New Convertible Top

[btopping]

Hi,

I'm in the process of installing a new top & have run into a dilema. The 6 screws that hold the front seal onto the cast aluminum part wont grab & seat the retainer & seal. It;s difficult to see into the screw holes but it could be an issue of stripped threads. Any ideas?

[bar10dah]

Your cardboard strip isn't seated properly.

[bar10dah]

Look at #21 at this link:

http://sites.google.com/site/mikefocke2/topreplacementpage2

"To line this part of the front edge correctly, make sure that the leather or cardboard strip lays in between the two slight metal ridges that run from left to right, and that it lines up snug against the rearmost of the two ridges when you are gluing/clamping that part of the canvas top."

[1schoir]

Hi,

I'm in the process of installing a new top & have run into a dilema. The 6 screws that hold the front seal onto the cast aluminum part wont grab & seat the retainer & seal. It;s difficult to see into the screw holes but it could be an issue of stripped threads. Any ideas?

+1 to Bar10dah's suggestion.

You can try to line up the cardboard strip and the screw holes with an awl before trying to insert the screws. If you have really stripped the screw holes (unlikely that you stripped all of them), you can always use the next thickest gauge screw of the same type and profile.

If you need more photos to complete that step than the ones I posted in the DIY, let me know and I'll dig through my photos and send you some more.

Regards, Maurice.

[btopping]

Well that wasn't it. I pulled it apart tonight & the cardboard was in the correct place, but shining a light onto the screw holes saw little or no threads. Guess I'll try to drill/tap them. Strange because when I was taking it apart I saw no metal shavings or threads coming out with the screws. Bummer. I also noticed the passenger side tension cable does not seat correctly, it jumps on the outside of the guide rail. New finger springs, clamping pieces & sliders. One problem at a time.

[1schoir]

Well that wasn't it. I pulled it apart tonight & the cardboard was in the correct place, but shining a light onto the screw holes saw little or no threads. Guess I'll try to drill/tap them. Strange because when I was taking it apart I saw no metal shavings or threads coming out with the screws. Bummer. I also noticed the passenger side tension cable does not seat correctly, it jumps on the outside of the guide rail. New finger springs, clamping pieces & sliders. One problem at a time.

That is unusual, especially if this is the first time that the canvas was being replaced. Tapping new threads in the metal and using the next gauge screws will fix the problem.

Make sure that the finger spring on the passenger side is installed such that the upper end of it is pressing against the plastic tab on the slider. If it is not pressing hard, flip the spring around and then re-install it. If it's installed so that it is sitting on the other side of the tab, remove the top torx screw, loosen the bottom one and then you can tilt the top of the spring inboard, pull it forward to the correct side of the tab and re-install the screw that you removed and tighten the other one.

Here is a photo that shows the correct installation of the finger spring:

If the finger spring is on the wrong side, or if it has lost its "spring", it will not press on the tab on the slider and that will result in the cable falling outside the guide channel when the top closes.

Regards, Maurice.

[bar10dah]

Seems very strange that all six would be stripped, at the same time. Can you try to just run the screws into each of the six holes, without the canvas and cardboard strip in place, and see if they take?

As for the tension cable, positive the top end (attached to the spring) is connected? And the bottom of the cable is indeed held on by the screw? Next, when the top is open, close the top and watch the part of the top where it's going outside the channel. Does it appear that the finger spring is keeping the sliders back all the way until the top is nearly closed? The whole job of those fingers is to keep the tension cable pulled back until the last very few inches of top travel. After that, I'd check the routing of the straps underneath that section. The straps that connect to the cross bar.

No worries dude, we'll keep throwing ideas out there until it's fixed. ;)

[bar10dah]

How funny... I should just let Maurice handle these questions, since we seem to be thinking the same thing. The funny part is that all that I know about these tops is from reading the articles he and Mike Focke have out there on the web! I appear to be Maurice's apprentice...

I do have to say thanks again to you Maurice. And Mike, if you're reading this. Because of the info you guys posted, I was very successful in replacing my own top! :)

[1schoir]

LOL! :cheers:

Regards, Maurice.

[btopping]

I plan on just tapping the holes for new screws & be done with it. For the other issue, I have installed new springs, sliders & clamping pieces. The springs are in the correct position. By the straps, are you referring to the velcro straps that wrap around the round guide bar?

[1schoir]

I plan on just tapping the holes for new screws & be done with it. For the other issue, I have installed new springs, sliders & clamping pieces. The springs are in the correct position. By the straps, are you referring to the velcro straps that wrap around the round guide bar?

The straps are the velcro straps that wrap around the round guide bar. Those straps frequently either loose their "velcro action" or, even more frequently get detached from the spot along the edge of the canvas where they are normally sewn in. Not having the velcro straps attached properly will also sometimes cause the cable to fall outside the guide channels.

Regards, Maurice.

[btopping]

OK. I think I figured out the seal retainer issue. I used th 3M tape on the leather strip. should I have used adhesive instead? It seems the tape adds just enough thickness to make the canvas stay above the screw bosses.

[bar10dah]

See, we said it was highly unlikely all six couldn't be stripped at the same time! :)

I can't remember which tape I used up front, but I'm guessing it was the thin doublesided stuff, not the padded doublesided stuff. Another person said he used the weatherstrip goo adhesive with much success.

http://986forum.com/forums/performance-technical-chat/30464-rag-top-replacement.html#post260874

[btopping]

Hi guys,

An update. Finally got it done today. Not only did I have to drill & retap the holes. I had to oval the holes on the retaining strip to get it installed. Strange, this is the first time I have worked on a Porsche that the parts didn't reinstall the same way they came out! Oh well.

[1schoir]

"Oh well" is correct! The good part is that you got it done and it's all back together.

Thanks for the update.

Regards, Maurice.