I have a white/hugger 30th anny car. I really want some kinda open roof conversion, but i want it to at least look mostly original. heres my 2 ideas, let me know if you think it is feasable

1
Targa top...sorta
My idea is to find some really cheap T-tops, maybe with broken glass etc, and completely remove the glass. I would then do the T-top conversion as normal but i would leave out the center T-top holder(black piece that both t-tops slide into). I would remove all the glass from the t-top frames and then put the large Roof pannel in the T-top frames.

The whole top when unlatched from each side would come off as one unit, simular to Whistler setup

Do you think the targa roof panel would be flush all the was accross the windshield and the rear? or would it bow up? guess it depends on how stiff the weather stripping is and how rigid the factor roof is....both witch i have no idea

If i new how to take care of the headline, i would go ahead and cut out the "T" bar and make it a real targa... any tips? anyone "know a guy" lol??

2
Simpler... paint and striped the T-tops
Im sure you can but just checking, glass can be painted correct? i guess this would would nearly as well although there would be a black line down the middle of the roof etc..

Thanks for the help!

FYI, there are my references...
http://www.dw-zone.com/t-tops/t-top.asp
http://members.fortunecity.com/gripe...penfelter.html
http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~adamez/38S...cs/andy/ttops/
http://www.geek-racing.com/curt/T-top_conversion/
I thank all those brave pioneers

 

If you plan on racing your car you might wanna find out if they will even let you on the track with a targa conversion...

 

I dont see why not...
I mean vettes, RT-10s etc are all targa optionabout cars. I also am will be getting a 6 pt cage in the future

 

if you get a cage, i think you could do a targa, cuz the cage will hold your car together and keep from turning it into a hot dog. You would need to get the cage at the same time u do the targa.

 

Many people claim the car will bend like a hot dog if a targa is attempted, but what about convertables? are they have is some little ***** subfram conecters. i would have alot more suport then that

 

Seems like someone has done the targa conversion around here. I think that would look so much better than t-tops.

 

I thought convertibles had more bracing than that, maybe not.

 

I think Whistler did a targa conversion, but i'm not sure, but i do remember someone did do one and it looked good

 

Yeah, whistler did it, but I believe he did it with glass, which would be cooler. I am thinking about this now, as I just got a set of t-tops on ebay for $10.

Seems that the weatherstripping will also be a problem, not sure what you would have to do about that. I would definately get some good SFCs if I did this.

Lets here some more ideas guys....

 

Alright, I just talked to camarossguy2 for a while, and we have a pretty basic idea of what need to be done.

First, so the regular t-top conversion. After that, seperate the handle section of the t-top from the rest of it. I mean the whole plastic piece that has the handle. Then put just those pieces in where they go.

Then put the old roof section on top of that, after doing some modifying to get it to fit right. Then find a way to reinforce it, and make it think enough to sit flush with the roof lines. I think fiberglassing it, getting it nearly perfect, than adding another fabbed up sheet metal piece to the top. This should provide enough stability to keep it in place at any speed, and make it firm enough to not bend and mess up the paint.

After making sure this will work, you could then cut out the center brace, and modify the healiner to fit.

My question is, what should be used for the reinforcement of the targa top. I think Whistler used carbon fiber, but I think it is really hard to work with.

Maybe creating a mold witt the roof piece, and building a completely fiberglass targa top would work.

 

Just keep in mind if you plan on making that car faster in the future you will definitely need a cage. It will follow the same guidelines as a convertible in terms of which cage will be appropriate for the times you run.

 

I just popped over from your LT1 tech thread to cheer you on...

Tar-ga, Tar-ga, Tar-ga!!!



-brent

 

Have you looked at the posibility of using a C4 top?

 

Went by today and looking at a bunch of new c5s...
as for the c4 and c5 tops, it would be a great idea, but a stretch... but i will look into it

 

The C5 and C4 panels won't come close to fitting, unless you reshape the rest of your roof to fit the targa panel.

If you make it from fiberglass it will have to be extremely thick. I made my first panel from fiberglass. It was about 3/8 thick and made from alternating layers of chopped mat and woven glass for high strength. It also incorporated two .125 x 2" steel lateral braces. This panel fit OK, it looked a little bigger than the rest of the roof, but it wasnt too bad, but it would lift up at freeway speeds from the low pressure the roof of a car experiences. Ever see a convertible car go down the highway?

So the roof needs to be either
Steel
Tempered glass
Carbon fiber

Unless you utilize some form of latch in the front and center to keep it from lifting. I wanted a clean factory look so I skipped this possibility.

As far as the chassis is concerned, I wouldn't reccomend this modification if racing is any concern. My car shows no signs of drooping of any kind after a year and a half, but with the roof off, the huge camshaft that shakes the whole car noticably shakes front more than the back. Take it FWIW