Removing vinyl top

[crane550]

hi all,

I just put down a $200 hold deposit on a 1968 Mustang Coupe w/ a 200 and C4 tranny. Can't wait to pick it up and start tinkering but my boss has me out of town this week so I have to wait until Thursday...

My big compaint w/ this car is it has a vinyl top. Nothing against them...some cars are great with them. My dad's 442 comes to mind, but when it comes to this car it completely ruins it for me.

I have had some people tell me it's no problem to take them off, as I am going to be re-painting anyways in the near future. I plan to keep it stock color and do a bit more with the racing stripe. I have also (more recently) been told I will run into problems if I try to take it off. I have been told that the top will be warped, rusted, and require too much body work to have it worth my while.

Which is true? Yes, I like keeping things stock, but this just ruins the car for me. I would be tempted to find something else, but it would be a shame as this car is very rust free and in good shape. I don't hate vinyl, I just don't want it on my Mustang.

Any thoughts?

 

[JDS68Stang]

First off it looks like you got a great looking car there.
That's to bad you want that vinyl top off cuz it looks in great shape but everyone has their own taste in what they personally want.

I recently saw them take one off on Chip Fooses' show and it looked like a job I'd never want to really get into, looked like a nightmare and the guy doin it didn't look to thrilled about it. I'm sure someone on here must have done it or knows of someone that did and can give you the real low down on what to expect.

My 2 cents would be leave it on if you can live w/ it, I think it looks great.

 

[tweet66]

I just finished doing it on my 68 Cougar, but I put a new top back on. It was a b*$%h! I pulled the top due to bubbles, wear, and tears. I had to completely strip the roof to bare metal, fill, prime and block, prime and block, prime and block, prime and block...get the picture to get it straight. I then shot single stage paint to seal the primer and installed the new vinyl top. If I had needed to paint the entire car I would have left the top off and painted the roof body color but the car is in very good shape sans the old top.

 

[geostang351]

I took the top off my 68 coupe and the metal was all sorts of warped. It seemed as though when the car was being built, there was not much concern for the smoothness of the roof as it would be covered with vinyl. It will take a lot of filler to make it smooth.

 

[crane550]

Should I pass it up then? I already have money on it, and like everything else about the car, and the price is right. I can settle for a vinyl top for now, but in a few months when I repaint it it has to go. How much would a body shop charge to fix it up?

 

[tweet66]

I would have to say if the price is right, you like the car, and you intend to have it painted anyway go for it. I regret having passed on too many good deals because of one thing or another that I didn't like on a car. If it's structural or really bad mechanically that's one thing but cosmetically anything can be changed to suit your preference. Funny thing is I dont' own one car that I have "modified" to suit my taste so passing on a car because of something like a vinyl roof wouldn't even be a consideration.

 

[JDS68Stang]

If you decide you don't want that car let me know what the guy is asking and where it is. (I'm on East Coast, N.Y.)

I just picked up mine last month, 68 coupe I6 C4 for $3,600. Car spent most of it's life in Nevada so like yours mines basically very rust free as well. Wanted a 289 like my past Stangs but the lack of rust sold me on this one.

Actually that I6 is a damn good motor and easy as hell to wrench on, that's a plus for me considering my back is messed up bad anyway.
If I feel the need for speed I got a custom 91 Silverado so I can live w/ a I6 Stang.

If you pass on it let me know, I'm interested if it's kinda close to N.Y..

 

[Platonic Solid]

Take the money you're budgeting for paint and body work (which will vary from $1,000 to $15,000 depending on desired quality), and add that to the cost for the car. If that equals or is more than what you'd pay for a non-vinyl topped car in similar condition, then pass on this one.

 

[danny clemens]

Rust would be much bigger problem than an unsmooth surface. The best way to get a price would go to local body shops and get prices because they would vary in different areas.

 

[crane550]

Ok, well I bought it. I can live w/ the top for now, we will see what happens when the time comes to take it off. My guess is it will cost a max of $500 extra when it comes time to paint. Worth it for me.

There is a lot more love that will be going into this car, and you can bet I will be asking around....

 

[Platonic Solid]

Ok, well I bought it. I can live w/ the top for now, we will see what happens when the time comes to take it off. My guess is it will cost a max of $500 extra when it comes time to paint. Worth it for me.

There is a lot more love that will be going into this car, and you can bet I will be asking around....

So (if you don't mind me asking), how much did you pay for it?

 

[crane550]

5,800. There were a lot of 68's floating around for 4500, but this was the only one that was rust free and had all original interior.

 

[raleighstang65]

Great looking car! When I bought my 65', I was in the same boat as you. Wasn't wild about the vinyl top and was almost a deal breaker. At first I thought it was my number one thing, to get the vinyl off and paint the car. Didn't take long for the top to grow on me and see how it would be way more fun to have some nice wheels, new tires, disc brakes, engine upgrades, and the list goes on and on!! Now I'm actually considering getting a new vinyl top!

 

[Vinyl66]

I never really liked the vinyl topped cars till I got mine.

To the OP: it has been a few months since this thread started. How do you like the top now?

Nice car btw!

 

[Rusty67]

I took the top off my 68 coupe and the metal was all sorts of warped. It seemed as though when the car was being built, there was not much concern for the smoothness of the roof as it would be covered with vinyl. It will take a lot of filler to make it smooth.

Actually its quite the opposite. The reason you car had the vinyl top was that its roof was not smooth. Vinyl tops were originally used as a way to hide these imperfections and they were marketed as an optional feature.

 

[ForceFed70]

Actually its quite the opposite. The reason you car had the vinyl top was that its roof was not smooth. Vinyl tops were originally used as a way to hide these imperfections and they were marketed as an optional feature.

I believe that to be the case with some cars... but not all of them. There were simply too many cars that came with vinyl tops for all of them to be there only to hide sheet metal imprefections.

Personally, I love the vinyl top. Especially when paired with a darker paint color (not black tho)

 

[Rusty67]

I'm not saying every car with the vinyl tops had messed up roofs. Its the reason the option was put into production though. I'm rather certain that every car which had a roof that wasn't up to snuff recieved the vinyl top option. Other cars got the vinyl tops as well, it wasn't exclusive.

 

[bnickel]

I'm not saying every car with the vinyl tops had messed up roofs. Its the reason the option was put into production though. I'm rather certain that every car which had a roof that wasn't up to snuff recieved the vinyl top option. Other cars got the vinyl tops as well, it wasn't exclusive.

actually vinyl tops have been used since shortly after the first model T rolled off the line. they were used for various reasons one of which was to cover up the rather poor metal working quality of an assembly line car but they were also used to simulate a convertible or open top car as well. back when cars were in their infancy they didn't have big sheetmetal presses like they do now (or in the 60's) and the metal tops were made by hand so they used the vinyl (actually leather back then) to cover it up. people actually liked the look of them and manufacturers kept offering them because of the demand for them. Ford didn't use vinyl tops to cover up poor metal work on the mustangs but they didn't spend as much time prepping the surface of the roof with lead on a car ordered with one either so that's why you see hastily leaded seams, etc on 60's cars with vinyl tops, not because the top was added to cover it up but because the car was ordered that way and they didn't NEED to prep the roof the same way they would for a car ordered without a vinyl top.