lowbuck72

I'm about to undertake a convertible conversion of my '72. (Please, no comments regarding sacrilege) Been looking for the past year and finally located a good deal on a convertible rear clip. I'm aware of what's involved, but I remember a thread a while back where someone did this, but I can't find it. Can anyone help me with a link.

doorgunner

I'm guessing/hoping the car is not original.....in that case....save the original rear clip...............have fun turning it into a convertible!

And post pics of the transformation

lowbuck72

Way far from original. Already replaced the front clip. Non-number matching built 350, T5 trans, electric headlight and wiper door conversion. Rustoleum paint job (which will make it easy to match up). I'm planning on making the original T-top roof removable and re-attachable.

derekderek

if your rear clip is any good, don't chop it up. there are plenty of trashed 74-77's that will happily donate their roofs for this project. BUT, how you gonna do the crossbar that T-tops hook to? you might want to consider a C4 roof that has 1 full-width top panel...

bj1k

Am I the only one that is confused here ? He said he wants to make a convertible conversion out of his 72 , now he is talking T-tops.

derekderek

he is talking about convert body with removable hard top made outta his old T-top roof, which i don't think will work...at least not well. removable hard tops are available for 500 bucks on up. and don't look like bubba bought a bucket of resin and some mat. i am not calling OP bubba for putting vert body on his car, but he may earn the title with his hard top idea.

oldgto

One question comes to mind.... were not the doors different from coupe to convertible... at least an inch or two? I recall ordering the wrong window felts for my 71 coupe. I put the wrong part number in and got the ones for a convertible, they didn`t even come close to fitting. So if OP puts a convertible rear clip onto a coupe, will he have problems with the doors also?

Faster Rat

I've seen a fiberglass mold that somebody came up with for making C3 convertible rear decks...so others have done it. Replacing the entire rear clip is not necessary. However...why somebody would want to do that is beyond me. I think T-Tops are the best.

oldgto

I love my T-tops & removable rear window too..... best of both worlds. But as to my question, even if he replaces just the upper deck WITHOUT getting into the door jambs, would he still have a problem with a soft or hard top fitting? Were`nt the doors & glass different from coupe to `vert?

blue67ragtop

Windows are different but I think using the coupe doors should work.

oldgto

Found this with a search.....
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...d-windows.html
I only bring it up because I`d hate to see somebody cut their car up and buy other parts, just to find that it won`t work without resorting to "bubba" tactics!

NAVY08

Do it Dude! And post pictures allong the way. I might follow in your footsteps

bj1k

Why go to all that trouble ? Wouldn't it just be easier to sell your car and buy a convertible ?

lowbuck72

Chrome bumper convertibles are not cheap these days, and I have my coupe set up just the way I like it. I've already done a few hardtop to convertible conversions, in which the hardtop is removable, the most recent being a '66 Karmann Ghia. I have a rear clip complete with rear deck coming. I am planning on unlaminating the bonding strips and removing the the horizontal panels from the trunk area, leaving the floor, rear fenders and tail intact. I thought it would be cool to make the center T section re-attachable, and retaining the top as removable, fastening it the same way a factory removable hardtop. At least I won't have to reinforce the pan like I did on the VW.

blue67ragtop

Looks like you did a nice job on your previous project and know the complexities of doing this.