Soft Top Alignment

 May I cogratulate you all on buying a first rate car! I’ve just bought a 1991 Eunos Roadster 1600. The body work and floor pan are in excellent condition. Mechanically there are a few things which need attention (my garage will attend to this). My job is to return the car to factory specifications - out with the bling and after market parts, and replace with genuine Mazda parts. When I got the car home my first job was to check for leaks from the soft top. No problems on the windscreen, passenger side or rear. I used the garden hose method (Cumbriam drizzle, Aberdeen down pour). No problems until I came to the drivers side. Gap between bottom of window and weather seal! Comparing both sides I notice that the soft top on the passenger side nicely slots in the cut out in the door. It is 1/2" - 5/8" back on the drivers door. This leads me to 3 conclusions:-

  1. The soft top frame is bent. I don’t think so.

  2. The soft top has been wrongly attached to the frame - again I don’t think so.

  3. The pivot mechanism, incorporating the Link Bracket, is out of alignment. My maual doesn’t show that this is adjustable???

 

If anyone can help me, as there’s no way I can start the interior renovation until the leaks are fixed, I would appreciate it. If not do you know of an MX5 soft top expert in the East Anglia Region?

 

PS All you guys have bought an incredible sports car. I may have paid over the top for mine but I’ve already recouped the cost in the fun I’ve had!

 

Mick the Mud

I’m having a little difficult imagining what’s going on with the alignment of the soft top…cut out in the door?..do you have any pics?

The bit I do get (I think) is that the driver’s window is too far inboard leaving a gap between it and the door weatherseal? Assuming the weatherseal is in place and intact, then this is most likely just a matter of adjusting the window (can and should be adjusted in/out, forward/back, up/down) - I can’t find a how-to guide right now but it’s easy enough.