VALMET Retractable Glass Roof Thunderbird

[wcoates]

Jerri, I have some 1:18 HT that I'd be glad to send you for your experiments. Unfortunately I don't know when the trip to Ohio takes place. Let me know if you want them and I'll get them in the mail

As I see it, the retractable tops go upward, get stacked, move backward and the stack is lowered into the trunk. The Bird soft top folds like an accordion.... Good luck!.

[JerriLampon]

Jerri, I have some 1:18 HT that I'd be glad to send you for your experiments. Unfortunately I don't know when the trip to Ohio takes place. Let me know if you want them and I'll get them in the mail

As I see it, the retractable tops go upward, get stacked, move backward and the stack is lowered into the trunk. The Bird soft top folds like an accordion.... Good luck!.

Many thanks for the offer, but I can generate some simple prototypes for testing/folding. The folding of the window portion of the soft top seems to be the limiting factor. I'll post as things progress, or don't.

[JerriLampon]

This is quite rude, but a thought experiment how it can be made to work. I've not measured the space behind the rear "seat" yet, but dividing the hardtop into three equal pieces and relocating the porthole, it can be divided in (roughly) 22" sections.


Using the 2014 or so Miata M5 retractable hardtop as a guide, the rear window section will rotate 180 degrees with the two other sections to fold on top.
Depth needs to be sufficient to accept all three pieces.
Hinging and gearing to be the next "experiment".
Didn't someone have raw hardtop shells for sale at one time?

[Quickdraw]

What about the width? The hardtop is wider than the cavity you plan to store it in....

[007Cruiser]

What about the width? The hardtop is wider than the cavity you plan to store it in....

Maybe some Slimfast?

[JerriLampon]

What about the width? The hardtop is wider than the cavity you plan to store it in....

This "project" will require a new and slightly different hardtop (relocate the porthole, for instance). I wouldn't suggest we sacrifice our take-offs to cut up. There also needs to be a replacement for the rear panel, just before the trunk.
Moving along......

[Bobnoir1]

Jerri, this looks like a fun shut-in project. I made some measurements and see that the stock hardtop is 59-60" long. Space behind the rear seat to the back of the soft top opening is about 18". Using your initial rough calcs, that means each of the three panels can only total to 54", not the 20" equal portions of the existing HT length. You'd also have to lose the trunk recess because that interferes with the available space in the soft top well. We might also have to lose some rear seat area and move it forward a few inches. I do notice there is a metal bar that runs across behind the speaker area, so major surgery might have to be done.
We need a wrecked specimen to dissect to see what will need to be done for real.
For now, I'm looking at an 1:18 version for possibilities.

Keep up the good thought projects!

[HKS]

Kill the glass roof and give me the porthole back.

I second that notion.
Just had an awful thought. Do aftermaket items like this retractable hardtop require crash tests?