Has anyone stripped their hard top?

[Jack Ratt]

Was wondering what a paint stripped and polished hard top would look like?
I understand that they're made from aluminium and that some one, some where may have done it?

 

[Aceman]

No they are made of fibreglass.

 

[Jack Ratt]

No they are made of fibreglass.

Are they? I was told that the proper BMW ones were aluminium.

Thought I'd ask the question here

 

[GazHyde]

Off topic posts moved.

 

[Jack Ratt]

BMW Z3 (1996-2001) Model History

• 1995 : The Z3 appeared in the Nieman Marcus Christmas catalogue.These cars were all Atlanta Blue with beige upholstery
• 1996 : The first demonstrators arrived at the dealers in March of 1996.
• 01/01/1997: Z3 1.9 rear-drive Roadster (140 bhp), 5-speed gearbox or 4-speed automatic,ABS,PAS,alloy wheels, central locking, electrical windows and mirrors, electrical seat adjustment,airbag. Options include air-conditioning , ASC+T traction control, leather trim & electrical hood
• 01/08/1997 : Z3 2.8 (193 bhp) launched. Equipment as 1.9 plus ASC+T traction control, limited slip differential, electrical hood, leather upholstery, larger 16-inch Z-Star alloy wheels, trip computer
• 01/09/1997 : 1.9 now has ASC+T traction control system.
• 01/01/1998 : Smaller M-style leather-trimmed 3-spoke steering wheel. Option ; Aluminium hard top with heated screen
• 01/05/1998 : M Roadster 3.2 spec as Z3 2.8 plus four exhaust pipes, air-conditioning, 2 airbags, heated electrical mirrors.
• 01/09/1998 : M Coupe launched, specification as M Roadster.
• 01/04/1999 : Special edition 'Orinoco' and 'Fiji' 1.9 and 2.8 launched.
• 01/07/1999 : Z3 1.8 and 2.0 launched. Restyled rear end, chrome-rim headlamps, chrome-rim instruments.
• 01/02/2000 : 2.0 Cosmos, Velvet, Aegean and Mora editions (all £26900).
• 01/09/2000 : Z3 2.2 (170 bhp) and 3.0 (231 bhp) launched.
• 01/02/2001 : Z3 2.2 Sport and 3.0 Sport launched. 2.2 Sapphire and Titanium editions (both £25950 new)
• 01/03/2001 : Revised M Roadster and Coupe with 325 bhp engine, DSC III stability control system, uprated brakes.
• 02/12/2001 : The 250,000th Z3 roadster > Jet Black with a red top and Mugello red seats with black inserts. The console is trimmed with red birchwood and the roll bars are black leather in front and red leather in back held together with red stitching
• 2002 : An in-dash CD player was newly standard for 2002.
• 06/28/2002 : Production of the last Z3 roadster.
• 2003 : BMW's Z4 replaced the Z3

01/01/1998 Was this an option that was withdrawn?

 

[oldcarman]

BMW Z3 (1996-2001) Model History

• 1995 : The Z3 appeared in the Nieman Marcus Christmas catalogue.These cars were all Atlanta Blue with beige upholstery
• 1996 : The first demonstrators arrived at the dealers in March of 1996.
• 01/01/1997: Z3 1.9 rear-drive Roadster (140 bhp), 5-speed gearbox or 4-speed automatic,ABS,PAS,alloy wheels, central locking, electrical windows and mirrors, electrical seat adjustment,airbag. Options include air-conditioning , ASC+T traction control, leather trim & electrical hood
• 01/08/1997 : Z3 2.8 (193 bhp) launched. Equipment as 1.9 plus ASC+T traction control, limited slip differential, electrical hood, leather upholstery, larger 16-inch Z-Star alloy wheels, trip computer
• 01/09/1997 : 1.9 now has ASC+T traction control system.
• 01/01/1998 : Smaller M-style leather-trimmed 3-spoke steering wheel. Option ; Aluminium hard top with heated screen
• 01/05/1998 : M Roadster 3.2 spec as Z3 2.8 plus four exhaust pipes, air-conditioning, 2 airbags, heated electrical mirrors.
• 01/09/1998 : M Coupe launched, specification as M Roadster.
• 01/04/1999 : Special edition 'Orinoco' and 'Fiji' 1.9 and 2.8 launched.
• 01/07/1999 : Z3 1.8 and 2.0 launched. Restyled rear end, chrome-rim headlamps, chrome-rim instruments.
• 01/02/2000 : 2.0 Cosmos, Velvet, Aegean and Mora editions (all £26900).
• 01/09/2000 : Z3 2.2 (170 bhp) and 3.0 (231 bhp) launched.
• 01/02/2001 : Z3 2.2 Sport and 3.0 Sport launched. 2.2 Sapphire and Titanium editions (both £25950 new)
• 01/03/2001 : Revised M Roadster and Coupe with 325 bhp engine, DSC III stability control system, uprated brakes.
• 02/12/2001 : The 250,000th Z3 roadster > Jet Black with a red top and Mugello red seats with black inserts. The console is trimmed with red birchwood and the roll bars are black leather in front and red leather in back held together with red stitching
• 2002 : An in-dash CD player was newly standard for 2002.
• 06/28/2002 : Production of the last Z3 roadster.
• 2003 : BMW's Z4 replaced the Z3

01/01/1998 Was this an option that was withdrawn?

Good question Jack. I've never seen an aluminium hard top advertised for resale on any eBay sites I haunt. I believe BMW didn't offer a HT until 98 the first were aftermarket Weismann I believe which HT has on his 96. Anyone else know of an aluminium top out there?
Interesting to me is the first 97 was built on 01/01/97 which, and I need to check, I believe is the build date of my car!! Go figure. JIM

 

[Jack Ratt]

I'm only asking because I bought a second hand hardtop when I bought my Zed and I intended to get it painted but haven't yet got round to it. I was talking to a friend and he said that BMW hard tops were aluminium, hence the high purchase price when new.

He suggested that I strip it and polish it, so I thought I'd ask the question here.

My pal sent me a link to Z3 history that I've copied above.

May be some were aluminium and some were fibreglass?

I'm going to get mine painted so could ask the paint shop to check it for me.

The one I've got is a genuine BMW hard top and it certainly weighs enough to be metal.

 

[Aceman]

Well I swear blind the one I had was fibreglass.

 

[oldcarman]

@Jack Ratt , mine has the BMW sticker and part number on it and I'm pretty sure it's fibreglass judging by the few little chips along the edge. Going to be interesting to find out about the Aluminium tops. JIM

 

[GazHyde]

Just spoke with @Lee who confirmed his hard top is made from fiberglass.

 

[Jack Ratt]

Sort of checked mine today. Gave it the bong test, as it's still packed away in it's storage case, and just like you guys have already said, looks like it's fibreglass as it doesn't "ding" when you tap it.

It's still pretty mild weatherwise, so I'm not going to fit it just yet.

 

[oldcarman]

Sort of checked mine today. Gave it the bong test, as it's still packed away in it's storage case, and just like you guys have already said, looks like it's fibreglass as it doesn't "ding" when you tap it.

It's still pretty mild weatherwise, so I'm not going to fit it just yet.

Did the HT come with the car when you bought it? If not it might be a good idea to fit it now while the weather is fairly good as it can be a lengthy job to get it right if starting from scratch. There is a good article on installing but I've found it's not just a drop on, clamp and go job and adjusting is critical. Need help? There are quite a few HT's installed so ask away with any questions. I'm waiting to get the two front bolts so I can tackle installing my top. Good luck! JIM

 

[Jack Ratt]

Did the HT come with the car when you bought it? If not it might be a good idea to fit it now while the weather is fairly good as it can be a lengthy job to get it right if starting from scratch. There is a good article on installing but I've found it's not just a drop on, clamp and go job and adjusting is critical. Need help? There are quite a few HT's installed so ask away with any questions. I'm waiting to get the two front bolts so I can tackle installing my top. Good luck! JIM

Hi Jim, I bought the hard top in January this year and my son and me fitted it for a couple of months. We've had it on and off a few times trying to get a good seal and to eliminate excessive wind noise, so I'm ok fitting mine.

The trick is to loosen all the bolts so that everything can adjust. Tighten the front first, then the rear. I reckon we can fit mine easily in 30-45mins now.

First time it took me nearly 2hours fitting it outside the guys house that I bought it from.

 

[hard top]

The trick is to loosen all the bolts so that everything can adjust. Tighten the front first, then the rear. I reckon we can fit mine easily in 30-45mins now.

Why so long? Its a 5 min job.!!

 

[Jack Ratt]

Why so long? Its a 5 min job.!!

It probably is for an expert. My fitting kit is the aftermarket one, and the 24mm locking nut is very slim and is quite tricky to tighten. When I took the hard top off for the summer I intended to get myself a thin M24 spanner, or to try and make one, but like a lot of things, I forgot all about it, lol

 

[hard top]

OK, I have a Weissman and the fitting kit is different, that is probably what it is.

 

[oldcarman]

Maybe I'm wrong but once the fittings are adjusted properly it is only a matter of putting the two front bolts in and swinging the clamps on. Anyone with a HT THAT CAN FILL US IN?? JIM

 

[Dobiwallah]

Maybe I'm wrong but once the fittings are adjusted properly it is only a matter of putting the two front bolts in and swinging the clamps on. Anyone with a HT THAT CAN FILL US IN?? JIM

I can confirm that, 5 minutes, besides lifting it down from the garage.

 

[oldcarman]

@Jack Ratt, if your top is still taking that long it would seem you still have some adjusting to do!! I was tempted to order the aftermarket fittings when I found that the PO had misinformed me about the fittings already being in the car. I had already purchased the HT and had it delivered to them and they were to install it before shipping. I bid on many auctions right across Europe which went way higher than I could afford. Lucked out one day and hit a BIN auction for £99 that was six minutes old and bought those. The PO managed to get the top on secure enough for shipping but not properly which is why I'm still waiting for front bolts which will allow me to go to work adjusting. JIM

 

[Jack Ratt]

@Jack Ratt, if your top is still taking that long it would seem you still have some adjusting to do!! JIM

I've had it on and off a number of times in the couple of months or so I had it on the car, mainly because I wasn't happy with the excessive wind noise I was experiencing from around the windscreen.
First time it was on, I had a bit of a leak when driving in heavy rain, but that's sorted now.
The last time I took it off I loosened all the fittings, so when I refit it, I'll be starting again from scratch so to speak.

Perhaps when I fit it again, and if I'm happy with the fit, I wont have to readjust the fitments.