Z3 barn find

Believe it or not, the thing that works really good once you putty knife the goop off is some goo-gone. Gloves are a must. Are you putting butyl back on? I did one without it and it hasn't leaked since I did it (a year ago). I only used some high-density weather stripping from Lowes for about $2.50. It's the same stuff you see in the pictures. I did put some butyl tape between the sealing frame and the bulkhead (only because I had some), but I didn't use any between the sealing frame and the top frame. No leaks. Just make sure when tightening the whole thing back together to start from the middle and work your way out. Good luck.

I am going to use butyl Rv tape.

I plan on doing my top this winter also. Which top are you using? Some one else had posted about using butyl caulk with the butyl tape. I think I may do that, belt and suspenders approach.

I am using the top mentioned earlier in this thread. Goop is removed. Heat it with a heat gun and it scrapes right of with a paint scraper.

Ok ... Here is where I am so far.

It looks awesome!

Rear view.

It is really tight right now. I am going to let it stretch a few days. Then I will be ale to put it down and finish the sides. Probably another hour to go!

The top looks good so far.

OT: so what year is your Ranchero? '73? What engine does it have? Looks to be in good shape too.

My ranchero is a 76. 400 in it. 68,000 miles. I pull her out on occasion. If you look on the other side, you will see the corner of my fiat spider. It needs help, but I have all the parts.

Originally Posted by mhopper

My ranchero is a 76. 400 in it. 68,000 miles. I pull her out on occasion. If you look on the other side, you will see the corner of my fiat spider. It needs help, but I have all the parts.

68,000 miles! Sweet!
I know you said you have many cars. Are any of them boring.
Nothing you have showed us so far fits that category.

1988 civic. 2006 ridgeline. 2007 crv. 2009 fit. That is the boring ones. I love my Hondas. Boring ...maybe, but you hardly ever have to spend money on them.

Personally, I don't find reliability boring. Wife drives a 2012 Prius v, youngest kid is driving my 2008 Scion xB, older kid has a 2000 Corolla ( ok that's boring but it was on purpose ) and my dd is a 2007 Tundra ( with 34,000 miles on it btw). My roadster cures any boredom.

I bet the Fit is not boring at the gas pump.

When I ordered my top a question nobody could answer was what is the big difference between a 229$ top and a 329$ top. I just took,off a 329$ and replaced it with a 229 one. Now I feel qualified to answer. What's the difference? Not much. There are a few places that the more expensive top has plastic tabs that the cheaper top has cloth tabs. I felt that the cloth tabs would not be as durable. So, in those spots I glued the tab with contact cement before putting the screws in. There is also one set of straps at the back that are not present on the cheaper top. It does not seem to be any different in the operation. I am sure the tabs in plastic would have made it easier to pull the top into place. Is it a one hundred dollar difference? In my humble opinion, probably not. I will keep you updated on the longevity issues I find, but for now I am perfectly happy with the cheaper top.

Thanks for the update!

Originally Posted by mhopper

I will keep you updated on the longevity issues I find, but for now I am perfectly happy with the cheaper top.

It sounds like the lower cost top is a good choice. The only question left would be how it holds up so updates would be interesting and useful.
Thanks.

It is made out of the same cloth as the oem. I hope I get the same durability. Next...stereo.

After a month the state of North Carolina has finally located my title! By the end of the week I will be able to drive it legally!

mhopper,
Reference the piture of your top from the rear view, it appears that the seam above the window is on the wrong side of the third bow. You may have fastened the fabric strip to the bow in the wrong direction. The two front fabric strips fasten to the bow with the rotation pointing toward the front. The back fabric stip should point toward the rear, putting the seam on top of the rear bow. This may explain why the top is so tight, the front of the top is having to stretch the extra distance.

Thanks, Rob! I will check that! It's amazing with the small amount of often contradictory info I was able to find tht I got it installed at all! The only thing the top came with was a copy of the invoice! Thank God for the Internet!

What's wrong with your stereo that you need to change it out?

Thanks for the top tip.... It worked! Addressing the Stereo question...I was a professional installer for many years. I judged Iasca and cmaa sound quality and installation many years and was even a national pro points sq champion back in the day. I am also a performing musician ( not as much since the kids came along). And I am choral and instrumental music educator. The old wore out 5.25's just ain't cuttin it! Not gonna do nothing big. I gave that up years ago. But some nice coaxes properly mounted and a sub enclosure with an 8 inch DVC sub in place of the console and a small amp will sure be nice!

http://www.fitfreak.net/forums/fit-i...r-install.html. Here is the simple install I did in my Honda fit. Good system, no wasted space. The sub enclosure sits inside the spare. The system for the bimmer will be even less involved than this. Still in the planning stages...

Loved the stereo install in the Fit. Really want to see what magic you do with the Z3.

Thanks! I am fighting the urge to dive in big on this install. The fit system is really simple and sounds like a million bucks. I have three speakers in it. I am going to do something along the same lines. I have a nano soundstream four channel amp that is only 9x5 and does 130 watts per channel. I have some db 5.25s and a Rockford 8 dual voice coil sub. Gotta figure how mild or wild I wanna go on the sub box first. One thing that comes with old age that is an advantage over my audio hayday is patience. I just gotta take my time because my first build will be right.