Ok so third gen ranch has a T-top roof on sale right now (till tomorrow and thats why the title says ASAP) and I was wondering if anyone has ever done a roof conversion form hard top to T-tops.

I know its more upkeep or w/e because of the weatherstipping but I have ALWAYS loved t-tops. I don't know how much shipping would be but the roof is only $60.

What do y'all think please give me opinions. And don't tell me I just want peoples opinions and info on how hard it is or how much it would be to take to a shop to do.

Thank you mucho

 

That conversion is silly. I'm not a purist by any means, but if you want a T-top car, go sell your current ride and buy a T-top car. T-top cars are a dime a dozen, and butchering a hardtop car (and potentially screwing it up to where it's irreversible) is just a bad idea. Doing it right will cost you much more than just finding another car. Those T-top roofs are for sale for people who have rust problems around their t-tops from bad sealing.

I've seen plenty of cars "converted" and I stay FAR away from them when I see it. Most of the time they're not done properly and have serious rust problems to work out.

Any time fabrication is involved, you can expect a heavy cost associated with it.

 

well S**t.....

I know this will sound dumb but the main reason I don't want to do that, sell mine and buy a new one is because this is my first one and I've already put so much into it and I really don't want to get rid of it....ever if possible

thanks for the insight though

 

If you can afford a TTop car outright its going to be cheaper than doing a conversion... The bracing that you're going to have to build requires some precision cuts that can be hard to do. I've done alot of custom fab stuff and it does take alot of time and know-how. Just my .02 but I'd stay away from it unless you have years of experience and deep pockets... Just to give you an estimate on what MY labor charge would be... Ready?? Are you sure?? lol NOT including parts, you'd be looking at about 3000-6000 bucks...

 

doing a roof swap is NOT a project for a beginer. if you have to ask if its possible, then its not the project for you. if you have deep pockets and want to REALLY convert your hard top to a ttop buy the top and take it to a pro and have them do it. it requires a lot of bracing, careful measuring, re measuring, measuring again, then careful remeasuring (get the point) then cutting and welding. the roof is structural and not something to be just hacked at blindly. a pro shop would probably charge around 2-3 grand to do it, not including the paint job. and thats if you take them the car with the interior already gutted out.

 

Sounds like a real big project that will involve a lot of time and money to do right. The amount of money you may save on this sale will probably be minor compared to the total cost of the project. With that said, I say hold off until you know exactly what it would take to do the swap.

 

well...it WAS a good idea...thanks for all the input. I guess I didn't really see it as the roof being that structural but I guess it makes sense though. maybe one day, but by the sounds of it, no time soon.

oh well thanks again

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/post...03-post10.html

Another thread for reference.
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...-top-roof.html

 

originally, I wanted T-tops just like you. The less I saw hardtop cars like mine, the more I enjoyed it. Hardtop cars are about as good as it gets for building power because of the extra stability you gain that t-top cars don't have (and subsequently, usually have extra reinforcement because of it).

I like my t-tops still in other rides I've had, but anything I've ever wanted power in I chose a hardtop for.

 

Well I mean I'm not really going for the power house car or anything like that. My idea for my camaro is to keep it as my daily driver but still have fun with it and be able to run her when I want to. like I said ever since I saw a pair of T-tops when I was a kid i've always loved them. I dont like convertibles all that much and t-tops are like the perfect middle between a sunroof and convertible. but oh well...

 

Unibody cars rely heavily on the sheet metal of the floors & roof to hold the chassis together. There are two "frame rails" in the trans tunnel and some beefier metal out back that form the subframes. The rest is held together with the floor, rockers, and roof. Its a catch 22: unibodies are lighter, cheaper, easier to produce, and more structurally sound in a crash than body on frame vehicles. The trade off is that you can't just go hacking into to do what you want.

FWIW, just so you know how narrow a margin of structure you have for a chassis, my floor pans had rusted out and began to rupture. No, I didn't have the Flintstone problem, but it was getting there. My car rolled laterally in each turn I made doing 5mph in my apt complex. Now that I have had the pans fixed, its far stiffer and while I've not pushed the envelope of its rigidity (hey, I need my DD to last another couple years before I can really tear into it), the car isn't a wobbling mess in a turn now.