Got My Roof Painted, Need Advice. *PICS*
09-30-2013, 08:26 AM
#21
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Sounds fair, did you go to a pick and pull and had to do it yourself or they did it for you?
This!!! Please keep us updated will need to do this myself in the future!
This!!! Please keep us updated will need to do this myself in the future!
09-30-2013, 12:02 PM
#22
I'm going to assume that from his price that the yard pulled it for him. Most pick and pull places charge under $100 for a roof since you have to do the labor to pull it yourself. My local pick and pull yard allows the use of a cordless sawzall, but not a cut off wheel since the cutoff wheel throws sparks and that can light the whole place up.
09-30-2013, 04:52 PM
#23
Thanks. I started picking at it today, the roof part is separated, now I have to get the sail panel glue cut.
Yup, I picked it up the way it is in those pictures. They did all the cutting(although I did remove some more material when I got it back to my shop). Honestly I'd pay the extra to be able to take it back to my shop and have all my tools right there instead of fighting with it in the middle of a salvage yard. Maybe if I had a couple roofs under my belt and knew how to attack it better I'd think differently. There was one yard that said he'd sell it for $100 shipped but never called me back...
I'm going to assume that from his price that the yard pulled it for him. Most pick and pull places charge under $100 for a roof since you have to do the labor to pull it yourself. My local pick and pull yard allows the use of a cordless sawzall, but not a cut off wheel since the cutoff wheel throws sparks and that can light the whole place up.
09-30-2013, 05:37 PM
#24
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Where are you located? Did all of the salvage yards offer to have the roofs cut off for you? Did your request seem odd to them? I was quoted $250 by a local member but I had to remove the roof myself. I don't want to bother with that if I can find a salvage yard to do it for me for about that price!
09-30-2013, 05:53 PM
#25
Where are you located? Did all of the salvage yards offer to have the roofs cut off for you? Did your request seem odd to them? I was quoted $250 by a local member but I had to remove the roof myself. I don't want to bother with that if I can find a salvage yard to do it for me for about that price!
Check out car-parts.com. I found 5 pages of 4th gens with hardtops; from 15 to 250 miles from me. The couple salvage yards I called didn't act like it was a problem at all. The one I went with had the best customer service and worked with me over the phone as to where exactly I wanted it cut. If you'd like their info I can PM you it, not sure if they have any more hardtops though or how far they are from you. I'd definitely deal with them again though.
10-01-2013, 10:06 AM
#27
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What is your build date?
If it's 05/98 or later, then you're at risk. Though some people with later '98s were lucky enough to receive roof panels that were still prepped in the older, proper method.
If it's an early or mid-year '98, then you should be fine.
If it's 05/98 or later, then you're at risk. Though some people with later '98s were lucky enough to receive roof panels that were still prepped in the older, proper method.
If it's an early or mid-year '98, then you should be fine.
10-02-2013, 04:55 PM
#28
Got the roof off and all the urethane removed from the underside. With the right tools it wasn't too bad. The windshield guy who comes in helped me out. We used his air tool but got it mostly off with the two handles and piano wire. I'm pretty sure I'm just going to cut the roof off of my car. I don't see a reason to try and be neat with it when it's just going to be junked anyway. Hopefully going to sand it down and have it primed by the end of the week.
10-02-2013, 07:59 PM
#31
Glad to see your getting it fixed right. So many fight this and fight it and fight it until finally giving in and fixing it correctly. My car is perfect except for the dumb bubbly roof, it is very aggravating.
Answering this is a bit redundant since the OP chose his method of correcting the problem. But, its a good question to answer anyways because none of those methods would work. Think of it like a garage floor with a moisture problem, there is not anything on earth that will prohibit having issues with even the most durable coatings if the the moisture is coming through the concrete. Same deal with the epoxy on top. Yea it will seal it on top, but the gas will still bubble the roof trying to escape.
actually, i think there may be a way (albeit difficult and probably pretty costly to have someone else do it for you) to fix it from the top.
===============================
step 1 would be to get it sanded, primed, and coated with a couple coats of epoxy sealer that won't allow any more reaction to continue up beyond this coat. this step is just to get to a sealed & smooth starting point
step 2 would be to lightly scuff up the top layer of the epoxy coat, then lay down a layer or 2 of thin fiberglass mat & epoxy resin. this layer would form a structure of sorts (kind of like putting a "helmet" on the roof) to prevent bubbles from being able to push their way through, and since it will be chemically separated from the compromised underlying fiberglass, it won't be eaten up by the glue and suffer the same fate.
step 3 would be to lightly sand & smooth out the top layer of the fiberglass mat layer, then prime/paint/clearcoat
===============================
this way, you would not have to worry about removing anything (twice, once on your car, and once on the donor), and the top would end up being a bit stronger, too
this is just a theory, though....i'm not sure how it would actually end up in practice, and i certainly don't have the money or the time & necessary skills to try to tackle this on my own....but if it does work, it would definitely be a bit more of an accessible fix, not having to rely on availability of a donor car
thoughts?
===============================
step 1 would be to get it sanded, primed, and coated with a couple coats of epoxy sealer that won't allow any more reaction to continue up beyond this coat. this step is just to get to a sealed & smooth starting point
step 2 would be to lightly scuff up the top layer of the epoxy coat, then lay down a layer or 2 of thin fiberglass mat & epoxy resin. this layer would form a structure of sorts (kind of like putting a "helmet" on the roof) to prevent bubbles from being able to push their way through, and since it will be chemically separated from the compromised underlying fiberglass, it won't be eaten up by the glue and suffer the same fate.
step 3 would be to lightly sand & smooth out the top layer of the fiberglass mat layer, then prime/paint/clearcoat
===============================
this way, you would not have to worry about removing anything (twice, once on your car, and once on the donor), and the top would end up being a bit stronger, too
this is just a theory, though....i'm not sure how it would actually end up in practice, and i certainly don't have the money or the time & necessary skills to try to tackle this on my own....but if it does work, it would definitely be a bit more of an accessible fix, not having to rely on availability of a donor car
thoughts?
10-02-2013, 08:41 PM
#32
I also picked up a replacement roof off of a '94 camaro. Got it off craigslist, the guy cut it off his car just like yours for $50. I'm trying to decide if I should attempt to remove the skin my self, or have a shop do it (who has had proven results). The shop quoted me $1,018 to remove both roof skins, paint the one off the '94, and install it on my Formula. I was quoted at $600 with no paint.
10-03-2013, 08:23 PM
#34
Started to prep the 'new' panel and got my original roof off tonight. Was pretty nerve racking but not overly difficult. Even though it was bubbling it was still weird cutting into a freshly painted roof. I think the hard part is done now, just gotta finishing prepping the roof and paint it...
I made an outline on the roof to give me lines to follow. I also had the roof frame from the donor car beside my car as a reference. Another reason why it was nice getting the whole roof assembly.
I test fit the new roof, it went on pretty easily. I'm hoping I can install the windshield molding, paint the roof and slide it on like the TSB says.
I made an outline on the roof to give me lines to follow. I also had the roof frame from the donor car beside my car as a reference. Another reason why it was nice getting the whole roof assembly.
I test fit the new roof, it went on pretty easily. I'm hoping I can install the windshield molding, paint the roof and slide it on like the TSB says.
