Taking the vinyl top off?

[bluesteve1]

Hello everyone I am goin' to be paint my 94 Brougham and I need to take the top off and i plan to do it myself. here's some concerns and questons

how hard is this to do, i am no expert?
what is under there?
should i get it removed by a professional?

thanx in advance

[1990CaddyBrougham]

Why do you need to take the top off to paint it?

Anyways The vinyl top will go as follows.

You have the vinyl, then adhesive, then a white foam then more adhesive to the roof of the car.
Removal isnt hard. You wont be able to use your top again, and have to get new vinyl. And may have to replace the foam.

I put a vinyl top on my 120 stretch limousine a year ago... so i know how it works a bit. But i dont understand why you have to take it off. And if your asking how hard it is to remove, you will def need a pro to install a new one later.

[96Fleetwood]

Expect to have some body and paint work done after removal.

I am planning on doing the same on my Fleetwood when I do the custom paint job next year.

http://www.impalassforum.com/vBullet...ght=remove+top

Read that thread.

[jayoldschool]

Also, if you are going to redo it without the vinyl, you need to get the trim to go around the back window from one of the plain-top Broughams.

[bluesteve1]

The car is burgandy and I plain on painting it a blue during spring break. it has a red top right now and i would like it removed. I might go with a white or cream top in the near future but not right now.

so if i do decide to go top-less what parts will i need to order to get it looking factory, as far as the gaps go? any part number?
thanx

[My_favorite_Brougham]

To go bare-top, I think you may actually need a whole new rear windshield that was for a bare-top Brougham.... and the respective trim. Another option is to have it dyed; and that 93-96 vinyl is so hard you might even get way with painting it somehow, but IDK.

But here's a concern; are you sure that blue paint will go with burgundy interior? Kind of an odd combo, but hey. Good luck!

Greg

[caddycruiser]

The vinyl actually isn't THAT hard to get off, and the only different item is the trim around the rear window--the window itself is the same, just the extra side pieces for models that were baretop to begin with.

Here's what it looks like with the factory vinyl simply pulled off, and no other work done. As you can see, the one thing that does necessitate some body work are the little nubs around the C-pillar for where trim was attached. On this car, they're small enough not to bother the owner (this is a well-known car with 350k+ miles on it), and he's shown it as is:











All the seals, etc. remain the same. It's just pulling them loose, removing the vinyl and all the foam & glue (messiest part), and then putting the seals back in place.

[cadillac_al]

Hey Caddycruiser, was that roof shiney like that when you took the vinyl off? That doesn't look bad at all to me. I took one off a 70's Cutlass a few years ago and there were very rough welds and rough paint underneath. If they are shiney like that under there then I may start looking for cracked top Caddys.

[caddycruiser]

Originally Posted by cadillac_al

Hey Caddycruiser, was that roof shiney like that when you took the vinyl off? That doesn't look bad at all to me. I took one off a 70's Cutlass a few years ago and there were very rough welds and rough paint underneath. If they are shiney like that under there then I may start looking for cracked top Caddys.

That's not my car...but yes, that's what it looks like.

Unlike a lot of old cars, there is NO body work difference, lack of paint, etc. on cars that got vinyl roofs and those that didn't.

The only thing are those little stubs around the C-pillars and back window from the trim...but otherwise, after all the foam and glue are off, presto, that's what it looks like.

[96Fleetwood]

I am going to put my Fleetwood in the body shop next winter. I am going to have the vinyl top removed and the rivets sanded and filled and the top repainted and blended with the rear fender.

[caddycruiser]

Originally Posted by 96Fleetwood

I am going to put my Fleetwood in the body shop next winter. I am going to have the vinyl top removed and the rivets sanded and filled and the top repainted and blended with the rear fender.

Yes...would love that for mine, as well, if I had such aspirations for it anymore.

On a different note...after the side attack on my '95, because of the vinyl top and other things, the shop decided it best (and really the only way) to install the new quarter by seaming it right along the bottom of the vinyl roof on that rivet line. Came out perfect, and the vinyl top actually helped them in that regard...but now it would probably need a touch of smoothing on that area because of it, if the vinyl was yanked. Or maybe not, given that the vinyl was pulled up a few inches there and no other seams are at all visible on the rest of the work.

Otherwise, would have been a further yank of the vinyl...too bad You know, and throw a sunroof in while at it...

[Cadillacboy]

I considered of removing vinyl too .However, after owning the FWB I think it doesn't look bad at all .

[bluesteve1]

I plain on keeping the top, i'm just switching it to white now.

[caddycruiser]

Originally Posted by Cadillacboy

I considered of removing vinyl too .However, after owning the FWB I think it doesn't look bad at all .

No, it doesn't--it's actually very nice and complimenting of the car--the biggest factor there is that it's OEM. It looks the part, and fits/is the quality of OEM. Nothing like a lot of aftermarket tops, that never look or are totally "right".

For me, I just prefer clean, shiny and smooth paint vs. a rubber wrap on top (even if it's a classy one). Though, on some, especially old white ones that are original...it starts to detract with stains, mildew, etc. and look neglected even if it isn't. Basically, just an added upkeep item, that's looks only.

Thankfully, my '95s still looks great and the color is about as good as it gets as far as maintenance, dirt, etc. Not that it mattered anyway, a vinyl top project is far from a priority.

[bluesteve1]

so do you just unscrew the screws and the vinyl comes right off? is it the pad that is glued?