swapping roof over

[Mazza]

Trying to make sense of how it fits and where it seals.
The new roof from the donor car had an extra drain system below the bolts on the inside, but you need two holes through the bodywork which is going to be impossible to do. so assuming this was a later mod, going to leave it off .
The car is now all cleaned and ready

but I have an issue with the plastic surround part…
its not stuck to the side very well…

So I am not sure whether to remove it completely And then clean it all and reseal it.

it would appear that there should be a butyl strip either side of the plastic surround but not sure if everything stuck on the roof and then fit it , or just stick the surround part to the roof and put the other butyl strip on to the car and then install the roof….

grateful for any info on this from anyone that has done a roof swap

ta

 

[Duncodin]

I must confess that your second picture is to close for me to know what I'm looking at. I don't recognize that strip. Can you back up a bit so I can see the whole thing?

 

[Jam03]

I think @John_B just did this job and may have advice.

 

[John_B]

I think @John_B just did this job and may have advice.

I sure did

I think I mihgt have got lucky though, for the roof I took off my 1.9 to put onto the 2.8 that black strip stayed stuck to the roof throughout - so much so that it never even occurred to me that it was a separate part. However when I removed the one from the 2.8 that strip started to come away exactly like in your picture Malc.

That roof is either getting sold or scrapped, so to be honest I put it on a pallet and didn't even give it a second look. I think you're right though, it's just another butyl tape/bead to stick it back down.

I guess that outer strip provides the lip for the weather seal to grab on to, and also sandwiches the fabric between that and the inner frame?

Sorry I can't be more help, but if you want me to check or photograph anything on my spare one, let me know

 

[Mazza]

Decision made for me !!!
The donor roof had a split in the plastic surround part… so removed it

but only after a real struggle !!!!!

not a butyl strip but some sort of silicon adhesive !!! going to take ages to remove it

I have a spare plastic surround so now just need to sort out the order of how it all goes back.

 

[Duncodin]

There's two bows that bolt to the body of the car. A plastic one and a metal one.

When the roof is on the top edge of the plastic bow is what the rubber seal strip is clicked on to.

Lay both bows on the floor near each other and you'll see all the bolt hole line up except the metal bow has 4 U shaped notches in it wheres the plastic one does not. Basically the plastic bow has 4 more bolt holes where the metal bow has 4 notches.

Look at the bolt lengths. Some will be shorter than others. Bolt the plastic bow to the car with 4 shorter bolts using the holes that would match up with the notches in the metal bow. The idea is that you bolt the plastic bow to the car then bolt the metal bow over the plastic one.

The fabric is stapled to the metal bow before bolting it into the car.

 

[Mazza]

Got it

Found the 4 smaller bolts.. and found where they go
the fourth one is opposite the red one on the offside.

Makes sense now… just need to get two strips of butyl tape about 20mm wide by 3-5mm thick. I‘ll run a tape measure round to get the length I need.

 

[Duncodin]

Don't bolt anything up tight though till the very end. When the metal bow is in and all the bolts in place start tightening from the middle at the back working outwards kinda like tightening a cylinder head. If you tightened up the front first then the corners wouldn't get closed up right and it'll leak.

Here's my metal bow with fabric attached about to go in. Lot of fiddling in my case because the rebody wings are way higher and a bit closer together so the bow had to kinda go in sideways so paint, if I had any, is in danger.

Mask off the paintwork

At this point I also masked off the back window. I'm pretty clumbsy when waving tools around.

Once the back was in I fixed the front lip then closed the roof pulling it tight. I didn't fix the middle bows or anything for about a fortnight while the fabric gets used to its new home. Left it baking in the sun for days to let it pul all the creases out. Then I raised and lowered it a few times before closing it and fitting the top bow covers.

 

[Althulas]

Only just seen this Malc but it looks like you got the info you need. I pity who ever comes to change my roof next as I used two beads of seal plus I noted on my old roof there was some foam above the sealant I on the outer side against the fabric I suppose to act as a barrier to stop debris getting gummed up in any sealant.

 

[Mazza]

@Duncodin …. Just to confirm…. When the plastic bow goes in with the 4 bolts ( just finger tight) do you put the butyl sealant round the car bodywork first so the plastic bow is sticking to the car before installing the roof and lining up the metal bow……Also is it better/easier to put the second row of butyl on to the plastic bow thats already in position or the metal bow and then fit the roof in?

 

[elevensies]

i think when the times comes for me to replace mine.....im gona get someone to do it for me

 

[Althulas]

I put the sealant on the bulkhead first then placed the plastic part, then placed the butyl on the plastic part before fitting the frame in. I left the backing in situ with extra length at the ends. Still a fiddly process on your own but would be easier if you had a helper.

 

[Duncodin]

@Duncodin …. Just to confirm…. When the plastic bow goes in with the 4 bolts ( just finger tight) do you put the butyl sealant round the car bodywork first so the plastic bow is sticking to the car before installing the roof and lining up the metal bow……Also is it better/easier to put the second row of butyl on to the plastic bow thats already in position or the metal bow and then fit the roof in?

One strip of butyl between plastic bow and the body. That stops water creeping down between the plastic bow and the body. As you said - finger tight. The plastic bow can be quite brittle with age and if you tighten it up with just those 4 bolts it would likely crack.

Then, with the plastic bow in position, stick another strip of butyl onto the plastic bow and put the metal bow on top of that. That stops water kreeping down between plastic bow and metal bow.

Here's a tip - Once the plastic bow is in finger tight stick the next strip of butyl onto the plastic bow but don't pull the wax paper off yet. It's quite sticky stuff and lining up the metal bow can be a bit fiddly and you'll be adjusting up down, in out in out shake it all about. You don't want the butyl sticking to the metal bow till you have the metal bow nearly lined up. Once the metal bow is roughly lined up you can pull the wax paper out and push the metal backwards against the butyl just enough to make light contact. Then start getting some bolts in.

Then when you start tightening start with the bolts start in the middle working outwards along the back edge just a few turns at a time so you're pulling it in evenly. Do the sides too but not tight on the sides till you're happy that the back is as tight as it's going to go.