replacing your convertable top (Page 1/2)
currie68 SEP 24, 08:35 PM
any body ever replace a convertible top. can you give me any good tips.
its a 86 chevy cavalier

[This message has been edited by currie68 (edited 09-24-2012).]

jaskispyder SEP 24, 08:57 PM
It would help if you told us which car.

BTW, it is "convertible" (that will help future searches here on the forum)
currie68 SEP 24, 09:02 PM
thanks sometimes i type to fast. it wont let me edit the heading
Monkeyman SEP 25, 06:01 PM
Make sure the new top is warm before you try to install it. It wouldn't hurt to lay it as flat as you can in the sun (on a hot day) all day before you start.
carnut122 SEP 25, 07:25 PM
I replaced one on my 95 Mustang GT. Make sure you take lots of before pictures, Get measurements (from the rear edge of the windshield) of the location of every cross brace. Also, get measurements of where the rear window is located (up from the trunk). Is the window on a separate "panel" of fabric like my Mustang? If, so, it probably attaches on the next forward cross brace. Finally, the top will stretch and you don't want it to be baggy, so you'll have to attach the front of it shorter than you'd think. Take your time disassembling it especially since you'll have to reuse things such as the tack strips that the staples go into (if it's like my Mustang). If it has an inner acoustic liner (like my Mustang), it will double the difficulty level. Although it will seem like a simple task, it took me two days. I could do the next one in a day.
currie68 SEP 25, 08:35 PM
thanks guys, It doesnt have the inside liner..thought i was going to be able to wait
till next summer but its coming apart
kyunderdawg SEP 25, 09:40 PM
Go to www.j-body.org and contact a member named Paul94Z28. I'm almost 100% sure that he replaced his top on his own. If I have him mixed with someone else, I'm sure he definitely knows some one there that has. Heck, for that matter go there and get registered. They have a "First Gen" only section. Those guys are pretty helpful too.

Paul

[This message has been edited by kyunderdawg (edited 09-25-2012).]

currie68 SEP 25, 10:17 PM
thanks paul nice site..paul
Stubby79 SEP 26, 11:25 PM
I've done two, on two different cars from your own. My advice is if the instructions it comes with tells you to measure 6 different ways and do a bunch of math to figure out how to line it up properly....take it to a professional to have it installed!
rogergarrison OCT 09, 11:58 AM
Ive put on lots of tops. A cheaper way out is if you can find a good one in the junkyard. They will sell the whole thing with bows and pads for $100. Thats what Ill do when my Sebring needs one. I also recommend the canvas (fuzzy looking) top over a cheap vinyl one. They last 10 times as long. A couple of the biggest points if you put your own top on your existing bows is 1. Make sure you find the EXACT centerline of the top from windshield to top AND bottom of the rear window. If you have a plastic window, I do it by simple folding the top in half and marking it with chalk. THEN find the EXACT center of the windshield frame and where it meets the trunk and mark it with tape. Work from the rear foward using DAP Weldwood Yellow Contact Cement. 2. When you get to the front over the windshield, prop up the front of the frame 6" or so before you glue it up. At least the first few times, it should take a lot of strength, maybe even two people to pull it down to latch. It will stretch over a few weeks. If you dont do this, it will hang loose. You want it drum tight when newly installed. I see lots of home installed tops flapping in the wind or ballooning up like a big bubble going down the highway.