Convertible hood

[Shamea2]

Paho

Cheers

And your on

Regards

Nigel

[David S]

Nigel, apologies just seen your response from  November, Work always gets in the way of enjoying life!! The offer is very kind and something I would like to look into, not knowing how the soft top is attached to the frame I think the frame would need to be measured with soft top still attached [ think it would be unwise to do remove]

I will speak to my local AC specialist / racing company to obtain a couple of businesses that may be willing to look at undertaking this work plus of course the coach trimmers mentioned in an earlier post.

Is the frame visible from inside the hood?

regards
David

[Max (Allan)]

Is there anyone out there with an Ace who has neither hood nor hardtop?

My Ace came with a hardtop when originally purchased, but was lucky in that I was in  the right place at right time to pick up a complete hood couple of years later (although paid lots for it!). Consequently, hardtop just sits in the garage unused, so might be persuaded to part with it.

Regards making a hood, having experienced in distant past the difficulty making a factory supplied hood fit and work, to make a frame from scratch would IMV be a project thwart with problems/frustration, even if armed with very accurate measurements.

Max

[David S]

As stated I have been down to see my local specialist - RW Racing.
The view is that it might be possible to have a hood/frame made from another even when the hood is still attached, however to confirm this he would really like to see the soft top
For now he has asked if it was possible to supply some pictures both inside and out.

Nigel, are you able to provide a few pictures?

Second question is the same soft top used on both the early and the later cars?

David

[Max (Allan)]

Hi David,

As requested, some pics of hood frame in various positions when being lowered. To help make sense of the pics I've tried to put them in some kind of sequence and how the various parts move as the hood cycles.

I don't know how many pics can be sent in one hit, so have sent four at a time.

[Max (Allan)]

More pics

[Max (Allan)]

More pics

[Max (Allan)]

I hope the above helps.

Max

[David S]

Hi Max,

thanks for all the photos, will download them all and send over to RWRacing for comment on feasibility. Do not expect any feedback until new year

David

[Max (Allan)]

Hi David,

Pleased pics are of some use and hope RW Racing are able to come up with a half reasonable price.

Another problem you'll have is the seals round the windows. They weren't sourced from a car maker's parts bin, but made especially for the Ace. I was given to believe I had the last set available way back in 2000 when my hard top was trimmed out as part of deal to buy car.  COH -Baines can make them but their minimum run rate make it pricey for one set.

Max

[paho]

Gentlemen,
my interest in these issues stemmed from the hydraulic pump 30Amp fuse blowing continously on my Ace, caused by a seized pump motor;
plus the problems people have with the ECU unit. I looked around for a new pump and found that Audi and Peugeot used similar
pumps for their 1990's models from Power Packer. Replacements are not cheap., so I stripped and cleaned the motor and that fixed the problem.

A few observations:
-  When looking for parts for the Ace I usually find they have been sourced from other vehicle manufactures or their suppliers. I.e Peugoet/Citroen, BMW, Porsche, Ford Europe and North America etc.
- Looking at similar cabriolet solutions on other vehicles I found that Audi, Alfa and Peugeot models from the 1990's
had the same open and closing sequences and used ECU and hydraulic pump components from "PowerPacker".
- I found that the same roof operation sequences are used for the Peugeot 306 cab, Audi 80 cab and Alfa Romeo 916 Spider, and that they  are illustrated in videos
on Youtube, e.g.  search for "Peugeot 306 cabriolet roof problems", see one example  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0shorR_3JAw
- I searched for a more detailed description of the system used and I found a high level description of the Peugeot 306 with schematics from an
Australian site Peugeotlogic.com, look under the Workshop page, then Body Work. There you will find a guide provided by the Peugeot Cabriolet Owners Club.

I'm not suggesting you can transplant another roof onto your Ace, but this at least describes the roof operation principles in more detail than any
other information I have found sofar.
God Jul /Paho
P.S. The Alfa hydraulic pump appears to have a 12 pipe manifold similar to the Ace.

[David S]

Thanks Paho for the additional information. I have sent the pictures over plus a link to this discussion

David

[AcemanToo]

Don Trimming in Erdington, Birmingham made me one last year for just under £1000. They had the car in for  about five days and made to fit in mohair. They've been in business for ever it seems and can be strongly recommended without any reservations.

[David S]

Thanks for this information and useful for other owners. Rough order of cost I had for a 1 off frame and soft top was £5k. At present, no surprise, I have not discussed this further. At that price I would probably rather put money into some engine changes.

[Max (Allan)]

Out of interest what sort of changes do you have in mind?