rusted T-TOP

[Preluder77]

ok i have an 87 t-top and they are rusted pretty good especially in from alon the top of the winshield. Can some one give me a idea at how much this should cost to fix ? i have been givien an estimate but its outrageous i just wanna see if i am being high balled here but cause i can not imagine it being this expensive.. Also does anyone in the florida area know a good body guy that is affordable? Thanks

 

[hrhoward]

Do you have any pictures?

 

[Preluder77]

Pictures!!!

Pics

 

[kh440]

Kinda hard to tell if it's just the outer plates that are rotten or if it's actually eaten into the windshield header itself. G-Body sells an all-inclusive kit in stainless steel for roughly 500(?) If any repair work is needed on the header, best wild guess anywhere from 400-1000 depending on how bad it is underneath.

 

[hrhoward]

Don't mean to bring you down or bum you out but, Cripes!! That looks bad. What kind of price did you get? It is going to take a lot of work. :frown: I'd bet that it had creeped up under the windshield moldings.

 

[Preluder77]

Im going to look at this kit you mentioned at g-body but that is the price I was hoping for. I got a estimate to do the whole body paint and all and it was 6k now after seeing the t-tops he says 10-15k and thats nuts.

 

[hrhoward]

Im going to look at this kit you mentioned at g-body but that is the price I was hoping for. I got a estimate to do the whole body paint and all and it was 6k now after seeing the t-tops he says 10-15k and thats nuts.

I don't think I would pay more than an extra 2-2.5 K.

 

[Preluder77]

what all work is involved in this? Even another 2k seems alot. If he is willing to do everything else for that price it shouldent be almost 50% more to fix the roof.

 

[kh440]

an EXTRA 6K+??? what is this yahoo smokin???? You really need to unscrew all the out parts and see how bad it truly is underneath. It could be as simple as tacking a patch over the rotten areas, worst case scenario is try to find a usable header (a-pillars and all) from a doonor and graft that in but I just don't see it costing that much. You could graft on a complete hard top for less than that....geez! I really can't see it totalling more than about 8 grand for everything, 8500 maybe.....

 

[Preluder77]

Ive taken the bottom plastics down from th inside of the car and it is not rusted. The only other thing that is there that you cant see in the pics is right in the center above the winshield on the outside is a small dime sized soft spot i can psh my pinky finger in.

 

[Bweavy]

Unscrew your center rail. I'm sure the front is gone but you need to check out the rear as well. I have one here worse then that on a we-4 we are repairing.

 

[Preluder77]

What am looking for when unscrewing this rail just more rust basically?

 

[Grumpy]

start with a rust free roof from G body parts ... this job isn't goin to be cheap

 

[Preluder77]

The t-top complete kit from gbody, what does this do for me ? anything ?

 

[kh440]

That will get you everything except the header itself: center rail, left and right outer plates and new weatherstrip retainers front and rear. If the body metal itself is not eaten clean through you MIGHT be able to get away with stripping it down to bare metal and POR-15'ing the bejesus out of it .

 

[Grumpy]

The t-top complete kit from gbody, what does this do for me ? anything ?

NO not that .. I am talking the roof only ... how are the door jambs ???? floors????

 

[dgoodhue]

I would look at the rest of the car to get an honest accessment of the rust damage and determine if its worthwhile or to what extent you repair the damage. In lot of instances, rust repairs are only cost effective for those who have skill to do it themselves and even for them its a labor of love. At $10-15K to repair, you could buy another GN.

 

[animalthug841]

I have a complete t-top roof off an 86 monte carlo ss. Would that work on the GNs? If so I wouldnt mind selling it to you its in pretty good shape. Here are some pictures for you.
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttop5ly5.jpg
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttop4xp9.jpg
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttop6vv7.jpg
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttop3lk9.jpg
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttop2xj4.jpg
ImageShack - Hosting :: ttopjx3.jpg
Let me know if your interested Im located in North Jersey.

 

[HellOnWheels]

Cut the top off and graft on a convertible top.....I saw an 87 drop top at the '91 BG nats.


HOW

 

[Turbo1dr]

I was quoted $4500 to replace the roof on this car. I wound up doing it myself and saved a load of money. This car is now a hardtop car.