issue. It's incredibly noticeable, like the AC is totally out of refrigerant or my heater core is broken. There's NO cold/hot, but as soon as I put my window down about 1/2", it blasts you with cold/hot (whatever you're running). I'm a true believer now, and need to add some vents. I've read that if on recirculate, you can use your ac, but i havent tried that yet. It's cold here now. I'm also concerned about the possibility of popping my ear drums if the air bag goes off, something I'd read but don't know about. I'd like to assume that the rear window would just pop out like it does when I close my door, but I'd rather not take that chance. Has anyone bought the vent from an '03+ and installed it into the tailgate of an older version? I'd like to cut a hole behind the rear tire carrier on my '01, and pop in the vent from Mopar ("exhauster", part 15, Jeep Wrangler Parts - The Official Jeep Parts eStore offered by Chrysler). I have carpet in my Jeep, so removing the drain plugs in the floor does not work (I tried it). I also removed the four random grommets in the tailgate (1/2"), but that didn't work either. What i'd like to do is cut the sheetmetal and pop that Exhauster in, or go to a boating supply store and buy two vents from them (same idea w/ the louvers). Has anyone done this? Can anyone think of why this wouldn't work? I'll gladly put up pictures of the project afterwards.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I'm one of the ones who experienced the same problems you have. I contemplated the same project you are, but sold that jeep before I tried it. I think I still have the new-style vent... I would let you have for cheap. Were you going to cut some holes on the inside tailgate skin and add louvers?

I would recommend either finding an older top with vents or add vents to the top, instead of the tailgate. I also considered finding a newer style tailgate at the junkyard.

Good luck and post pics if you start hacking something up!
 
#11 ·
Thanks for the post and the offer. I'd rather keep the fiberglass intact to avoid possible stress fractures, plus keep it worth what I paid for it in case I want to sell it to someone who doesn't want vents in it. I'm planning on taking the tire carrier off temporarily, cutting a hole in the tailgate right from the inside to the outside, popping in either that Mopar exhauster vent or a boat / marine vent (something with louvers) and sealing it somehow, putting the tire carrier back on, and calling it a day.
 
#5 ·
^^ im assuming Red but thats just an assumption because of his username.. lol

anyway personally i liked my 97 with a hard top and vents rather then my 04 that has vents in the tailgate.. i find it harder to close the doors in the newer one due to pressure buildup.. just my experience im sharing..
 
#9 ·
Blue with khaki (looks grey) hardtop. Just put up a picture in my profile. I'm probably addicted to Franks Red Hot, thus the username.

I don't mind extra effort closing the door, or even it popping out the back window for a split second while doing so. I just don't want to have to crack a window any time I want heat. New England may not be the Rockies or Minnesota, but it is cold enough that I'd rather not have the windows down if I can help it. Plus that'd just be noisier than necessary. As for the AC, I only use that on hot rainy days in the summer (otherwise use the soft top / no top).
 
#6 ·
I have a YJ/early TJ tailgate apart right now, and I've got a spare 03-06 tailgate vent, so I just compared them for you. Without some tailgate modifications, the later model vent does not appear that it would fit in the earlier tailgate. The main reason is the center recess in the inside of the tailgate - that protrudes far enough into the tailgate that it would interfere with the back of the vent.

However, you need to provide a way for air to get through the inside wall of the tailgate, so if you removed that recess altogether and put a grille of some sort over the resulting hole, then the factory vent would probably have enough clearance to fit inside.

Also don't forget about the ribs on the outside of the tailgate, they will interfere with mounting the vent in the outer skin of the tailgate. Here's a photo showing the outer skin removed, you can see the recesses on the inside wall (sticking up in this photo) and the recessed ribs on the outer wall.



So yes it could be done, some some sheet metal surgery would be required.
 
#7 ·
That's why I asked the color. It seemed to me the easy and best solution would be to aquire a new tailgate in the correct color or next best, get one and paint it.

I have a white one, had a blue one yesterday and who knows, maybe a different color tomorrow.
 
#19 ·
Thank you!

Do the plastic louvers on the outside vent open and close, or are they fixed in position? I'm wondering if I can just add my own to the outside, and cut holes/slits on the inside (so long as I can ensure air has a pathway through the inside of the tailgate, which I can do thanks to an earlier posting of the taken-apart tailgate).
 
#22 ·
There are rubber flaps inside the factory vent. When there is no pressure inside the Jeep, the flaps are closed. When pressure builds up, as in when you shut the door, the flaps open to let the pressure out.
 
#25 ·
I'm in a similar situation. I have the SWAG full tailgate kit installed and the aluminum sheet completely covers the vent hole on the outside of my '03 tailgate. I just installed an '04 hardtop and now have the issues with whistling when the HVAC is running.

Does anyone happen to have the dimensions of the the vent hole on the outside of the '03-'06 tailgate? I'm looking for the size of the hole and also the spatial orientation on the tailgate. Like how far from the top/sides or is it centered exactly. I know I could pull the aluminum skin off and measure but am hoping someone may have it handy. My current plan is to drill a number of downward/outward angled holes in the aluminum panel that will be directly over the tailgate's vent hole. Hopefully this will act as the exhauster and solve my problems. The fallback solution is if that doesn't work then I'll pull it completely off and try cutting a square in the aluminum panel that mirrors the vent hole in the tailgate and then pop my OEM exhauster into that.

I wish the SWAG kit came pre-cut for the exhauster like the Savvy panel does. I'd just go the Savvy panel except the SWAG kit has the tab on the right side for securing the locking mechanism.

So - anyone got the dimensions handy?
 
#27 ·
...My current plan is to drill a number of downward/outward angled holes in the aluminum panel that will be directly over the tailgate's vent hole. Hopefully this will act as the exhauster and solve my problems...
Welp, that didn't do much. I just finished putting in 11 holes in a diamond pattern in the aluminum panel and it still whistles (and wants to pop out the back window when you shut a door. I know that the surface area of the exhauster is exponentially larger than a 3/16" hole repeated 11x but it was worth a shot. I'm thinking of skipping past putting more holes and just going straight to removing the panel and cutting the hole correctly to accept the OEM exhauster. Thankfully my scroll saw should run through the aluminum pretty easily - wish me luck!
 
#26 ·
My second option is to cut the square hole in the tub on the driver's side - vertically and directly to the inside of the wheelwell liner. If I go that route I'd have to cut an adjoining square out of the carpet as well. My thoughts on this is that the wheelwell liner would cover it up from the outside but still allow plenty of air to pass through. I say the driver's side just to keep the vent on the opposite side as the exhaust. I realize the vent is designed for "exhausting" air...but no need to play with chance. Thoughts?
 
#28 ·
I think modification would be very because of the two recesses.

I got a new tailgate off craigslist for 60 bucks to replace my bent up one. It was from an '03 so it has the vent, however the paint was in poor condition, but being I repainted my Jeep with a custom color that's not a problem for me. Might try poking around craigslist.

BTW, anyone know where to buy a new vent? I broke the damn thing trying to get it off for paint....
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top