• Hey Guest!
    British Car Forum has been supporting enthusiasts for over 25 years by providing a great place to share our love for British cars. You can support our efforts by upgrading your membership for less than the dues of most car clubs. There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Upgraded members don't see this banner, nor will you see the Google ads that appear on the site.)
Tips
Tips

TR2/3/3A Fitting new top[hood]

Share this page

2

2liter4cyl

Senior Member
Country flag
Offline
Got a new top some time ago and now ready to fit on '60 TR3A. The rear seems to be a proper length for fitting, but the part at the wind screen seems odd. I'm sure the box it came in said TR3. The problem is the leading edge has a circular cut on each end, with a row of oval flats (8 to be exact) from end to end. This is followed by 2 or 3 creases for some reason. Do I fold something, cut something off, Or do I have the wrong top?
 
The first rule with a new hood is mark the exact center, front and back, and start from there, working outward. They never provide any extra material, so always stretch firmly outboard as you add each lift-a-dot.

There is normally a flap up front with a round foam sewn into the edge. This folds over and acts as a seal. There should be some oval markings in that flap that get cut out so the lift a dot stud will fit through it and into the lift-a-dot fasteners. I'll see if I can find a pic...

This is the best I could find...



You can just see the round foam seal peaking under the front lip of the hood. One of the center dots is loose...I later enlarged the holes in the flap, and that fixed the tendency for the dots to pop off. The wrinkles you see along the side of the top almost completely disappeared after a few days in the sun...so don't sweat that too much.

And...sorry for the poor terminology...the rear has lift-a-dots, the front has those button style fasteners...
 
You want to avoid the pleats in the photo above, which are the result of mis spacing of the stick componenets (top bows). John is right about the centering, of course. My top came with grease pencil marks for the fasteners. There is a site called, I think, Terry Ann's TR3 that has the spacingmeasurements for the top bows. Do buy the cutting and installation tools for the holes that are available from Moss. Do leave the top in the sun for several hours before (and during) the fitment. If you have no premarking, stretch and mark the spot for each fastener a couple at a time.
 
bobhustead said:
You want to avoid the pleats in the photo above, which are the result of mis spacing of the stick componenets (top bows). John is right about the centering, of course. My top came with grease pencil marks for the fasteners. There is a site called, I think, Terry Ann's TR3 that has the spacingmeasurements for the top bows. Do buy the cutting and installation tools for the holes that are available from Moss. Do leave the top in the sun for several hours before (and during) the fitment. If you have no premarking, stretch and mark the spot for each fastener a couple at a time.
Click to expand...

Just a thought on the installation tools.I stretch the top over the fastener then tap the top of peg to get a mark,then hole punch .To get the cuts for the fastener tabs I sharpened one fastener's four tabs sharp with a file.Then I just push it through while lining up with hole,then install one of the non sharpened.
Tom
 
Took me a couple of days to install mine. Take your time. Ignore Terry Anne's spacing for an Amco top diag unless that's what you have. The main thing is that the top bows lineup with the seams in the top, not the same as that diagram in my case. I used squeeze clamps to keep the straps in place until all was adjusted. Use chalk to mark positions.

Also that funny front seal part: Mine is tubular and flocked. I installed mine by leaving the flocked tubular piece ON TOP of the window frame and draping the vinyl flap (for the Tenax fasteners) outside. It made sense to me to not have the flocked material in the weather, although others state it should be outside for some reason - I think they're wrong. If you look at the rubber seal on top of the windshield frame, notice a groove that runs side to side in the middle of the seal - this is where the flocked tube sits, not draped over and outside. The vinyl flap that drapes over is the piece that holds the Tenax fasteners - It's just a simple round hole unlike the LTD fasteners at the rear and sides.

When you get around to installing the top start at the center and work outwards both left and right to ensure that the top is centered on your car. Keep it taught and constantly check and recheck the center or your top will be wrinkled like the photo above. Should be flat and taught all around, hot or cold.

btw - mine doesn't leak or get baggy in the sun but it does have a couple of wrinkles despite all my best efforts... BUT I literally spent hours laying out the top in place, measuring, marking, reading the internet forums, clamping things in place before I made the 1st hole. I also purchased a LTD punch for around $40 that I would buy again. Beside centering, the top fame is the next important thing to get lined up. It is designed to accept the seams in the top for support as well as shape so it is important the they are close. Once that 1st centerline hole is made, it goes more quickly. If you have an old top examine how the fasteners are aligned along the edged and replicate that as much as possible.Just keep measuring, centering at each step and you'll do OK. I think upholstery is a talent like painting anyway but the more I do the better I seem to get and it's now actually enjoyable.
 
Back
Top