I have a 98 XJ. Great video. Nice to see other people working on their Jeep. Do you use a microphone? I have made a few videos of my XJ resurrection, your audio is much more clear.
It does let water in but the louvers are slanted so it's not fully exposed. If you have exposed contacts or questionable connections that may be an issue
It's a lot easier to cut metal than it is to put it back, so I wanted to take my time and cut nice even cutouts. If you can do it faster with the same results 👏
No damage, the rain would have to come in from the angle of the windshield for water to get in fully. It does drip but I haven't seen any real issues with it.