creaky hardtop

gookah · Post by **gookah** » Sun 04 Jan, 2009 16:34

after fitting my hardtop back on it reminded me of when I first picked up the car when it had an annoying creak
It comes fom behind the drivers side roll hoop and is driving me mad.
I have put silicon oil all around the rubber seals, the bodywork where it touches and even squirted it in the mounting bracket location holes at the back. They too are covered,
the creak lessens greatly if I half undo the clamp handle, so i know its there somewhere, but I just cant seem to find it
Anyone had the same problem that they have managed to cure?

Post by **Robert T** » Sun 04 Jan, 2009 20:34

Mine creaks a bit when the car goes over a bit of a camber - I guess the chassis flexes and the roof moves a bit - other than that it is pretty quiet. The only thing I have had to do with mine it to gummi-pflege the seals - which reminds me, they need doing again as my drivers window has twice got confused about being obstructed and opened itself again.

Cheers R.

badboyblue · Post by **badboyblue** » Sun 04 Jan, 2009 20:42

gookah wrote:after fitting my hardtop back on it reminded me of when I first picked up the car when it had an annoying creak
It comes fom behind the drivers side roll hoop and is driving me mad.
I have put silicon oil all around the rubber seals, the bodywork where it touches and even squirted it in the mounting bracket location holes at the back. They too are covered,
the creak lessens greatly if I half undo the clamp handle, so i know its there somewhere, but I just cant seem to find it
Anyone had the same problem that they have managed to cure?

Take it off??

ribs · Post by **ribs** » Sun 04 Jan, 2009 21:42

I had the same problem last winter. I found when I took it off again in the spring I noticed that there was a rubber spacer missing from beneath the hardtop on the drivers side. See item 32 in pic below (there should be two of these clipped to the underside of the hardtop, at the rear, one on each side.)

There are cheap from the dealer, bought one, fixed it, no more squeaks

Gazza · Post by **Gazza** » Sun 04 Jan, 2009 22:45

Mine creaks passenger side front and wind noise starts at 50 mph.

Bracey · Post by **Bracey** » Tue 06 Jan, 2009 14:58

Mine started creaking for the first time yesterday (in the -4c temperatures, incidently).

gookah · Post by **gookah** » Sun 11 Jan, 2009 18:02

[quote="ribs"]I had the same problem last winter. I found when I took it off again in the spring I noticed that there was a rubber spacer missing from beneath the hardtop on the drivers side. See item 32 in pic below (there should be two of these clipped to the underside of the hardtop, at the rear, one on each side.)

There are cheap from the dealer, bought one, fixed it, no more squeaks

Fixed it!!!!
Items 32 were both there, but noticed they had a sort of outer plastic cover over the rubber, a bit like someone had wrapped insulating tape around them. Removed this as it was partly peeling off, covered them in the silicon oil (99p @ Lidl - and great for blacking tyres too) and then refitted. Creaking gone

Wahey.

gookah · Post by **gookah** » Sun 11 Jan, 2009 18:07

Lidl silicon oil used as tyre black!!

ribs · Post by **ribs** » Sun 11 Jan, 2009 20:53

gookah... glad I was able to point you in the right direct for the queeky hard-top.

Are you sure silicon oil is the right thing to use for tyre black though??
The words 'OIL' and 'TYRES' sounds a little dangerous to me!

gookah · Post by **gookah** » Sun 11 Jan, 2009 23:45

Thanks Ribs for the pointers I was scratching my head on that one. I must have bought up Lidl's entire stock trying to cure that squeak...
Oil and tyres? yep, sounds risky, but so does copper-slip and brake pads... the secret is where you apply it.
It always seems to last longer on the sidewalls too.

BimBeema · Post by **BimBeema** » Mon 12 Jan, 2009 00:37

Mine creaks as well when it goes over any camber or speed humbs! The most annoying is the wind noise, however music drowns it out!

phb10186 · Post by **phb10186** » Sun 18 Jan, 2009 11:08

I have this problem too.... Basically its worse in the winter, and when you first put the top back on.... then after a few weeks it beds in and the noise virtually stops on all but big pot-holes.

I guess that a few weeks of driving and vibration allows it to find its level.

Technically, I would say that the metal in the fixings contracts dslightly in the cold weather, and then causes micro-vibration. But, on a mild day everything should tightne up again.

3 things....

Have the nuts on the rear fixings been touched... if so that could be it?

If not, then are the front bolts as tight as they should be?

If yes, then last thing to check is that the hood is as far down as it can go, as it could be knocking the base of the hard top....

If it still knocks after this, I would take the top off, check everything again and put it back on.

turbo · Post by **turbo** » Sun 18 Jan, 2009 21:37

The paint shop who worked on my car recently,advised me to put a rubber trim between the hardtop and the paint work.I told him that i have had no trouble with mine rubbing, to which he replied not yet.When your rubbers get tired you will.Maybe worth thinking about?

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