Replacement soft top, prices, fitters.

crzymx · Postby **crzymx** » Tue Dec 16, 2008 1:26 am

Anyone had to replace the soft top, w/glass window. Im going to be in that market soon, and wouldnt mind being pointed in the right direction.

Essentially, i just want some rough prices for various aspects, and some personal experiences if applicable. Thanks

MX5CHIC · Postby **MX5CHIC** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:30 am

I purchased a new cloth soft top from an EBay seller 12 months ago, it has a glass window with heater and cost me $601 AUD Delivered from the USA.
The thing you should be aware of, is that unlike the standard top which has a pocket around the glass to allow for the glass to drop down first when lowering, my top like most aftermarket jobs is sealed with no pocket.
The problem is that (at least in my case) when lowering the new top it will not clear the windblocker and just won't lay down on the deck - the only solution was to remove my factory NB8A windblocker which made it work perfectly.
I had installed style bars so it was not a problem as I have built a custom blocker to suit the syle bars - looks much better than the standard windblocker too and has speakers built into it - cost around $40 to build with matching carpet.

Installation of the top was DIY and took me one full day to complete, there are some tricks to installing it so look up MX5 Forums and you will find plenty on the subject.

sliq · Postby **sliq** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:57 am

good work mx5chic. :idea:

wun911 · Postby **wun911** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:59 am

oh nice

I hear the mo hair ones are really heavy I would avoid them if I were you...

MX5CHIC · Postby **MX5CHIC** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 12:08 pm

Oh yeah, my top is "Sonnedecke" Canvas/Cloth - it is manufactured by KIA Auto Tops in the US. Having had it installed for almost a year I can vouch for the quality and great fit.
Just remember, if you get a cloth top and especially a light colour you absolutely need to treat it to prevent stains - I have used 303 protectant which just beads the water so the cloth never gets soaked, good insurance

Note **** make sure you purchase a new top with the Rain Rail already attached - this makes the job SO much easier.

crzymx · Postby **crzymx** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 7:32 pm

Whats the difference between cloth and vinyl soft tops?

green_comet · Postby **green_comet** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 9:22 pm

I still dont understand all this stuff about getting a top with the rain rail attached. I ordered my top about this time last year, and had not one issue using my old rain rail. I recon I spent about 25min swapping the old rail over to the new top, and I saved a sh*t load in the process. I can understand it being hard if you have no idea, otherwise dont waste your money.

I went through Daveshouze on US ebay, they are very good to deal with.

http://stores.ebay.com/daveshouze

Their tops are made by Kee.

http://www.keeautotop.com/

Here is some info on when I did my top.

http://mx5cartalk.com/phpBB-3.0.2/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=29161&hilit=stayfast+top

Whats the difference between cloth and vinyl soft tops?

That is pretty self-explanatory. One is Vinyl, and the other is cloth... Vinyl is cheaper but wont last as long as a cloth top. Cloth does look alot nicer though, and keeps more heat in. I went from Vinyl to Stayfast cloth, and I will never going back..

Most of these questions have been answered millions of times. 15 seconds in Google found this: http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?t=281828

crzymx · Postby **crzymx** » Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:28 pm

Well fair enough, but the purpose of my thread was to find fitter and prices in local melbourne. I may not have been specific enough. I know ebay has been good in the past but has dealt with auto shops? Whats the rain ralk bit?

MX5CHIC · Postby **MX5CHIC** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 9:40 am

OK - The Rain Rail is a plastic guttering that runs around the rear of your soft top and exits the water near the pillars on each side of the car, it comes attached via rivets from the factory (mazda).
The problem with the NB and most likely NA series is that the rain rail is made of brittle plastic, I inspected my rain rail before I bought a new top and found numerous cracks in it, this resulted in water entering the parcel shelf in heavy rain.
I purchased my new top from the same EBay seller as "green_comet" - and as he said you don't have to get a new top with a rain rail, you can use the old one if you know it is in good condition and if you are careful in removing the old top, as too much force or twisting will crack it. Also it is good insurance to fit new tensioning cables when you get a new top done, these cables should cost around $50 a pair.
My new top with rain rail attached uses a pliable/flexible plastic which will last longer than I will own my car - just good insurance for the extra $100 I paid for it.
You asked for fitters and prices in Melbourne ..... my friend had her NA top fitted by her mechanic - suprisingly, he did an excellent job of it, her mechanic charged $200 - a motor trimmer quoted her $550!

Just call motor trimmers or body shops that have done one before and get a firm quote.

wun911 · Postby **wun911** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 12:33 pm

People that fit soft tops in Melbourne?? Do you know of the MX5 factory in Ringwood they can fit and replace soft tops.

There is a more durable super duper rain rail somewhere made out of polyutherane or something heavy like that.

sliq · Postby **sliq** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 1:25 pm

wun911 wrote:People that fit soft tops in Melbourne?? Do you know of the MX5 factory in Ringwood they can fit and replace soft tops.

There is a more durable super duper rain rail somewhere made out of polyutherane or something heavy like that.

theres a rubber plastic one on mx5parts

crzymx · Postby **crzymx** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 2:00 pm

In the case that you would have to source it through somewhere like mx5 factory. What would i pay? Would it be much different from from an ebay seller in terms of pricing? Can anyone vouch for this??

TieNN89 · Postby **TieNN89** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 3:50 pm

wun911 wrote:People that fit soft tops in Melbourne?? Do you know of the MX5 factory in Ringwood they can fit and replace soft tops.

There is a more durable super duper rain rail somewhere made out of polyutherane or something heavy like that.

Made outa poly urethane unbreakable with lifetime warranty or something along those lines

I got mine from Duetto Motors i think they are called

crzymx · Postby **crzymx** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 4:13 pm

Im more interested in prices from motor trimmers etc etc, for the actual top. I dont want to pay too much if i dont have to.

Mr Morlock · Postby **Mr Morlock** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 5:52 pm

Why don't you just ring or visit the MX5 factory for a quote? One advantage in buying from them is that you are likely to get a warranty and back up and you can also see and touch what you are buying. Ask about rain rails - they will explain and show you what they are. A choice based on the cheapest is easy but there are other factors. It is unlikely, I would guess, that any local trimmer is making a soft top as they are not likely to be competitive with a larger manuf with an existing pattern and a larger customer base.