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The cable on my passeneger side motor of my convertible broke last summer. I disconnect the clutch on both sides and open and close the top manually. Now i am thinking about going manual on the latches too. Has anyone done it before? Any sugestion?
I just purchased all the parts I think are needed to do this for my convertible. I can send you the list if interested. If you can wait a bit, I'll post a write-up with pictures and let you know how it goes.
Mine has been fully manual for over a year. I would never go back. I have no problem raising it standing beside the car, but I am tall. My wife at 5'4" would have a harder time. The parts are available, but not cheap(what is?).
I converted mine after one of the arms caught a fold in the canvas and ripped a hole.
They never should have been power, too complicated, too unreliable, and the common failure modes result in expensive broken parts. I got my conversion parts from dc, but they were out of used parts then and I suppose you could just order the parts from any dealer.
The joke used to be put a $20 bill in the ashtray every time you pushed the button to raise or lower and you might have enough to repair it when it quits. With parts prices nowadays, that won't be enough.
My friends '89 cab is manual and could not be more simple/easy.
When mine breaks, Im going manual!
Im always thinking the battery is going to drain because I have to raise/lower the top before I start the car.
I just purchased all the parts I think are needed to do this for my convertible. I can send you the list if interested. If you can wait a bit, I'll post a write-up with pictures and let you know how it goes.
I would love to get the parts list and to read your "how to" write up. Thanks.
Mine has been fully manual for over a year. I would never go back. I have no problem raising it standing beside the car, but I am tall. My wife at 5'4" would have a harder time. The parts are available, but not cheap(what is?).
I converted mine after one of the arms caught a fold in the canvas and ripped a hole.
They never should have been power, too complicated, too unreliable, and the common failure modes result in expensive broken parts. I got my conversion parts from dc, but they were out of used parts then and I suppose you could just order the parts from any dealer.
The joke used to be put a $20 bill in the ashtray every time you pushed the button to raise or lower and you might have enough to repair it when it quits. With parts prices nowadays, that won't be enough.
Where did you get the parts? I just had it with the power lifts and latches.
After too many issues with the electric latches failing to synch properly and then the dreaded top bow failure, I went full manual on my '91 C2 cab around four years ago using the DC Auto "kit", which consists of a set of manual roller latch mechanisms that replace the electric motors and their roller latches, a set of L-shaped handles to use to turn by hand the manual roller latch mechanisms, and a set of slotted inserts for the windshield header panel, into which the rollers fit to secure the top. The slotted inserts look the same as the power ones, but the contour of the slots must be slightly different.
I believe that all of the parts are from a manual convertible top 3.2 Carrera or a Targa top.
I ordered the kit from DC Auto and had my mechanic install it, so I can't speak to ease or difficulty of installation, but he charged me for three or four hours of labor and told me the installation was relatively straightforward, although he did need to call DC Auto with some questions.
The kit didn't come with the rosettes that fit around the shafts of the L-handles and into the header panel of the convertible top, so I bought them on eBay for a small amount of money. Do a search on eBay for "Porsche rosette" and you should find them.
The DC Auto kit cost around $600 and I sold my electric motors on eBay for around $400, so it was a very economical change.
If DC Auto isn't offering the kit anymore, they should be able to tell you what parts to use. They have been very helpful whenever I have contacted them with questions.
It works great! It is a tremendous benefit not having the stress of having to fiddle with the top every time I put it up, not knowing whether it will work properly, particularly in sudden rain situations!
Note that going manual will cause the convertible top warning light and the "!" warning light to come on every time the car is started. I had my mechanic remove the convertible top warning light bulb and I use the reset button in the center console to turn off the "!" warning light.
I'll take and post a few pics tomorrow. Best of luck!
After too many issues with the electric latches failing to synch properly and then the dreaded top bow failure, I went full manual on my '91 C2 cab around four years ago using the DC Auto "kit", which consists of a set of manual roller latch mechanisms that replace the electric motors and their roller latches, a set of L-shaped handles to use to turn by hand the manual roller latch mechanisms, and a set of slotted inserts for the windshield header panel, into which the rollers fit to secure the top. The slotted inserts look the same as the power ones, but the contour of the slots must be slightly different.
I believe that all of the parts are from a manual convertible top 3.2 Carrera or a Targa top.
I ordered the kit from DC Auto and had my mechanic install it, so I can't speak to ease or difficulty of installation, but he charged me for three or four hours of labor and told me the installation was relatively straightforward, although he did need to call DC Auto with some questions.
The kit didn't come with the rosettes that fit around the shafts of the L-handles and into the header panel of the convertible top, so I bought them on eBay for a small amount of money. Do a search on eBay for "Porsche rosette" and you should find them.
The DC Auto kit cost around $600 and I sold my electric motors on eBay for around $400, so it was a very economical change.
If DC Auto isn't offering the kit anymore, they should be able to tell you what parts to use. They have been very helpful whenever I have contacted them with questions.
It works great! It is a tremendous benefit not having the stress of having to fiddle with the top every time I put it up, not knowing whether it will work properly, particularly in sudden rain situations!
Note that going manual will cause the convertible top warning light and the "!" warning light to come on every time the car is started. I had my mechanic remove the convertible top warning light bulb and I use the reset button in the center console to turn off the "!" warning light.
I'll take and post a few pics tomorrow. Best of luck!
Thank you very much !
I will log on to DC Auto right now to see if I can find this conversion kit !!
Can't wait to see your photos.
Sure thing. Just as an FYI, back when I bought the kit, it wasn't listed on DC Auto's website. I would suggest giving them a call to discuss. Here are some pics.
Not wanting to spend that kind of money for parts I thought that I would scavenge the motor. I separated the front section that has the locking mechanism and reinstalled just that part. Wasn't sure if the worm gear held the latch so I turned it with pliers. It latches perfectly. Best thing is that I can put the motors back together when I need to. Need to just find an inexpensive handle, maybe with a set screw. Any ideas for handles?
Thank you so much ! Those handles do not prevent from putting the soft top cover on when it is opened ?
I will send DC auto an email, being overseas with a large time difference does not make it easy !
One last question if you don't mind, my healiner is ripping open now, can it be changed or do I need to change the whole top for that ?
That picture was taken with the L-handles in their "down" position after disengaging the convertible top latches from the windshield header panel. After putting down the top, I rotate the L-handles so that they're not sticking up like that when I put on the convertible top boot. No clearance issues at all.
Although I exchanged emails with someone from DC Auto after first talking with him, I'm not sure how quickly (if at all) they would respond to an email inquiry out of the blue. I think that it would be better to call, if at all possible.
Before I replaced my convertible top, my headliner was also disintegrating. Rather than having sections of the headliner hanging down, I removed the headliner entirely with a razor blade. Other than the cabin being a little noisier and a little cooler in the winter, without the headliner effectively acting as insulation, there was no issue with doing so.
The L-handles are readily available on eBay - do a search for "Porsche targa handle" and you'll find lots of them. Here is a set: http://m.ebay.com/itm/1978-Porsche-911-Targa-Top-Release-Handle-Set-91156507541-/172185322164?nav=SEARCH. The L-handles snap onto stubs in the manual roller latch mechanism. I'm not sure if the motors have the same stubs.
That picture was taken with the L-handles in their "down" position after disengaging the convertible top latches from the windshield header panel. After putting down the top, I rotate the L-handles so that they're not sticking up like that when I put on the convertible top boot. No clearance issues at all.
Although I exchanged emails with someone from DC Auto after first talking with him, I'm not sure how quickly (if at all) they would respond to an email inquiry out of the blue. I think that it would be better to call, if at all possible.
Before I replaced my convertible top, my headliner was also disintegrating. Rather than having sections of the headliner hanging down, I removed the headliner entirely with a razor blade. Other than the cabin being a little noisier and a little cooler in the winter, without the headliner effectively acting as insulation, there was no issue with doing so.
That"s what I was thinking of doing, removing the headliner from the top alltogether until I replace the whole top ! Thanks for the advice.
Regarding DC auto, I have googled them but their site autoDC.com is not responding therefore I am not sure if this s the right site or not !
06-24-2016, 03:36 AM
Going manual on convertible?
