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Look into a front strut tower brace. This will help you. Nothing fancy. As low as $100. Some are $200.
I may have misunderstood you. Don't use a silicone spray. Try Aerospace 303 on the black rubber seal along the top of the windshield. Not competely sure what area your talking about.
What I mean is, when the top is closed and I make the chassis flex I hear a noise. For instance, when I turn down into my subterranean garage at slow speed. At that point I usually get a loud crack from where the hook on the convertible top engages the windshield. I think a bit of dry lube will fix it.
Fine. Just make sure you Ragg Topp (or 303) it every other year, or sooner if it stops beading water. Don't wash your top with any soaps. Water only. Tape roller.
I hope you don't mind if I ask another convertible top question! This is my second Cab and both of them have confounded me a little. When I am lowering the top, how do I know when the cycle is complete? So far I just have been holding the button until the windows start to raise slightly, then I just put them back down. Is there another way to tell when the lowering cycle is complete?
It's complete when the top is down / up and the windows are up and the little diagram of the convertible room goes away below your tachometer.
Mainly because the soaps never fully rinse out, and wear down the protective properties of the Ragg Topp (or 303 or whatever is used). Plus, this residual soap attracts dust & dirt, and over time wears down on the fabric's integrity.
It's fine to wash the top with soap, in preperations for the Ragg Topp Protectant treatment.
A properly treated top (say every other year) really only needs a firm stream of hose water to keep it looking good. Use the tape roller every so often.
Even an occasional bird-bomb, will come right out with a little water and soft brush. Something more serious like tree sap might require some soap and water, but again, if properly treated, will come out a LOT easier. Here is an excellent link to top car from one of our Rennlister's in the Concours Forum:
Mainly because the soaps never fully rinse out, and wear down the protective properties of the Ragg Topp (or 303 or whatever is used). Plus, this residual soap attracts dust & dirt, and over time wears down on the fabric's integrity.
It's fine to wash the top with soap, in preperations for the Ragg Topp Protectant treatment.
A properly treated top (say every other year) really only needs a firm stream of hose water to keep it looking good. Use the tape roller every so often.
Even an occasional bird-bomb, will come right out with a little water and soft brush. Something more serious like tree sap might require some soap and water, but again, if properly treated, will come out a LOT easier. Here is an excellent link to top car from one of our Rennlister's in the Concours Forum:
They definitely develop creases in those locations but that looks worse than it should. It also looks dirty and as if it was never treated. Also looks like it may have been put down and left down when wet. I would think it could look 50 percent better if it was thoroughly cleaned with water and mild soap. Then dried thoroughly in the sun which should help tighten it up and smooth out the wrinkles. Then give it a thorough treatment of 303 and let it dry according to instructions.
In summary, it looks neglected but can probably be brought back to much better condition.
I have an 07 with the original black top. Still looks good but pieces of the thin black material that cover the hinges ave recently fallen down. My top guy says they are aesthetic only so I just removed them. Agree on the 303, the kit is on Amazon for cheap.
Replacement top installed was $2500. My car shares garage duty with my M4 so it is outside half the week.
I removed the back seat and seatbelt and leave the windscreen in place all the time. I am 6'1" and I am lightly hitting screen in my seat position. If you have longer legs......
Try to avoid putting down when wet, it adds to creases (I still do, dew wet here alot, but I drive a few blocks to partially dry). Bose system is loud enough with top down and windows down.
Thinking about Top Up No seats, saved a few pounds.... Always drive this way.... Smart TOP control, how hard was it to install? Worth it, not cheap.
I am looking at a 997.1 cab in brown. Does this look like normal 11 wear or more than normal?
Every 911 cab top will exhibit fold creases. There's no avoiding them so they are to be expected, especially so on an older car. What you want to examine the roof closely for is fabric that has abrasion wear and how serious that wear appears to be. This particular roof looks a little worse than average based on what I've seen. You can definitely improve the appearance with a thorough cleaning (highly recommend the Raggtopp product and application brush) followed by the Raggtopp fabric protector.
Raggtopp brush has specially designed bristles that will prevent damage to the fabric when being used to clean the roof. Probably overkill (which I specialize in) to tape / mask off the various areas. My theory is - best way to address a problem is to avoid it. This is an '09 cab with the original roof. If cared for properly, they are surprisingly durable.
Ironman88, I keep a small stack of used Wall Street Journals for such secondary masking use. I tried the 303, but went back to the Porsche "Convertible Top Waterproofer" because it seems to me to hold up a little better over time here in the Pacific Northwest where it rains constantly for nine months (my C2S is my daily driver and is parked outside in the daytime). The main thing is to clean the top regularly using an appropriate cleaner and a soft bristle brush designed for the purpose, then reapply whatever water proofer after the water stops beading on the top. I treat my top in the Spring and in the Fall. 303 is easier to use than the Porsche product, but the Porsche product dries much faster so I can get back on the road quicker. I have heard of people re-dying their tops, but mine still seems to perk up and look nice and black after every cleaning/water proofing.
07-06-2013, 09:15 PM
My wallet says wait for the windows to go up!
