hmm maybe youre right. but weve all heard this... i usually get that high pitchery when im adjusting the top for the latches. cause my drivers side latch still needs to be tugged just a little to get it into place. no leaks yet tho. and i drove it in the rain for the first week. AND I LIVE IN SOUTHERN CALI!

 

In the start - the motor is only working lifting/expanding the scissor frame. The full weight of the tops frame and material is being worked.

About 1/3 way through the process the weight of the frame is forward enough for gravity to start pulling the top forward and down and the motor is no longer doing the heavy work - IF you notice, that is the moment when your top starts moving faster... THEN.. When your top is about 3/4 of the way through the process the motor has to work again stretching the frame and the material of the top. When the top is fully extended, it is fighting he stretch of the material, and that is keeping the top from joining with the windshield. If were only an empty frame it would just fall into place.

THIS will expound itself with the weather. On HOT days the top will nearly drop into place by itself without you even having to pull down on the mount… Later in the year when it is cooler, you will have to pull down pretty hard to get it to mate up. This will also change with time as the material stretches out and doesn’t pull so hard on the frame.

Be cautious about releasing the top in the winter. You will have to FIGHT it, to get it to reconnect with the windshield mount.

 

Lots of questions!
(Original copied below.)

I wised up and just dropped my Chrysler Sebring for a Mustang '05 GT Convertible.
Here goes:

1. Vinyl tops look better to start, but they are the ones that you probably saw as "lots of older verts whose tops look really bad." Cloth lasts longer, but is duller to start. Now, Ford got this one right, the top is not vinyl, but impregnated canvas. As a result, it looks good to start, and I expect that it should last (looking good for) longer.

2. I have "a typical home garage" (i.e., read "small"), in addition to which I have an automatic door opener installed at about 6-1/2 feet above the floor. Both the Sebring's and now the GT's tops can be opened and closed inside the garage and clear the hanging door opener just fine. Of course, "your mileage may vary," so just pull into the garage and raise or lower the top slowly. If it looks like it won't clear, just reverse it and put it back up (or down). Then you'll be confident.

3. Overnight is not "extended time." Others have posted regarding days or weeks. Overnight does not hurt your top. I have only had the 'Stang for a couple of weeks, but have left the top down for several days and it looks factory new when I put it back up. On the old Sebring, I have left the top down for extended periods, and it was none the worse for wear. Being mostly canvas, any wrinkles should settle out. Don't crease it, but when folded it doesn't crease, just "Z-folds) neatly.

4. I, too, drive it daily; and must park outdoors. Really hate doing that, but keep in mind, it's a car, it was meant to be driven (and, in fact, a car that is not driven regularly is worse off than one that is). Do this: Wash it regularly to remove the road grime. Wax or seal the finish (with appropriate products) to keep out oxidization; don't forget to clean and protect the top, too! Consider getting a windshield sun shade to reduce the amount of solar heat buildup inside, and the sun on the dash. I've parked my other 'vert in the sun daily (southern exposure in the Deep South!), and with a little loving care, have had no detrimental effects.

Misc: Others have commented on "the neighbor's cats" sleeping on the car. I had the same problem. (If you have it garaged, why not close the door?) For some reason, cats like to sleep on anything with four wheels, especially whichever one was most recently driven (warm, you know); and my kids' cats absolutely insist on sleeping on convertible tops ("cat hammocks"). The worst part is what cats do to the finish when they try to get to the top; little scratches from hind claws as they jump and climb.

The kids wouldn't let me shoot their cats, so I did the next best thing, I got a car cover. I keep the GT 'vert in the garage, the door closed, and cover it at night. So far, no problems. One of these nights, thought, those cats are going to meet with an accident...[:@], just as soon as I can claim "plausible deniability."

 

[/quote]

hmm maybe youre right. but weve all heard this... i usually get that high pitchery when im adjusting the top for the latches. cause my drivers side latch still needs to be tugged just a little to get it into place. no leaks yet tho. and i drove it in the rain for the first week. AND I LIVE IN SOUTHERN CALI!
[/quote]

When you say you have to tug on the latch, does that mean your pulling down on it? That could be tough on it. I remember one guy in this string mentioning that he had broken a latch. I wonder if he's doing it the same way you are.

I actually put my hand outside on the top itself or grab the handle in the middle of the top where it meets the windshield and pull down. When you do this, there should be literally no resistance on the latches when you close them.

 

Took a drive tonight after washing and waxing the machine and happened to drive by the dealership where I got my car. They had 3 (!!!) 05 GT Verts. I thought that was a little unusual, so I stopped and checked them out. They had 1 Mineral Grey Auto, a Yellow Auto, and a Yellow Manual. The MG had a lot of fingerprints on it... There was also a half dozen 6 cyl drop tops. So, if anyone is waiting for theirs, there are three here... just have to hop a flight to Little Rock...

 

well i think it doesnt come down straight. in the beginning it fell in a way that when i pulled on the handle i made a seal and could close the latch. but it seems that recently its about a 16 of an inch off to where the latch and the catch meet on the driver side... keeping it propped up. what i have to do is juggle the left side latch just to het the catch of the frame to get by. then i hold down on the center handle then i give the cover a litle more forward juice and it fits. i dont think its too much of an issue though.

 

Are there any adjustment points on the frame so that you can get a better alignment?

 

I have a question concerning the convertible vs. the coupe.

Did Ford make any noticeable body changes to the convertible to make it quieter with the top down? I can't see any from the pictures I've seen. I know Ford made changes to the suspension to reduce body 'shudder,' but wind noise is the great enemy of all convertibles.

It would be great to see some kind of 'white paper' from Ford and all the engineering differences between the coupe and the convertible.

 

i had an 00 gt cnvetible before getting my 05 gt and i can tell you from personal experience that it is significantly quiter at speeds up to 75; havent gone any faster yet; i dont need to see an engineering report; drive one and see for yourself

 

I'm amazed how quiet the ride is when the top is down. I can carry on a converstation with normal tone at highway speeds...try doing that with a pre 05 convertible...