convertible guys that have had their tops replaced.. how long did dealer take?

[Mr. iNCREDIBLE]

I am going to call this a fail.


While the top material was replaced and it looks damn good and it fits perfect and there are no leaks (rained pretty hard last night) and no wind noise when driving.

The dealership only replaced the top material, they did not fix the issue (replace frame or water bag) that caused the wearing in the first place, the top retracts exactly the same as the old one, rubs in exactly the same spot, and by the time I got home driving 50+ miles @ 70+mph on the highway, the top is already showing shiny rub marks in exactly the same 2 spots.

additionally the dealer forgot to re-tint my back window, even though it was on the work order.

the shop did an outstanding job on the top, but whatever the hell they used to remove the panels left 2 of them looking warped and deformed.

---

Dealer noted the panels and ordered replacement while I was there, before I even said anything about it, as for the top they said they did what GM told them to do, the Service Manager was very understanding and said he will look further into it and see what else can or should have been done.

--

so while the top looks nice, it looked nice the day I bought the car, but within a month looked like ass.. and it will look horrible again because the underlying problem wasn't corrected.

[95birdible]

That is what I have been saying all along. Why keep putting outdated material that will wear when the new ones are supposedly fixed? It's like putting a tutu on a pig. It may look nice but underneath it is still a pig. Same thing happened with my first car. Replaced top at 1500 miles, wore out 4 weeks later. My new one I got with the buyback of the old is much better but I see wear marks on the top from the rear deck. Next spring it is going in to see what can be done with it. And GM really screwed the pooch saying you cannot get the whole new canvas on the frame for a simple install. I have never once heard that they are not installed as one piece at the factory. I am under the assumption that the entire mechanism is installed on the line. Someone somewhere has to put it together. Why can we not get one of these tops?

[GnyaTek]

Just had my top replaced as well. Was done in-house at the dealership that I purchased the car from and took a week (dropped it off on a Tuesday, picked it up on the following Tuesday).

Like most others, the canvas was the only thing that was replaced ... not the frame nor water mgt bag. The car is garaged, so will be a bit harder to determine if there are leak issues. The top does ride further forward, so it "appears" as if there may be less rubbing going forward, but we shall see.

The tech that worked on the top mentioned that there was more cabling securing this canvas than was on the original. I did notice the first time that I put the top down that it rode a bit higher and that the arms protruded upward out of the well slightly, but they seem to have settled somewhat.

I will need to contact GM to see about extending the warranty on the top, since I have been waiting on a "better" fix since I purchased the car 2.5 years ago and the mileage will be running slim on the warranty come spring.

[EM1/SS]

I've had a lot of trouble getting mine replaced. They will not replace the frame or water bag for me either. I did tell them if they were only going to replace the top material I wanted an extended warranty. They gave me 5 years on the top.

[Angrybird 12]

They must be having trouble getting it adjusted to my specifications, they have had it since Monday and no word from the dealer. I did tell the service advisor not to call until it was right.... Unfortunately it's raining and will be turning cold for the next week, they are even calling for snow Wednesday.

[BronxRS]

Originally Posted by Angrybird 12

They must be having trouble getting it adjusted to my specifications, they have had it since Monday and no word from the dealer. I did tell the service advisor not to call until it was right.... Unfortunately it's raining and will be turning cold for the next week, they are even calling for snow Wednesday.

I am very interested to hear how this goes. I took my '13 in to have the top replaced because there was a minor imperfection on the top moulding of the rear window seal. I did so with A LOT of hesitation because I've heard the problems really start after the "work" is done. Well, I should have listened to my intuition. The job was outsourced to what is, by all accounts, one of the premier installers of soft tops in the city. Will check into whether they are GM certified - highly doubt it. I am now taking my car back on Monday to have it properly done. The problems? 1) Rubber trunk seal is uneven; 2) inner headliner seems loose (see string that started poking out on passenger side in photo below); 3) driver side small quarter panel window no longer goes down smoothly; 4) wind noise galore (almost like acoustical foam is not even in the roof - and possibly seams not properly made on rear sections). I've seen the TSBs on this.

This is absurd. If a GM Canada employee is trolling this site, I'd appreciate a PM. While my dealer is trying to "fix" the problem, I wonder why they are not obligated to have at least one technician who is competent and trained to perform fixes on these things without sending them out to hatchet job mercenaries.

Sorry, did not mean to hijack this thread with my own issues but they seem so related. This problem has afflicted so many 'vert owners (including '12 and '13 ones) and it seems the only place we can any answers or information is from one another.

[Twintitan]

I've had my vert in for three months. But I hear if you take it to a dealer who has mostly vettes they know how to fix any vert problem. That's my next step if I get component warranty. Good luck!!!

[angrykiller1]

they kept mine for the best part of two years. 5 tops at nine thousand miles and still leaks like a screen door on a submarine. sold it leaking, hated to screw the next person but had to get rid of it while under warranty

[He11bent]

Two days and when I inspected it I had few items for them to tweak. So 2.5 days. No leaks and that was over a year ago and I was their first top replacement at this dealership.

[not]

These threads will freak you out, went to look at my top and it has been in the garage the past 2 weeks, ha.

[Mr. iNCREDIBLE]

well it's been 3 days..


no leaks.. yay!

however I have a fit full of rattles when driving with the top up, I can't trace them down only know they are coming from the area behind the 1/4 windows..

I can hear 4 distinctly different rattle sounds from that area, and my daughter was in the back seat on passenger side and said she could here rattles on that side too..

ugh!

[Edwin320]

Mine took 17 days. Rub marks reappeared two months later.

[Mr. iNCREDIBLE]

well it only took 4 days for a complete failure of the new top:





and I figured out why it failed.

The dealer ordered the right top,
The TSB (dealer shared with me) shows that they must drill two new holes in the frame and then rivet the new cords eyelets to the frame.. They didn't do this instead they cut the additional cords off and removed them:

This is the sleeve where they are supposed to go, the ends have been cut off and the cords pulled out:

[theragtopguy]

Originally Posted by Mr. iNCREDIBLE

well it only took 4 days for a complete failure of the new top:





and I figured out why it failed.

The dealer ordered the right top,
The TSB (dealer shared with me) shows that they must drill two new holes in the frame and then rivet the new cords eyelets to the frame.. They didn't do this instead they cut the additional cords off and removed them:

This is the sleeve where they are supposed to go, the ends have been cut off and the cords pulled out:

Wow. Obviously, here's a failure of the Technicians to follow instructions. Shouldn't be an issue for the dealer to eat this one due to their hired minions incompetence.

Hope it works out for ya, keep us posted!!