Softop frame replacement or adjustment??

[ctm14]

Hello,

 I am considering the purchase of a 70' 280SL.  The car has an issue with the softop opening and stowing.  I would like opinions as to if this sounds like an adjustment issue or if a frame replacement is more likely.  If a replacement is required does anyone have an estimate on cost installed and availability.  I know this may be difficult to comment on without seeing the vehicle but thought I would try since I will need to travel to see the car and would like to know what I may be getting in to.  The sellers description is below.

The soft top has always been persnickety to put up and down.  You had to have two people to lift evenly from both sides and just be gentle with it and it would go up and down fine.  I thought that was just the way the cars were.  But over the summer as I have had the hard top off, it has gotten worse and worse.  So I decided just to get it fixed.  I took the car into a place here in town (Vegas) where the guy actually restores old cars and talked to him for a long time.  He clearly knew the car, told me he had personally restored 4 of the 280s etc.  So I left it with him a few weeks ago.  Well after keeping the car for over a week and working with it and working with it, he gave it back to me --- worse off!  He is now looking for a new frame for me.  He said that the frame was slightly tweaked and that is why it was not smooth going up and down.  He claims those tops should flop up and down very easily.

 

Anyway, after he tweaked and tweaked the frame further, he got it to go up and down easier, but then it would not fold into the compartment easily.  I should have never tried to “fix” it; it really was very manageable before but now I can’t even fold it into the compartment behind the seat.  But I am very detail oriented like that, and just wanted it to be perfect.  So now, I have to fix the soft top.  The soft top itself is brand new and just fine.  But worse case, I have to find a new frame for it and get the top restretched onto the new frame.


Thank You

[Peter van Es]

Read the entire Technical Manual on Soft Tops, and then check if you are missing any springs: http://www.sl113.org/wiki/Tops/SoftTop

Print it out, take it with you!

Peter

[Cees Klumper]

There are replacement bolts and washers than can be purchased that may help fix the problem. More likely than not, unless parts are just plain missing, as Peter suggests to check for also, something is out of alignment or bent. All these things should be able to be brought back into specs with the existing frame. Frame members can be bent back into shape.

Maybe the easiest and best thing to do, after you have checked the WIKI and ruled out all the possible more simple fixes, is locate someone in your vicinity who has a Pagoda whose softtop functions properly. Then just compare -meticulously- the frame, all angles, dimensions etc. This should point you to where any remaining problem(s) would be, and allow you to (I would think fairly easily) correct them.

Who is to say another softtop frame you may find someplace does not have its own problems? Besides they are very costly and what will you do with your old frame?

Just my 2 cts. Good luck on the fix!

[bogeyman]

I have two of these cars, and neither one has a correctly functioning soft top (one barely functions at all). I wonder if there is anyone out there who has successfully restored their top frame to function as designed?  It seems there should be some basic checks that could be described to determine what is causing certain problems. Replacement is really not an option (SLS currently lists new frame at about 10,000 euros) and a used frame could be no better than what you already have.

[Cees Klumper]

Someone who is reputed to know a great deal about these frames and how to rectify them, is Gernold Nisius of SL Tech in Maine. Perhaps an idea would be to ship the frame to him for repair.

[bogeyman]

Thanks, Cees but I was looking for a more practical (read economical ) solution.

[hauser]

I'm one of those guys that had Gernold rebuild my frame and replace the canvas.  It was a good thing that I had him do it or I would have never know the extent of the damage done by some idiot who did a crappy quick fix welding job on the frame.  If the frame is in very good to excellent condition then I would say it can be replaced by someone in their garage but if not, it's money well spent sending it to a specialist that has the factory measurements and a proper jig to get it right.  When you only work on one type of vehicle day in and day out for over twenty years you must be doing something right.  

[bogeyman]

I guess I don't understand the reason for a "jig". Unless my car has been seriously damaged in a crash, wouldn't my existing mounting points be correct? Even if they aren't, that is what I have to deal with. My top needs to mount on my existing points whether they are right or wrong?  I think I will remove the existing canvas and begin to proceed with pictures. Maybe we can come with a solution among us that is more reasonable.  I just don't see the value in removeing the whole mechanism and shipping it somewhere.  What if it is damaged by the carrier after it has been fixed?

[Kayvan]

Go the Mercedes CLassic Center in Irvine