OK, I've finally got this thing installed and so I want to write a little review for you all.
I bought one for my truck about a year ago, and finally installed it last week. I ordered the Puma version because it looked better, and it seemed like the angle on the uprights would provide a bit better shoulder room for both front and rear passengers.
The installation process was really not too bad as long as you have some nice sharp drill bits, and as long as you really take the time to install, measure, uninstall, measure, install, drill, measure, uninstall, measure, drill, install, measure....... I did almost all of it by myself, but it was nice to have someone to hold things once in a while. Also, using a ratchet strap and clamps helped me twist and fold it into place while doing the fixing. Also, I was trying to juggle the installation of new trim, new seat belts, and I was hoping to pull and refurbish my rear windows all at once. This kept me hung up for a while.
However, only after getting it installed did I realize the full drawbacks to this modification. As if the rear seats in the Defender weren't a bit too high already, once the roll cage is installed, there is no longer any room for rear passengers who are over 5.5 feet tall. Kids would probably not notice. But any medium to tall adult will instantly realize that the side of their head only has about 1" of clearance, and that even a pot hole would produce a nasty bump on the head.
Of course, padding will need to be installed at this particular spot. However, this will mean that an adult will be in contact with the bar/padding at all times, not just when there is a bump.
I installed the roll cage thinking I was making the truck a bit safer for my family, but now I really can't take any rear passengers at all. The roll cage does have the benefit of stiffening the body a bit, my doors close better, and with less rattle. And it is nice to have something in the truck that is really solid.
From the two front seats the roll cage makes no real difference unless you happen to be one who pushes the seat all the way back for a driving position.
This is giving me incentive to try to get some high back seats installed as I have long thought of using a set of front seats, lowering them a bit, and mounting them just an inch to the inside -- based on my testing with the roll cage, this would make a huge difference, and possibly even make it easy for adults to ride back there without a second thought.
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bhcmbailey/30129973748/in/dateposted-public/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/934/30129973748_ae58769518_z.jpg" width="640" height="264" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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I bought one for my truck about a year ago, and finally installed it last week. I ordered the Puma version because it looked better, and it seemed like the angle on the uprights would provide a bit better shoulder room for both front and rear passengers.
The installation process was really not too bad as long as you have some nice sharp drill bits, and as long as you really take the time to install, measure, uninstall, measure, install, drill, measure, uninstall, measure, drill, install, measure....... I did almost all of it by myself, but it was nice to have someone to hold things once in a while. Also, using a ratchet strap and clamps helped me twist and fold it into place while doing the fixing. Also, I was trying to juggle the installation of new trim, new seat belts, and I was hoping to pull and refurbish my rear windows all at once. This kept me hung up for a while.
However, only after getting it installed did I realize the full drawbacks to this modification. As if the rear seats in the Defender weren't a bit too high already, once the roll cage is installed, there is no longer any room for rear passengers who are over 5.5 feet tall. Kids would probably not notice. But any medium to tall adult will instantly realize that the side of their head only has about 1" of clearance, and that even a pot hole would produce a nasty bump on the head.
Of course, padding will need to be installed at this particular spot. However, this will mean that an adult will be in contact with the bar/padding at all times, not just when there is a bump.
I installed the roll cage thinking I was making the truck a bit safer for my family, but now I really can't take any rear passengers at all. The roll cage does have the benefit of stiffening the body a bit, my doors close better, and with less rattle. And it is nice to have something in the truck that is really solid.
From the two front seats the roll cage makes no real difference unless you happen to be one who pushes the seat all the way back for a driving position.
This is giving me incentive to try to get some high back seats installed as I have long thought of using a set of front seats, lowering them a bit, and mounting them just an inch to the inside -- based on my testing with the roll cage, this would make a huge difference, and possibly even make it easy for adults to ride back there without a second thought.
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bhcmbailey/30129973748/in/dateposted-public/" title="Untitled"><img src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/934/30129973748_ae58769518_z.jpg" width="640" height="264" alt="Untitled"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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