Has anyone had their convertible top replaced?

[cityofglass]

So I just bought my 02 Lara about a month ago. Down here in Louisiana we can go for weeks without any rain and then the rain comes and the roads are taken over by the bayou. My point is, we got out first rain about three weeks ago since I bought the can and realized that a little bit of water was leaking in. Thinking it was just bad seals, I spend $350 on all new seals for the top. A week and a half later we get more rain, and the problem is worse. :"( I don't know what to do.
Has anyone had their top professionally replaced? If so, how bad did it kill you financially? Ive ready that its common for it to be 2k O_O!! Please tell me this is inaccurate!
i seriously doubt it because its a used car, but is there some type of legal protection from such a costly and necessary repair on a used car? I bought it from a large dealer and got the extended warranty, but the warranty doesn't cover the vinyl top.

HELP :(

[Gangis]

I had to replace the top on my '02 Convertible last year. Because I was (and still am) unemployed, I had to DIY. It would have cost me $1600 professionally, but doing it myself, while taking a month, only cost me less than $300. You need a lot of patience and some extra help from others if you wanna do it yourself.

[cityofglass]

Though 300 sounds a whole lot better than 1.6k, I live in an apartment complete and this is my only mode of transportation. As compelling of a DIY it is, I just don't think that would work.
Crap, I just bout this car and I have to replace the top. This blows.

Any ideas on what else might be causing the leaks? I have already replaced all of the seals along the top, and the water leaks in from somewhere and collects in the plastic facade trays on the top. Any suggestions before I contact the local upholstery shop?

Is there a way I can reseal the cloth material? Would raggtopp possibly do the trick?

[TLMNICK]

Thats interesting that you guys have had to do that. My 01 convertible is still perfect. Mind you I dont drive it in the winter, but during the summer months, its outside all the time.

[cityofglass]

DO you know if some of the better conditioners might act as a sealant for the cloth? or maybe using something like scotch guard?

[Gangis]

Well, I used silicone rubber to kind of shore up the top from the underside. Just look for where the light's peeking through and splash on some of it. It seemed to work pretty well, although there comes a point where the top just can't handle the stress of flapping in the wind and start to disintegrate.

[cityofglass]

Yeah, I just went outside and took my liner out a little bit and all along the seams I see light and there are a few patches in the center of the fabric that I see light as well.

What kind of silicon did you use? Where did you get it?

[Gangis]

It was black silicon rubber, I don't have the tube anymore but I bought it at Advance Auto Parts. It worked quite nicely! But it's only a stopgap measure and will only delay the inevitable by a few months. :/

[cityofglass]

Well on the day that i fond out just how bad my top is, a hurricane wana be comes roaring through town. Not only do I get water in my car from the roof, but the parking lot flooded up to my doorstep as well. Anyone has an experience with water in their car?

The waterline didn't reach the door seal on my car. Thankfully i realized how bad it was getting and relocated it to higher ground. Though, i do have some damn wet carpet now.

Anyone know if i can just wet vac it and spray it well with lysol, or am I looking at pulling up all the carpet? What about my leather seats as well? Water has not been standing on them, but they have been exposed to constant dripping water. I know a GOOD leather cleaner and conditioner is in order, but should i be worried about the padding underneath?

Gosh, what a day :'(

[01Convertible]

The best thing you can do right now is take it to a car detailer that uses and "extractor" when cleaning the interior. It will suck 90% of the moisture (and grit) out of your carpet. Let them give you a hand with the rest as well.They may have a top conditioner that uses silicone or some other "waterproofing" agent to help may your top work again.

[Gangis]

Definitely worth a try, but ultimately you're just delaying the inevitable IMO.

[Chinky420]

i'd tend to agree with gangis on this one. any quick-fix is only going to be a temporary solution (but then again, even replacing the top is only temporary....until it wears to the point where it leaks again).

i've been dealing with this same problem in my z3 for a while now, and the best i can come up with (from reading on various forums) is to do what gangis did, and use some silicone rubber to shore it up...or, from the bimmerforums they suggest using a tire-patch kit to add a little bit of extra rubber to the area where the leak occurs (the water seeps in through a small gap between the rubber and the window frame).

this second method may or may not work for you, since it's more specific to the z3, and the specific area of leakage on the z3 top (which happens to be between the window and the covert top, but specifically right above the window track on the door).

since i haven't done either method yet, i've been rolling around with a couple beach towels in the car to collect the drip-dropping water and keep it off the leather.

good luck with finding a workable solution, and let us know when you do it, and how well it works.