360 top manual use

I’m am softly in the market for a 360…and only been looking at coupes, however I’ve come across some good convertible examples. My biggest concern is the complexity of the top and the cost of repairs. Is anyone out there just manually operating the top, or is this even a feasibility? Or even since it’s a fair weather vehicle, just keeping the top down (are you always able to achieve this under the failure modes of this top?). Thanks!

 

80%(a guess) of all 360/430 problems are directly related to the tricky flippy tops and flippy padels. Get a 360/430 coupe with manual or do a flippy to stick trans swap.

 

I really do not think the top is as hard as people make it out to be. It was complicated when it was new, but there is so much documentation online that you can fix everything yourself if you are mechanically inclined. The prices on repairs are high because the parts are sometimes hard to access and/or are fiddly, not because they are hard or complex. A few common problems:
1-elastic worn out
2-hydraulic cylinders failing or failed
3-loose/misaligned parts (probably from #1 or #2)
4-misaligned or worn out micro switches

Once you get the top properly sorted and do a quick annual check on fluid, tightness of everything, alignment, etc. it is rock solid and has had no issue. I think a lot of people just do the absolute minimum (see high repair bills above) and then are plagued by problems continually. Tear it all down once, fix it all, and put it back.

 

Are there solutions now for the NLA parts? All my cars are DIY’d by me, but this will be my first F car and top

 

I haven't come across a part I couldn't get. I haven't replaced every part on my car, but I have had some unusual parts break mainly because of failing hydraulic rams. I think if you proactively did all 7x of them when you get the car, it would save you so many problems.

There are more parts shared with other manufacturers than you might think; it just takes a little more effort and internet sleuthing to find them.

 

I can attest to this - my 360's roof mechanism left cylinder corroded and nearly set my car on fire (leaked onto the manifold). Then the elastics presented another problem. The third issue I have repeatedly dealt with is living in Miami, when the car is exposed to heat, the engine cover sensor triggers and won't allow the roof to be operated.

It is a phenomenal experience driving with the roof down, but it can be quite a headache.

 

Are roof problems a hard down situation (undriveable), or can most failures be defaulted to all the way open while you wait for parts/repair?

 

Buy a coupe, be happy, get the looks, no top issues, and be happy.

 

Generally it is possible to do the manual closing process to close the top, but I personally would not drive it like that because I’d be afraid of the wind speed on a drive yanking something open if there was no pressure in the system holding the rams in place.

When mine was failing but not fully failed, I was able to return it back to closed and drive it until the problem got so bad that the fluid was too low. One thing that could happen is you could burn up the pump if you run it with low fluid. It gets very hot with continual use beyond the cycle it’s designed for.

 

When the top is closed and locked, the rams have no pressure in them. The top is held secure by the way the kinematics lock into place. It's really a clever system that's not as complicated as people make it out to be.

As long as the top is not damaged with bent parts, it's pretty robust. Just keep an eye on it, replace worn elastics, and leaking cylinders, and you should be fine.

 

Echoing that a properly maintained top is basically trouble free. Aside from the wear items like elastics and the top itself, you shouldn't need to replace any of the mechanism itself unless the wear items are not replaced and the top is forced to fold incorrectly. There are plenty of owners that are not technically inclined or even aware of when things are not working right so they continue to use the top causing the nightmare stories you see. If you're an owner that noticed every different sound on your car, then it shouldn't be a problem.

Like what was mentioned above, most of the common issues are well documented and fixable as a DIY. The mechanism is not such that can be converted to a fully manual operation as it requires locking levers, etc that need to be actuated. The manual process is for emergencies only.

 

You've probably read about the infamous bar that if not moved to the back by the straps that it would prevent the canvas from properly folding underneath the back cover. One of the easiest solutions to this problem comes from a pair of straps made by @LorenzoR on this site. Install took 30 minutes. I have been moving that bar for more than 5 years. Not any more. I will post some pics and a video in case it helps the next guy.


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Your top picture in your post. Where is that exactly? Can’t figure out those blue markers.

also noticed the plastic window on my car getting indentations suddenly.
It folds nicely (bar going backwards) but some how dents 1 feet apart are pushed into the plastic window.

anyone knows why?

 

Its not folding back correctly and also maybe your window if folding the wrong way

 

Not folding correctly. Your plastic is folding forwards basically. When you lower your top, take your fingers and push the window backward as it starts to lower.

 

My recently purchased 2002 360 has an issue with the top. As the soft top is moving under the hard cover it just touches and has worn the paint in this spot on both sides. How do I get the hard cover to lift another inch or the soft top to fold a little tighter?

 

Bruce can you post some pics?

 

Yes, I will, maybe a few days though.

 

Here are a few pics of the soft top not clearing the hard covering. I can lift the hard cover up by hand to allow the soft top to go into place. Any ideas on why the hard cover does not lift high enough?
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Fred, im pretty sure those blue marks by the small bolts indicate the bolts have been torqued

 

Have you checked the tops fluid reservoir and also have you checked if any of your hydraulic cylinders are leaking

 

It's not 80% from my manual Spider's experience (I've had other issues), but the roof is as bad of a headache as advertised. I've had two nearly catastrophic failures and a few simply annoying issues with the roof.

OP: yes, I've had several people tell me to disable the mechanism and operate is manually. I don't know any 360/430 Spider owners personally who have done this, but in theory it is doable. Will the roof work properly down the road for resale? I couldn't guess!

 

how much are the hydraulic cylinders? I have oil leaking on the top's rear window from somewhere.

 

I think that means it's the front center.

 

Adding on - I have spent a lot of time sorting my top but did most of it myself and it has been working like new for awhile now. The sound from the engine with the top down is intoxicating and I think well worth it. As others have said once it is well sorted you need to maintain it - new elastics every five years or so is a must and not that expensive. Checking the cylinders regularly for leaks - although once they have been rebuilt they should last a long time.
Having said that if someone could come up with a decent manual conversion that would be compelling - especially since the same top was used on the 430. The mechanism securing it to the window frame would be easy since there is already a manual release for that. You would just need a way to release the rear clam shell and have a way to lock it in the full up position while you fold the top in, and then locked down after. After operating it manually for maintenance I found it moves very easy...would just need some engineering work.