Why Do Some Jeeps Have A Fold Down Windshield?

The modern Jeep Wrangler is one of the last truly modular cars on the market today, thanks to its convertible top, removable doors, and body-on-frame construction. Few other vehicles match this (though they're out there, like the new Ford Bronco), but one feature unique to the Jeep is the ability to fold down the windshield. It's a characteristic native to the platform since its inception, with even the very first prototype equipped with a folding windshield. But why bother engineering this windshield in the first place, and what's the point of it today?

Well, the reason for the folding windshield actually dates back to the original requirements set by the U.S. Army, which specifically requests that the Jeep be so-equipped. The main reason behind this decision has to do with its exterior dimensions – folding down the windshield is an excellent way to lower the Jeep's overall height for shipping overseas and airborne transport. These early Jeeps were designed to fit into powered aircraft and gliders, deploying with paratroopers during various airborne operations. The folding windshield was integral in making the Jeep's silhouette compact enough to adequately perform these tasks.

As for why it stuck around, the CJ actually continued its military service as the M38A1, or the Jeep MD. This truck retained the folding windshield, this time opting for hinges on the frame rather than the original's two swinging arms. From there, Jeep simply carried the feature over to the civilian version — whether because of its tradition, coolness, or fun-factor (or all three) is anyone's guess. But nowadays, it's almost certainly to pay homage to that longstanding heritage and classic Jeep silhouette.

Every open-top CJ-derived Jeep features a fold-down windshield, a time-honored custom dating back 85 years now. Folding the windshield down remains a fairly common practice among enthusiasts today, and it's remarkably easy in older models. On CJs, all you need to do is remove a couple of bolts by the windshield's base and fold it down. Then just fasten the windshield down to the hood's attachment point. As for the YJ and TJ, the windshield is mounted on a locking hinge that uses the roll bar as a top anchor – removing these, along with the wipers on the TJ, are essentially the only additional steps Jeep added.

Generally-speaking, the older the Jeep, the more straightforward this process is. Original Jeeps simply had two curved arms holding the windshield that rotate on pivots; hinges didn't appear on civilian models until the 1955 CJ-5. These machines only have two locking bolts, essentially carrying over the design of the body tub from the military M38A1 variant. As such, these early CJs more-or-less mark the final remnants of the fold-down windshield being used for its original intended purpose, since at the end of the day, these were the last Jeeps in-service alongside the Ford M151 before the Humvee's introduction. In civilian circles, however, much like the removable doors, folding the windshield has no functional purpose beyond the thrill of open-air driving, as good of an excuse as any for many enthusiasts.

The process of taking down the JK's (2007-2018) windshield reads like its own instruction manual, and by the end of it you'll have no less than eighteen bolts per side and the two nuts holding the wipers on. To boil it down, it involves removing the six retaining bolts on the exterior, the six bolts holding the plastic trim in-place, and six more bolts fastening the roll bar's front body, plus the wipers themselves. This can take roughly an hour, depending on your proficiency and tools. So it's not worth the hassle for many owners, especially considering how often bolts seemingly grow legs and walk away. As for why the process became so convoluted, that's likely – at least in-part – due to the fact that the Wrangler boasts the highest rollover fatality rate of any convertible in the US. So a more rigid crash structure certainly couldn't hurt.

As for the JL (2019-present), it doesn't immediately look like it, and there's likely a few Jeepers who got turned-off to the notion of folding down the windshield after the JK's tedious procedure. But yes, it's still possible to fold down the windshield, and the process is thankfully far simpler than the JK's. After removing the wipers, there's just four bolts holding the windshield in-place located at the roof-line: two on either end, and two mounted on either side of the rearview mirror. You still have the rollbar and pillars in-place even if the windshield's folded, but the added safety is always welcome, especially on trails.