MAJOR Convertible Top Problem

[MrMikeL]

Hi all,

Found this forum today - maybe I can get some help from all you loyal Solara owners. I have an '04 convertible, and life was good - for the first two months. About a month ago, I suddenly started experiencing significant wind noise from the driver side. For weeks, I inspected the top mechanism, the seals, weatherstripping, but could not find a problem.

One day, while washing & waxing, I noticed that I could place my entire hand easily under the convertible top above the driver window. This seemed suspcious, so I took it to an upholstery shop for an opinion. The technician knew immediately what the problem was:

Malfunction in the tension cable

Happens all the time, according to this expert. OK, off to the dealer for warranty work. Of course, they didn't hear any wind noise, they didn't listen to my expert witness, and they started adjusting all sorts of things. When the service writer called me and told me the car was done, I again mentioned the broken tension cable and he said he'd run it to their upholstery shop. Two hours later, here's the context of the phone call I received:

"You were right, the tension cable is broken. We have to replace THE ENTIRE CONVERTIBLE TOP FOR $3,995. Under warranty, no cost to you."

Huh?!? Right now I'm trying to negotiate with them to have my technician attempt to repair the tension cable, as he has done on hundreds of other cars over the last 20 years.

Has ANYONE out there had a problem like this??

CHAPTER 2

I leased this car from an independent leasing agent. She leased herself an '04 Solara convertible as well. I stopped by her place today to say hi and explain my convertible top problem. I suggested she check her own top, so we did. I explained how the tension cable is supposed to hold the top down firmly over the doors. Well, guess what? One of her tension cables is broken as well.

So is this a problem with all '04 convertibles? Any and all info is appreciated!!

-Mike

[Gyaf]

mine is just two months old now - but, havnet had that issue -

im glad its under warranty though

[NJConvertible]

what is the best way to check?? some minor wind noise here, but i thought it was normal......

[michaels artic frost]

WOW, that's a major problem you got there, not only it's happened to yours, but to someone you know. That sucks. Well, another reason why I opted out of the drop tops. I want something to last me for quite sometime with the least maintenance possible. But they are sure fun to drive when it's nice weather.

Good luck with that and hope the dealer takes care of ya.

-Michael

[MrMikeL]

CHAPTER 3

When I picked up the car, I immediately put the top down - it was a beautiful summer day in Minneapolis. When I arrived at home, I put the top up, and while doing so, the broken tension cable sprung out from under the top! It was broken off on one end, and has compression marks in other sections. I suspect an engineering fault as the cause of this problem. I'll post pictures later.

HOW TO TELL IF YOUR TENSION CABLE IS BROKEN

1. Top must be up

2. Locate the channel that runs along the edge of the top above each door. This channel is about an inch wide, between the edge of the top and the stitching.

3. A properly functioning tension cable, because it's pulled tight, will be forced down to the bottom of the channel. A malfunctioning tension cable can be felt floating in the channel.

4. Another way to tell: try to stick yor hand under the canvas. If you can stick it in easily, you have a broken tension cable. If you can barely get your hand in there, your tension cable is probably nice and tightly in place.

ATTENTION ALL CONVERTIBLE OWNERS: inspect both sides of your top today! If you suspect a malfunctioning tension cable, either by physical inspection or suddenly excessive wind noise from either side, contact your dealer immediately. If enough convertible tops have to be replaced, I'm sure Toyota will re-engineer the top mechanism to avoid this costly failure.

Thank you all for your support, it's greatly appreciated.

[Shoe]

i noted taht you purchased your car threw a leasing co.

Heres something I read in a car book once ( well actually read to me to make a point)

If your car was purchased at a differant dealer than your servicing it at you may find your not getting full customer service often times dealers will set aside your car to work on" their own customers"

you may find you wait longer and maybe get lower quality service.

thats a horible thing to do serice is service money is money just do it DAMN !

SHOE

[mattyboyl]

That's excellent advice and appreciated by all Solara owners. Hell, I appreciate it and I don't even own a drop top. This is helpful in the case someone I know wants to purchase this car in the future.

[MrMikeL]

Shoe,

I would tend to disagree with you since warranty work is VERY lucrative to the dealers. Toyota pays the dealers for all warranty work done, though they probably do the minimum to get the job done quickly. Time is money in the service business.

Let's stick to the convertible top problem. Any other convertible top owners check their top lately??

[MrMikeL]

UPDATE:

Spoke to the service manager this morning. Late yesterday, Toyota agreed to send the car to MY upholstery shop for an attempt at a repair. I'm impressed! Now, my upholstery guy can't guarantee a successful repair, but at least it will cost less than $3,995 to try!

[mattyboyl]

I'm not surpirsed that Toyota would send it out by request, but I am surprised that will send it out without a guarantee. I say this because if your guy can't fix it, it will end up costing more money and Toyota would of just done what they were going top do before and give you a new top. What do you care how much it costs Toyota? I have a feeling you care more about getting the job done right, which in that case, I don't blame you.

[MrMikeL]

You couldn't be more correct, Matt! I want it done right. I mean, they're gonna have to take off the ENTIRE TOP OF THE CAR!! Scares the SH*T outta me! Leaks, malfunctions, chronic problems are in my future if it can't be fixed and has to be replaced.

I bet there's a major design problem in the design of this top mechanism, which is going to cost Toyota a bundle. And who pays for it? We all do the next time we buy a Toyota.

Any other convertible owners out there check their top yet??

[Jackass-Jeff]

UPDATE:

Spoke to the service manager this morning. Late yesterday, Toyota agreed to send the car to MY upholstery shop for an attempt at a repair. I'm impressed! Now, my upholstery guy can't guarantee a successful repair, but at least it will cost less than $3,995 to try!

Next time you get denied by a technician, ask to have a test drive WITH the shop foreman or quality control manager... they are supposed to be pros at finding the source of noises and stuff.

[MrMikeL]

Rave,

The problem has been diagnosed - please read the entire thread. I've had no major problems peeling those layers of service yet.

The problem now is, can a fix be made or does the entire drop top have to be replaced.

[Lone Solara]

I know I most likely have the problem, but I'm waiting until the 5000 mile oil change to bring it up with the dealer. I can stick my hand on the right side of the top and I get significant wind noise on that side. I'm not sure the cable is broken in my case or just not tightened, but they will have to fix it. I ran across a couple of similar postings on Edmunds a while back, and they were saying that they got their tops replaced as well.

It would be great if you can post some pics. At least we'd know what we need to look at exactly.

[MrMikeL]

CHAPTER 4

Today the car is at MY upholstery shop. The dealer's shop didn't want to attempt a repair, so Toyota agreed to bring it to my shop. I had to drive 10 miles to the dealership so they could drive it 15 miles back in the same direction to the upholstery shop! I do have a free loaner during this time, so that's cool.

The manager of the upholstery shop just called. They are taking it apart very slowly so they understand the anatomy of this particular vehicle. First time they've seen the '04 Solara. Since Toyota does not have a part for the replacement of the tension cable only, he will have to use a universal replacement part if possible.

I was impressed that the shop owner called me to give me a progress report. This shop is listed with the BBB, the dealer's shop is not (a point I will make to the dealer's service manager). I'll post more as the day unfolds.