My new top...
Well, I didn't get a lot of responses from this site, Corvette Forum, or Corvette Mechanic, but I knew I had to do something because the top looked like hell, and I plan on keeping my car for a good long while.
Without any major recommendations on any one product, I figured I would involve one of the tried and true Corvette parts accessories houses. From my price and product description cross references I had a hunch that both Zip and Mid America were using the same vendor, and if anything was bogus about the product, I was confident that either of those companies would make it right. Specifically, the refurbished or remanufactured top was what I decided on , through Zip, because their price was slightly better, and they included shipping for the core roof frame. $800.00 net after getting your $500 core back.
All was done very promptly, like 2 1/2 weeks, and I didn't even have to chase my core credit, it came back fast! The quality is excellent, and I would challenge a Bloomington Gold Judge to say that it was a remake.
Nice big fat new weather strips that take out all of the "ThwacK" rattle on the windshield header when you go over stiff bumps- when the strips get all compressed. I guess if your frame is cracked or seriously damaged you are screwed, but that was not my issue.
I even got a call from the owner of the company that did the work! He was very informaitive. He said the problem causing the delamination or crazing was too much heat, and that regardless of the age of your top, you must keep your windows down a crack to keep air circulating to keep the temp down. The factory top is really two components, formed together, first a harder, glass like top surface, and then the usual much softer lexan/polymer base. I think he said the forming temperature is like 145-160 degrees, temperatures easily obtainable in the summer if your car is left to cook all day in the sun with the windows all the way up. This happened to me last summer in New England, we had a very hot spell, and I got lazy about putting the car in the shade.
All of a sudden I started seeing from the inside, side to side striations, running through the top, like hundreds of parallel spyder web like lines in the plastic. The key, leave the window down a half an inch, or even a quarter, if you can't park it in the shade. The other issue was the obvious delamination of the two components on the outside, starting, from what is typical, the passenger side- rear.
I worked like a dog, the better part of my summer vacation trying to sand out the problem, got bales of wet or dry paper, bought a sander, etc. and only roughed out about 14" through the VERY TOUGH glass layer. I had spent about 40 hours on it at this point. It was the slowest progress I have ever encountered in all my years of working on cars, I just wasn't getting anywhere, and wasn't sure if I was going to like it when I got done with all the effort!
I am totally satisfied with the route I took. The quality is like new, but at a $4-500 savings vs. GM OEM.
Enjoy,
Bluemill
