Pop-top -- mechanical repairs & seals. No paint, finish or preservation questions.

**Capt. Mike** · 02-21-2009, 07:11 PM

The foam also serves as a vibration damper and noise buffer. Suggest you replace.

Aluminum can be polished on a buffing wheel with the correct polishing abrasive. You'll then need to clear-coat it as it will have removed any anodization finish. It can also be powder coated.

**dfresh** · 03-26-2009, 11:10 AM

The other night I was sleeping in the downstairs bed of my 1987 Westy with the top up. It became really windy that night(checking the news the next day they said 63 mph gusts) and I was worried about damage to the pop top. I considered bringing the top down, but thought if If a gust came while lowering it would be more likely to cause damage than leaving it fully engaged in the up position. All though it made some scary creaking noises during the gusts at night, the pop top closed perfectly the next morning.

My question is: is there any sort of wind rating for the pop top and has anybody experienced any damage from winds? I'm pretty amazed by how well mine held up!

**westfaliarage** · 04-13-2009, 12:29 PM

Hi,

Well I am going to replace pop top seal. I purchased seal form gowesty. It came in two pieces for the poptop. It also came with this LOCTITE Black Contact adhesive. Now I read in the beginning of the postings that if you want to use a sealer than use only a little bit for water resistance. I am wondering if this LOCTITE stuff is going to be pain to get off when it comes time to do the seal again? Anybody know this product. I searched on the internet and one site said easy to use and remove but could no other info. Who ever did the last one on my 87 used a lot of some kind of sealant and it looks like it will be big task to remove. Thanks for the tips on removing the seals.

**Eddymitch64** · 09-04-2009, 04:02 PM

Hey Folks,
I have a 2001 Weekender - never had any problems shutting my poptop b4 & recently I cannot get it to click all the way down in "locked" position - which makes it a little scary to drive over 40 mph. Anyone run into this before?
I find nothing obstructing it......

**Mikemessy** · 09-20-2009, 01:25 PM

Hi Guys,

I also have this same problem with my 1969 VW westfalia. The leading edge of the front-hinged pop-top roof catches the wind when traveling >40mph and lifts up about an inch or two. I am worried I am going to do some damage to it. Does anyone know how to fix this problem?

If not, any ideas as to how I can secure the roof would be welcome!

Cheers,

Mike

**Eddymitch64** · 09-25-2009, 03:44 PM

Solved my problem with my pop top - the main screw and bolt had become completely undone over time and it finally just fell off - revealing a simple fix of refastening

Now if I could only get the fluorescent lights going again.......

**idickson** · 11-12-2009, 07:49 AM

I have just acquired a 2002 VW T4 Campervan. I am fairly sure that the conversion has not been done by Westfalia but it is a very similar one.
One problem I have with it is that in windy conditions on motorways the pop up roof is very noisy and draughty and the front of it is trying to lift. I have noticed on other Westfalia conversions there is a triangular shaped rubber strip above the front windscreen deflecting the air above the gap. Does anyone know know if this is a factory fitting? Thank you

**BCVW** · 05-29-2010, 04:06 AM

I'm having problems with my Pop top too... I can't seem to get my pop top to close properly after replacing all my hardware with stainless steel. basically i can't get the top to close tightly at the rear of the roof. I tried adjusting both the bolts from the hinge to the fiberglass top and also the bolts from the hinge to the metal roof. Anyone have any tips on spacing etc? I tried spacing blocks at different heights. I'm pulling hair out. Thanks so much!

**Mite** · 06-09-2010, 08:56 AM

I need to replace the poptop seal on my 1987 Vanagon. I am pretty sure it is original as it holds a fair amount of rust from the metal clips, but the previous owner used silicon presumably to hold it in places (or patch leaks?) and it now looks like an ugly mess. Now my question is, should I replace it with a seal that must be glued on with locktite such as the one sold by GoWesty or go with the type advertised at Bus Depot which features aluminum clips (that won't rust) and does not need to be glued (or so they claim). They also mention that it most closely resemble the original one and as such would help prevent some of the drainage problems associated with the other aftermarket seals. Anyone has experience with the seal from Bus Depot or a similar type that still uses metal clips? Are these clips really better than the glued-on alternative? Any feedback greatly appreciated.

Michel

**oldtrs** · 07-04-2010, 11:15 AM

I too need to replace the pop top seal on my 83 water-cooled Westy. The Bus Depot product with the Aluminum clips sounds like it would be simple to install, because presumably doesn't require adhesive or sealer. Does anyone have recent experience, good or bad, installing the Bus Depot seal, or other products?

Moderator Note: Read the Bus Depot topic in the Parts forum. VW used the clip method without a sealant.