glass top...
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 87
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From: Belleville Illinois
glass top...
I would like to get a glass top for my 86, but it seems that there is alot of cracked ones out there. If you've cracked one how did you do it.
Is this from body flex??? I don't want to get one if it's going to get cracked. :confused: :confused: :confused:
Is this from body flex??? I don't want to get one if it's going to get cracked. :confused: :confused: :confused:
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,009
Likes: 1
From: Springfield MO
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
Mine has a bunch of stress marks, which appear to be cracks. You can really see it from the inside when the light hits it just right. I haven't heard of one cracking due to body flex.
Race Director
Joined: Jun 1999
Posts: 14,924
Likes: 9
From: Merritt Ils Fl
Re: glass top... (vader86)
A dumb azz in a shop did not lower my 85 evenly and cracked the top. The mounting bolts were not loosened twisting the top to the point that it split. I would have been upset except the dumb azz was me. I always loosen my new top even if only jacking up one wheel.
Advanced
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 70
Likes: 0
From: Sparta MI
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
i cracked mine-- i was racing a young kid in a mustang down the highway at about 120 mph i started to notice a little noise and wind coming in! At that point i looked up to see my top bouncing a little, then the relization that when i put the top on the night b-4 i didnt tighten the 2 front bolts since i was going to take it off agian in the morning; guess what i took it off at 120, which I TRULEY DONT RECOMEND!!! looking in the rearview mirror i saw it go up about 60 feet in the air only to return back to earth in disassembly MODE!!! :cry
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002] :p:
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002]
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002] :p:
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002]
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 7,996
Likes: 0
From: McAlester Oklahoma
Re: glass top... (84C-4)
i cracked mine-- i was racing a young kid in a mustang down the highway at about 120 mph i started to notice a little noise and wind coming in! At that point i looked up to see my top bouncing a little, then the relization that when i put the top on the night b-4 i didnt tighten the 2 front bolts since i was going to take it off agian in the morning; guess what i took it off at 120, which I TRULEY DONT RECOMEND!!! looking in the rearview mirror i saw it go up about 60 feet in the air only to return back to earth in disassembly MODE!!! :cry
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002] :p:
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002]
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002] :p:
[Modified by 84C-4, 10:20 AM 1/28/2002]
Racer
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 259
Likes: 0
From: Pontiac IL
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
Mine on my 96 was perfect when I bought it (5 years old and 52,000 miles). But after I owned it a few months it developed two cracks about 1/2 inch long each starting along the center of the passengers side and working toward the middle of the roof. I feel fortunate that they haven't spread any further. I don't know what I did when the cracks occurred. I drive agressively over rough roads and do nothing special with the top or doors when I jack up one corner at a time. An advantage of the glass top is that some people have reported it being about 2 pounds lighter. FrankLT4CE :chevy
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 969
Likes: 0
From: San Diego CA
Cruise-In III Veteran
Re: glass top... (FrankLT4CE)
The small cracks you see when looking up from the interior of the car are due to heat/cold variations of weather, NOT chassis flex. The glass that GM used in the tops are of very poor quality, and don't withstand very well to the environment. Astro Tops is a company based out of Alabama, and they refurbish GM tops (both glass, and Painted fiberglass). BUT, they use a premium glass that is guaranteed not to develop the small cracks of the factory glass. Prices are much better than GM's too. $4-500 for either painted or glass. The guy I spoke to said the charge less if you show up at their place with cash, like $200 less :eek:
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,970
Likes: 21
From: Denville NJ
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
I have both the glass and solid top and find that the car has significantly more body flex with the glass top rather than with the solid one. I think that in addition to the temperature fluctuations, body flex also contributes to the cracking. If jacking and lifting can crack it, driving on rough surfaces or hitting pot holes would certainly give it a good jolt. You can find glass tops in good condition but it's only a matter of time before it cracks under normal use. I alternate using mine and only have the glass one on a few months a year. Hope this helps.
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 187
Likes: 0
Re: glass top...
I think I beat everybody when it comes to stupidity. My top was stored in the rear hatch area. Picked up some groceries. Pulled the release button and not thinking just lifted the top up to store the goodies. Broke off both rear corners. :mad :sleep: Monkey Business
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 26,196
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From: Orlando FL
St. Jude Donor '08-'09
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
I jsut bought a glass top last year when i had the unfortunate experience of saying "oh im just going a mile, i dont need to screw the top on"... boy was i wrong...
anyhow... I replaced it with a glass top (well acryllic) from (i forgot the name) one of the major aftermarket companies...
The only advice i can see so far is that make SUUURREEE you put the roof on when you are on a LEVEL surface. such as the driveway, etc... In other words... say you are at the beach in the sand, or at a car show in the grass... when you put your top on, it feels a bit snug due to the body flex from the uneven ground. Once you pull it back out onto a flat surface the roof then just slips on and screws in with no complaints.
I hear of people putting it on crooked when they dont use a level surface and then the body flex from driving makes it stress and crack. My roommate has an '84 with the original glass top and has never had a problem... there are no stress cracks or anything in it.. and it is a daily driver with 160K miles on it. The roof comes off at least once a week also...
anyhow... I replaced it with a glass top (well acryllic) from (i forgot the name) one of the major aftermarket companies...
The only advice i can see so far is that make SUUURREEE you put the roof on when you are on a LEVEL surface. such as the driveway, etc... In other words... say you are at the beach in the sand, or at a car show in the grass... when you put your top on, it feels a bit snug due to the body flex from the uneven ground. Once you pull it back out onto a flat surface the roof then just slips on and screws in with no complaints.
I hear of people putting it on crooked when they dont use a level surface and then the body flex from driving makes it stress and crack. My roommate has an '84 with the original glass top and has never had a problem... there are no stress cracks or anything in it.. and it is a daily driver with 160K miles on it. The roof comes off at least once a week also...
Instructor
Joined: Jul 1999
Posts: 195
Likes: 0
From: Alhambra CA
Re: glass top... (jimbos86vette)
Funny you should ask, I just went outside this morning to take the car to work and there is a nice big freakin' crack right down the centerline of the acrylic roof!!!! I haven't even driven the car for a month, it's just been sitting out in the driveway; I think it cracked due to chassis flex, age, and severe heatcycling, since it had been sleeping in the garage for almost a year until recently. We have been having very hot days and extremely cold nights and I think that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I just called Melrose T-tops and got a quote for a lightweight racing fiberglas roof for $500 outright. I think I'm going to go that route, as it includes a new frame, weatherstripping, and is signficantly lighter than stock (<10lbs). I must say though that I am running very aggressive springs and shocks in my coil-over setup and that really has made the chassis flex more severe.
