I decided to not get a new car and put all the money in my car. Now I want t-tops but I dont have them. I thought about finding a real good custom body man and having them put in, but I was thinking....Maybe it would be easier to get the whole top of another car welded in place. anybody ever hear of this being done? Maybe in a roll over situation otr something. Thanks for the help guys.

 

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Helped do it on a 74 nova, not a very easy thing to do... find a donor car , probably from a scrap yard, use a sawzall, make sure you have precise mesurements, cut both tops, start by spot welding, til you have a nice seam. Presto. T-Top roof. Be very careful with your cuts, under cut if you must, that way you can make small adjustments.

 

Okay, the amount you'll pay for the swap (unless you do everything yourself) is going to be greater than the price of a t-top car. Trust me, I've looked at it b/f.

But, if you still want to do it, I have a complete roof in mint condition I could cut off and sell you...

MILT

 

I wouldn't recommend doing it anyhow. The original T-top cars have more chassis reinforcement than the hardtops and I'm sure a hardtop would be hella rattly without a good chunk of roof.

 

Well Im almost done with the suspension, and I can guarantee thats its much better then anything th factory put out, with or without my roof. theres no way it would be cheaper to buy a ttop car. When you think of everything I'd have to swap, custom interior, engine, suspension, re-wire electronics, repaint car, tear down engine bay and repaint. It would be much cheaper to get it done. I have buddies that can weld, I can do the grinding and body work.

 

The ONLY way to do that swap is with a donor car. An earlier post of cutting it off and butt welding it back together will get you a junk car or dead.

I've done this swap before. Not a swap but replaced a t-top roof with another. A T/A got flattened by ice falling off a building when it was new in '91. I (we, Pontiac body shop) got a used roof for it. It HAS to be put in at the factory locations. The only butt welding is the outer skin of the b-pillar or lead joint.

List of thins that have to come off:

doors
fenders
front cover (to take the fenders off)
hood
interior, including the dash
Windshield (obvious)
hatch

Basially, the car has to be peeled apart. The a-pillars are plug welded (tied into) the upper rails. If the factory locations are not used, the car would be junk after a quick ride. The b-pillars are layered with braces.

Personally i think your crazy, but if your really serious, i have what you need. A complete roof with glass and bags, and cut in the correct locations. I'm cutting up my '83 T/A for parts, the car is in decent shape but i just don't like it and want spare parts for my '82. The main reason i don't like the '83?........it has t-tops and i took it completely apart to restore, found a Vista Cruiser, started on that and lost heart in the '83.

 

please do not part out a decent working ws6 tran am ! ! ! ! ! !

 

The only part I have a problem with is that my upgraded suspension is by far better then anything the factory every put out. Unless convertibles have some type of modificationj that I'm unaware of, my car would still be much stiffer and solid then any convertible. Not to say it couldnt lose some rigidity, but junk after the first ride....unlikely.

 

Ummmmmm, .........junk after the fist ride.......likely, if you were to just cut off the roof with a sawz-all and weld it on to another car. Accually, it would be junk before the first ride.

 

Not that I would tear it apart like a gorilla anyways, but you give no support. You know the structural imprortance of which points that will cause it to fail? Did you see it done that way and fail? What about the conv.?

 

Grab a sawz-all and have at it. You'll figure it out.

Wow, i try to help you out and you want to argue with me like one of my kids.

Have fun!

 

Its not an argument at all, I'm looking for facts so I have all the info.. I can't just take your word for it, I have no idea who you are. Now if you gave me some concrete facts to support what you said I'd believe you. I just want some facts.

 

but, your probally not going to find those facts here, because if we want a car with t-tops, we'll just buy a car with t-tops, much easier costs less, and ***, now that i have a car with t-tops, i REGRET THE DAY I BOUGHT THE CAR!!!!!

the idea in itself is childish, not the attitude

 

What that says.

 

Acually, us convertible guys are pretty well reinforced. We have a boxed type subframe connector, which is about 6" thick. We also have many other various bracings and such that normal fbodys dont have!

 

My GTA has T-Tops that somebody had put on before i bought it... Almost didnt buy it at first cause of that, but after me and my uncle looked it over , ever who did it, did a remarkable job and you cant tell it was ever a hardtop. They did such a factory like job the t-tops even leak now

 

Dude, if u want t tops that bad.... Why dont u go buy a rolling chassis car with t tops.... Theres a 92 Z28 complete car minus the engine and tranny for 600 bucks in the paper..... U could take that car, throw yer engine, tranny, interior, springs, whutever u want into it and build one sweet t topped ride??? Any thirdgen f-body being sold without engine or tranny is usually pretty damn cheap....

 

i had to replace the top in a 86 dodge ram...man was that fun....

 

What else do the conv. have. Im not saying your wrong at all, I'm just curious. Are the sfc welded in?