weswisehart

Did any of the camaros come with fiberglass or Plexiglas t-tops? I bought a 91 and the tops are not glass. Was just wondering if this is custom or if it was a option?

scottmoyer

It could be an option or it could be aftermarket. GM tried using them to lighten the cars more. I think C&C also used plexiglass for their aftermarket types. I'm not positive on that though. You can swap the factory plastic for factory glass with no modifications needed.

weswisehart

Yea will do. These are in bad shape. I may just fiberglass over them and clean them up but I'm unsure about that

zero_g

iTrader: (1)

My 92 has plastic ones. The driver one warped in the middle so it sticks up just a little. Would love to find a really nice and cheap junkyard fine sometime!
I know they are original since I have had it since new. Not sure if aftermarket ones would use the door key to lock them but that may be a clue yours are original.

jharrison5

Ya they are Lexan and you should be able to swap the locks over to the glass ones if you find some to buy. However if the Lexan is just scratched you can always paint them the color of the car for a hardtop look.

weswisehart

I guess they are stock. Cool I never knew that. One is cracked. You think I could just fill it with fiberglass?

JeremyNYR

iTrader: (2)

I'm not so sure if fiberglass resin is compatible with lexan. You'll want to inquire with a business or a web site that specializes in lexan repair. Also, from pictures I've seen, I think the lexan t-tops do have a bit of a dome shape to them compared to the glass version.

Drew

iTrader: (58)

You may want to dig a little deeper... Technically Lexan is a GE brand name. If you look closely at the plastic t-tops they say Lexmar Acrylic. Most people assume Lexmar = lexan. But they're really not the same thing. Plexiglass is probably closer to the material then Lexan. The term "Lexan t-tops" is perpetuated because that's what most of us know them by. If you use an adhesive for Lexan you'll probably be disappointed in the result.

I've yet to see anyone on here have much success restoring plastic t-tops. They get crazing inside the material over time and exposure to UV rays. The outer layer takes a lot of heat also. If you have a nice set, plastic polishes can keep them nice, but won't prevent the internal fractures. Once they're damaged that's it.

You could try something relatively inert, like a 5-minute epoxy from your local hardware store. However the usual fix is duct tape until you can find a nice set of glass tops.

weswisehart

Not what I wanted to hear ha ha. Thanks I was hoping to repair them and paint them the body color so it would look some what like a hard top until removed

navy02ws6

Wow, a 91-92 that still has plexiglass tops -- weird! Thankfully someone swapped mine for glass years ago.

Check your local salvage yards, I can usually score a set of glass ones down here for around $80. Would recommend against painting yours, that would not look so great, and would be a BIG downgrade IMO, whether they're heavily scratched or not. I always thought 1978-11 Corvettes that had the painted tops were cheap no-option cars just based on not having a glass top(s) -- they make the car if you ask me. Painted tops look cheap on a Corvette, and they'd look 10x worse on an F-Body since they never offered painted t-tops from the factory.

Kevman

They're acrylic, they scratch very easily, but man is it easy to take them out and put them in the trunk!

weswisehart

I found a glass set for 50 bucks. I hope they are in OK shape. The passenger top is cracked so I need a replacement pair. How hard is it to swap the locks and all?

okfoz

Drew is correct, they are ACRYLIC, it is clearly stated on the top.

Plexiglas, Polycast, Cyro, Lucite are all made from ACRYLIC. Leximar is the company that made the tops...

The color is unique, actually twice as dark as the darkest material I can get. I was going to set up and make reproductions, BUT I could not match the color.

Seeing I make windows for aircraft, it would not have been a stretch, since they too are made from the same Acrylic.

When I considered how cheap 3rd genners are it was not worth it.

John

puma1552

iTrader: (1)

Zing!

Lol.

okfoz

Consider the following
$10,000+ in the special color material (Batch)
$5,000 in dies

The price would end up to be about $150 to $200 each...

When you can simply go to the junkyard, get a reasonably nice glass PAIR for $100 or less, then you have to consider that it is probably not worth it.

As for the cheap thing... Actually its not just third Genners. Car people in general are really pretty petty. They want the world, for nothing. It goes to figure considering that you can easily exceed the value of your car with the parts and labor you invest into it... Only a few cars can you simply sink $30K or so into them and really come out ahead.
John

Drew

iTrader: (58)

From what I've seen, you can hardly give away T-tops... If you only have one, it's always the other side that people are looking for. If you have a pair then the person asking is always looking for just one or the other.

I personally would prefer a nice set of plastic T-tops over the glass, but I really don't think there's a market. Someday maybe.