Hey guys I need a little help. I have a car that I'm stripping for parts that has a good top. I'm going to be installing that top on my girls car and even tho I have the manual it still leaves questions unanswered. Since im taking the whole top mechanics and all which would be easier, to remove and install with the top down or with it up. Is there any tricks that maybe u guys know that I dont that will make this easier for me. It seems pretty straight foreward but I have never delt with a vert top before and any help will be appreciated. I'm also taking the top motors and putting those into her car too at the same time. Thanks guys I appreciate any insight that u can give!!!!
pretty straight forward if youre swapping the whole assembly. the top itself only has a few bolts holding it on, but youll have to take the black pieces on the outside off first and unstaple it all. putting THAT back on is going to be the hardest part, but should def be doable. but be sure to use stainless staples so they dont rust! also, you may need to look for another tackstrip as they are usually broken by removal time. beyond that if youre doing the whole top, it should be like any other body part...take your time realigning everything and youll be fine
good luck
Tabs u the man!!!!! The staples, are those going to obvious when removing the top, and the tackstrip is that under the black pieces??? And where could I find those at so i can replace them. I know a lot of questions but I would rather ask them now and sound like a idiot instead of acting like I know wtf I'm doing and mess up a good top. But again Tabs thanks alot. This will be a learning experience for me. I'm just gonna take my sweet Jesus time so i know it gets done right. Oh and do it top up or down? Thanks!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Wednesday, June 30, 2010 3:29 PM
Nevermind, thanks again Tabs. Yeah the staples were pretty obvious, and i see the 8 rivets also. I also had a hell of a time finding the last damn nut holding those side black covers on hahaha. Once i found those i found the trick to get those out. I may even do a little writeup on how to remove the top and replace it completly. I took some pics, but i took them after i had most of the stuff taken off. But i can always make lines to them and show how to do it, step my step. But thanks again man, i sure would have never expected those damn staples lol.
The big issue you are going to face is the tackstrip. It will need to be replaced and unfortunately the left hand section of the two part assembly (part # 12365697) is no longer available anywhere.
Frankly, the stock plastic tackstrip is a piece of crap. GM made it too thin and light and as a result it always fractures over time (every J body vert I have ever seen shows the tell-tale signs of that, which always start at the corners where the sail panel section of the top meets the rear curtain).
So you will be looking at putting in aftermarket trackstrip. The challenge there will be there is no tackstrip channel on the rear lip, so you can't use most types of generic convertible tackstrip since they are designed to sit in a channel. Instead, you'll have to use bulk plastic style strip (which has the same inherent weaknesses at what GM used) that will have to be cut to fit. Also, drilling out the rivets that secure the original strip is a PITA.
mikeythemars wrote:The big issue you are going to face is the tackstrip. It will need to be replaced and unfortunately the left hand section of the two part assembly (part # 12365697) is no longer available anywhere.
Frankly, the stock plastic tackstrip is a piece of crap. GM made it too thin and light and as a result it always fractures over time (every J body vert I have ever seen shows the tell-tale signs of that, which always start at the corners where the sail panel section of the top meets the rear curtain).
So you will be looking at putting in aftermarket trackstrip. The challenge there will be there is no tackstrip channel on the rear lip, so you can't use most types of generic convertible tackstrip since they are designed to sit in a channel. Instead, you'll have to use bulk plastic style strip (which has the same inherent weaknesses at what GM used) that will have to be cut to fit. Also, drilling out the rivets that secure the original strip is a PITA.
Hey man, thanks for the info. I searched the tack strip on google, and only found one place to get it at. I was wondering if you knew where i could get this from. Or, if anyone has any lieing around that they want to get rid of, lol. Worth a shot lol. I dont know what my girls tack strip looks like, but they guy said he had her top replaced on the car abt 3 years before he sold me the car, so it maybe in good condition, but idk yet, bc I havent even started working on her car yet. I can tell tho that this top on my parts car is reletively new (has to be within a year or maybe 2) just because of the condition of the glue (still very tacky and sealed like a mofo) and how its still really clean. Im guessing that this guy had the top put on and the engine started giving him problems, and sold it to me soon after that. But we shall see. I wanna do this right, I just dont have a ton of money to dump into her car anymore right now. But if it comes to it, ill make sure I buy it. But thanks again for the info!!!
