Carr Hoop II Side Steps; Titanium Silver (07-18 Jeep Wrangler JK)

Video Review & Installation

I'm Ryan from extremeterrain.com, and this is my review of the Carr HOOP II Steps, available for all 2007 and up JKs. These can be installed on either the front or rear door, so if you're somebody who has a four-door, you can get two of these and have steps for all doors on your JK. These are also available in black, silver, and a polished aluminum finish. Today, we're gonna talk through the installation of these steps as well as a few of the features and the way they're constructed.These steps are going to be for those of you who wanna make it easier for you and your passengers to get in and out of your lifted or even stock height JK. These are, of course, going to be a much smaller and more minimalist option than a full-on, more traditional tube step that generally cover from the front tire to the rear tire. These are going to be just a much smaller step. However, these do have the same drawbacks to your traditional side steps. These are going to decrease ground clearance, and you're certainly not going to wanna do any sort of hardcore off-roading with these installed. These are also not going to act as a door ding stopper like a more traditional full tube step would. Unless the person who's opening the door directly into this step, it's not going to protect your rocker from a door ding. However, these are going to be less expensive than those full-on side steps because there is a lot less material here.As far as the way these steps are constructed, these are an aluminum alloy, which makes them light, strong, and resistant to rust, although you could get a little bit of corrosion on them from time to time. These provide 10 inches of stepping surface, and they do have a raised, perforated surface on top, which does give you a non-slip grip in wet or even muddy conditions. Now, one thing to consider about these steps versus a more traditional tubular side step is that these are more of a universal application, and these do require drilling into your Jeep to get them installed. Now, the holes you're drilling are going to be into the bottom of the tub, so if you ever did wanna remove these, you're not gonna have big, gaping holes in your rocker panels. However, you are going to have to drill the body, so that's certainly something you wanna consider. And the brackets that are included in the kit are going to be steel, so even though the step itself is aluminum and will resist rust, while it can still corrode, the steel brackets can certainly rust and could cause an issue down the line if you're somebody who lives in an area where they use a lot of salt on the road like we do.I would give this installation a two out of three wrenches because of the drilling required. The first step is really to assemble the side step with the brackets, and there are two different sets of brackets, one if you're using this on the front door and one if you're using it on the rear door. So you'll assemble the brackets onto the step and then line it up where you want it underneath the Jeep. Again, because you're drilling the holes, there is no predetermined location. You can slide these forward and backward, although Carr does give you some suggestions for where you want them to make it easy to find the step when you swing your feet out and you're getting out of the Jeep. Once you have them lined up where you want them and you make sure that the mounting brackets are on a nice, flat surface, that there's no bolts or bumps in the molding of the rocker that is going to be in the way, you can go ahead and mark those spots, use the center punch, and then drill out the holes. Finally, you'll use the included hardware to get these bolted onto your Jeep. The whole installation is very simple, but, again, I'm gonna give these a two out of three wrenches because there is drilling required. As far as tools go, of course, you're going to need a drill, a good, sharp drill bit, a center punch, and your more traditional hand tools and socket set in order to get these bolted up. I would give yourself around two hours to get one pair of these installed, because like anytime you're drilling or cutting, you wanna measure twice or even three times before you go drilling holes in your body.As I mentioned before, these are going to be less expensive than a more traditional, full tubular side step, and that makes a lot of sense. There's a lot less material here than there is on a full side step that covers from the front tire to the back tire. However, these don't give you as much protection from a door ding perspective, although neither of them are going to give you protection off-road. And in my opinion, I'd rather have a larger stepping surface to get in and out of the Jeep. I wouldn't feel as comfortable limiting myself to just this one little 10-inch step. However, if you like this style or if you just don't like the more traditional side step style, this is certainly an option. And for what they are, I'd say they're a pretty high-quality material. I would like to see the brackets themselves be more of a corrosion-resistant material, but the pricing does seem fair for what you're getting.So if you want a side step that's going to make it easier to get in and out of your Jeep, but you don't want a full, more traditional tubular side step that covers the entire rocker panel, these are going to be an option for you. Of course, you have a much smaller stepping surface, and they're not going to provide the door ding protection of a tubular side step. But if you prefer this design, this is a nice option. So that's my review of the Carr HOOP II Step, fitting all 2007 and up JKs, that you can find right here at extremeterrain.com.