I never knew how much I needed this.

"Frank Grimes" (FrankGrimes)
02/20/2015 at 14:22 • Filed to: None

until it came here. holy crap my top was faded and old! BRAND NEW TOP!

DISCUSSION (14)

MIATAAAA > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 14:24

Before and after pics please!!! :D

Scary__goongala! > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 14:52

Mine badly needs a top now. Its ripping along the zipper part and the plastic window has 2 pin holes in it now.

jariten1781 > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 15:09

Have fun drilling and riveting. Such a PITA, but totally worth it.

D > Scary__goongala!
02/20/2015 at 15:38

My zipper is completely broken and the window is being held up by a paper clip and a rubber band chain. The window itself is fogged opaque and the vinyl has holes throughout, including one big enough to stick your hand in.

D > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 15:39

This is in my near future as well. Are you going to install it yourself?

Frank Grimes > D
02/20/2015 at 16:01

yeah but kinda scared. I heard it takes forever. and all the miata.net install guides are written by old men who have crappy cameras or no camera and are super long winded and mention other peoples guides that I have no idea about. makes it really confusing.

Frank Grimes > jariten1781
02/20/2015 at 16:02

Why is it a pain? I have a drill seems easy to do the drilling part. What guide or instructions did you use?

Frank Grimes > Scary__goongala!
02/20/2015 at 16:03

I had a glass window top with zipper and the zipper is torn out in every possible area many holes in the top I have sealed with silicone etc. My top is beat to a pulp.

D > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 16:08

yeah, sounds like an absolute jungle of a job. good luck. def gonna pay a dude to do mine.

jariten1781 > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 16:32

I didn't really use a guide, I read through a bunch of them to get a general idea then scoped it all out on the actual car. I also did it on a gravel driveway since I didn't have a garage available at the time so the sun was cooking me and I had to get it done in a day since I lived in the Seattle area and rain is possible at any given moment. I don't remember any real details since this was 7 or 8 years ago but I do remember I'd budgeted about 4 hours and it ended up taking like 10 (with some frustration breaks and a trip to the hardware store to get an assorted rivet box since the ones that came with it were sometimes not the right size for the holes). I also did it leaving the frame on the car. People argue whether that's harder, but I'm not really sure it was.

Also once I finished the top was so freakin tight that I was barely able to muscle it shut with the latches moved to their loosest position standing on a ladder leaning over the car with my wife inside trying to latch it. I was so pissed at that point because I thought that it was cut wrong and too small or something, but it just turned out it needed to be manhandled shut. A couple days of sitting shut in the sun and it was good to go.

Here's the top 7 or so years after the install, still looking good.

Kinja'd!!!

Frank Grimes > jariten1781
02/20/2015 at 17:16

I have read through a bunch of guides and the instructions that came with it. What takes so much time? I guess on paper it doesn't look so tough...though obviously never having done it I am pretty ignorant.

jariten1781 > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 17:24

I don't really remember any specific sticking points. I just remember drilling, stretching, screwing up rivets, redrilling, trying to hold everything in place, etc. Take into account, while I wasn't a total novice at the time, I also wasn't especially experienced with this stuff. I probably was rushing and not paying enough attention to detail while I was doing it. I'm sure if I do one today I could cut that down to 1/2 or 1/4 what it took me back then.

Frank Grimes > jariten1781
02/20/2015 at 17:29

ya it does seem to be one of those fiddly jobs where you do it once and then 3 more times to get it just right. Thanks for your help and information.

bubblestheturtle > Frank Grimes
02/20/2015 at 22:48

An Ewok hood?