Looking for hints before I start to replace the soft top on my 89 convertible. I heard is NOT an easy job so, any help is highly appreciated. I surfed the Internet looking for info but no luck. Thanks in advance.

 

It not as difficult as it looks but what ever time you think it will take you to do the job right triple that. Take alot ofpictures before you start to give you a reference point in case you lose your way. Use only a high grade of adheasive, it will be to your benefit in the long run. I went by a a local top shop and he sold me a couple of cans they use, it was alot better than the crap they sell at home depot. Clean all the area's the top will be glued to, all the area's, I even sanded mine and repainted , it was a regular top restoration which I had not planned on. I found a product that helps remove the old glue and its called oops. YesOpps is the name, and I was able to apply it, let it sit and then with a small wire brush (like a tooth brush) get most of the glue off the first try.Since you will damage the wheather stripping went you remove it, and it has to be removed, give yourself one day just to clean, repaint and install the stripping supports and of course the new wheather stripping. This process took melonger than putting on the top(I also bought a cheapo top in case I screw it up). Geta good grade of clamps and you are going to need alot of them and go to it. I had put tops on some of my C1's and C3's and it was not that bad but if you do not want to take the chance of screwing it up, let a top shop do it, its alot more to it than just outward appearances indicate. Do not worry to much about the liner just the top for now, Good luck.

 

Dear Ralphie:

Thank you for your support and help. I'm glad to hear I'm on the right track, for now. I did remove the top frame from the car so I can work on it a lot easier. I did remove all the old weatherstrips, I cleaned every little pieces of old rubber, repaint any exposed metal surfaces so I have a clean and rust proof starting point. The plan is to remove the old top starting from the front end and work my way toward to back. The reverse to install new one. Is that the way you did it before? I plan to clamp the new top all the way around to make sure I have a good fit before any glue goes on. Who ever replaced that top before did a horrible job. They didn't replaced the rubber and just glued the top over it with some cheap glue. They didn't center the top very well and that's why ended up breaking on one side. Hopefully I would do I better job. I'll let you know.Thanks for the reply.