Lose the Moonroof!

[suprabad]

Just like the title says...that's what I want to do .

I've got an '87 hardtop that had a glass moonroof installed at the dealer when new. It works fine since I fixed it a couple of years ago, but s/r's make wind noise on the freeway (doesn't leak air but you can hear the wind rushing over it) and eventually leak water and air. Plus I hate the way they look...probably cool then...blows ass now.

Has anyone out there tossed their sunroof and welded the roof back up?

I was thinking of finding a junked H/T and cutting the top of the roof off to
get the right curve. I figured I'd cut off a bigger section than I need for the s/r hole and lay it on top of my car's roof, then trace the hole from the inside of my car onto the scavenged roof section, cut it out and then weld 'er up.

I'm a good body & paint man, but I'm not sure my welding skills are up to the task of getting the s/r section to look right (I'm afraid of warping the roof section etc.)

Has anyone successfully done this before?

Any forseeable problems I might encounter?

As I don't have acess to air or electricity at the local junk yards...what would be the best (feasable) way to cut the donor roof section out?

Any tips on best way to weld this up or other ideas on the best way to accomplish this are greatly appreciated as I am definitely going to do this soon

 

[john93t]

i think the only way you'll do a decent job of this is to replace the compleat roof section, if you try to weld the hole where the "moonroof" was you'll get distortion,
the welded joins need to be on the pillers, still not an easy job..

 

[NAiL05]

There are companies that make "block offs" for the sunroof. I know they do it on Honda's not quite sure if any make them for the supra. It would be something interesting to look into though.

 

[Rennat]

re-welding a roof section JUST to get rid of a moonroof? for that much money why not just paint over it and glue it shut or something?

and i would rather just put a filler piece of metal in and weld it, you could do it without warping, and then just work it up and down to get it flat again, throw some filler in to get it 100% smooth, and paint it.

 

[ViR2]

its not that hard, friend of mine did that with his escort (ghetto car ).
And you dont need a spare roof or a piece of roof from another supra. Just Weld in some normal piece of metal, then sand it, prime it, use some filler and paint

 

[suprabad]

So no-one has done this on a MkIII?

Anybody got any ideas on what method of welding is gonna work the best on this? Mig I'm thinking?

I don't have another supra to look at closely but I would think (even though the moon-roof is flat glass) there must be some curve to that section of the roof. Can anybody confirm this.

I'm surprised more people don't do this given how many cars had sunroofs added at the dealer and how much cleaner it looks without the damn thing.

It looks totally do-able to me, but would still appreciate some input if you have something helpful to say.:icon_bigg

 

[blackturbona]

keep it not worth the effort to delete, especially since im assuming moonroof over a sunroof is very rare for these cars

 

[shaeff]

If you decide to weld, tack weld it bit by bit, and not in the same place twice in a row. Tack one side, then move to another, then another, etc... - you need to allow the panels time to cool down, otherwise you'll get warping.

 

[WhtMa71]

^What he said. Of course you're gonna have to use some body filler and so some sanding but if you're a good body man that shouldnt be a hard task.

 

[suprabad]

^What he said. Of course you're gonna have to use some body filler and so some sanding but if you're a good body man that shouldnt be a hard task.

If you decide to weld, tack weld it bit by bit, and not in the same place twice in a row. Tack one side, then move to another, then another, etc... - you need to allow the panels time to cool down, otherwise you'll get warping.

Absoloutely...this is my biggest worry, i.e. i'm afraid of it warping.

Someone suggested gas welding it which works well on curved body panels cause they're stronger due to thier curviture, but I'm afraid gas would generate too much heat and cause a flat panel like the roof to warp.

I'm thinking of tig welds but they're not as malleable and tend to crack if you grind them down.

As far as getting even and flat...it sounds easier than it is. Plus the fact that my car sits low so the roof is very visable so it has to be perfect.

Sure would appreciate some more input on this.

 

[Facime]

I also agree on the moving around and taking your time welding. I would also doa donor roof just because that way you know you have the curve and same gauge steel. You can buy a cordless 4.5" grinder and put a cut-off wheel on it for the junkyard. I think Sears has one on sale right now for fathers day. The worst that can happen is that you have to cut the whole mess out and make a targa out of it

 

[suprabad]

I also agree on the moving around and taking your time welding. I would also doa donor roof just because that way you know you have the curve and same gauge steel. You can buy a cordless 4.5" grinder and put a cut-off wheel on it for the junkyard. I think Sears has one on sale right now for fathers day. The worst that can happen is that you have to cut the whole mess out and make a targa out of it

That's a good idea for cutting out the donor roof.

I thought it would be a good idea to cut out a significantly larger portion of the roof than I plan to use so that I can lay it on the roof of my car and get the placement right, and then trace the opening (from the inside of the car). This way it will match the lines of the roof exactly.

What method of welding would be best to keep the metal as cool as possible as well as getting a good surface to work with?

Does anyone know what gauge of sheet metal the roof is?

 

[Poodles]

Personally I'd find a nice hardtop shell if you wanted it that way.

It could go terribly wrong, and then you'd need to get a shell, in that case nobody would buy your old one with the warped roof...

I'd look into what they had for the F-bodies with T-tops, a removable insulation that stopped the light, heat, and noise from getting in...

 

[Facime]

TIG welding is the easiest to contol heat on. I think buying a whole new shell is overkill and would only be a last resort. If you take your time, you should be able to get satisfactory results.

 

[86andhalfWhiteGirl]

re-welding a roof section JUST to get rid of a moonroof? for that much money why not just paint over it and glue it shut or something?

and i would rather just put a filler piece of metal in and weld it, you could do it without warping, and then just work it up and down to get it flat again, throw some filler in to get it 100% smooth, and paint it.

OMG.... the best solution is to trade your supra for a hard top and let someone else enjoy a sun/moonroof.

But please dont just take it out and expect to 'bondo' and/or weld the hole with a piece of metal.

The previous owner of my 94 Camry did this.... and it looks so FUGLY.... and on top of it, caused more damage than necessary. Going to cost me at least $500 to fix.... buy a friend of a friend of a friend that does body work.

Where to begin with the damage... and the fuglyness of it all, when i get a chance I will take a pic of my camry and post it up here in this thread so you can see what was done.

The advice I got from "American Sunroof Company" was to get a roof from another car the same year and replace it this way that is if there wasnt damage done to to the frame of the car... you know the feel and sounds of the car coming apart at every bump and dip on the road. This would replace the outer part and also the interior lining of the car.

**I will be back and post a pic of my Fugly 94 Camry

 

[Facime]

Your friend of a friend of a friend....was an idiot. Body repair by replacing panels and welding in patches is done ALL THE TIME in the business. Just as a headgasket prepair can be botched by "Cleatus and his clowns" so can body work. I dont know if the OP is gonna do it right, but just because someone else hacked up a perfectly doable job does not mean its not doable.

The suggestion earlier of doing the whole roof down to the pillars is probably the way a body show would do it.

 

[86andhalfWhiteGirl]

Your friend of a friend of a friend....was an idiot. Body repair by replacing panels and welding in patches is done ALL THE TIME in the business. Just as a headgasket prepair can be botched by "Cleatus and his clowns" so can body work. I dont know if the OP is gonna do it right, but just because someone else hacked up a perfectly doable job does not mean its not doable.

The suggestion earlier of doing the whole roof down to the pillars is probably the way a body show would do it.

Hey you are right... but this job was hacked... also the reason i got it as such a good deal for a DD.

***The friend of a friend... is the one who will be doing the fixing of the hole... he didnt do the damage.

and i agree... replacing the entire roof... would be the way to go.. if you want a decent job.. and showing a 'seamless' job.

 

[Rennat]

why would you buy a car thats a 'good deal' just to say its roof is all fucked up and its going to cost you $500? obvisouly wasnt that great of a deal...

and for gods sake its a 94 camry!!!!!!!! give me a break... drive it till it blows.

also you havent seen many body jobs that look good, because people go all out with replacing body panels, hell i've seen it on TV where they redo parts of panels and when its all said and done, you would NEVER know.

 

[Guyana00]

My opinion is to cut at the pillars, weld on a hard-top roof from another supra and trade yours with the moonroof to the other guy, unless he doesnt want it. Then just buy the roof or get from whatever hookups you may have and weld it on, I'm fairly certain there are people on here that would want to purcahse your moonroof in the end of it all too.

Win-win. Btw, is it a power roof? Mind posting a pic?

P.S. Personally, I find that with any moon roof or sunroof, the wind noise noticeable, if that at all. If it was me I would keep the roof and use it ocasionally when you feel like it, since it will be there. Also because it seems like the gain would be minimal for what work is entailed, but then again, I have some ideas of my own that wouldn't be too easy and every person on here wants their supra exactly their own way and thy deserve it.

The only other advice I would add is that if you see a paintjob in your near future, I would take some time to source a good roof and store it until you are ready to do the paint job and have it all done at the same time.

 

[86andhalfWhiteGirl]

OMG.... the best solution is to trade your supra for a hard top and let someone else enjoy a sun/moonroof.

But please dont just take it out and expect to 'bondo' and/or weld the hole with a piece of metal.

The previous owner of my 94 Camry did this.... and it looks so FUGLY.... and on top of it, caused more damage than necessary. Going to cost me at least $500 to fix.... buy a friend of a friend of a friend that does body work.

Where to begin with the damage... and the fuglyness of it all, when i get a chance I will take a pic of my camry and post it up here in this thread so you can see what was done.

The advice I got from "American Sunroof Company" was to get a roof from another car the same year and replace it this way that is if there wasnt damage done to to the frame of the car... you know the feel and sounds of the car coming apart at every bump and dip on the road. This would replace the outer part and also the interior lining of the car.

**I will be back and post a pic of my Fugly 94 Camry

As Promised:::: :cry:

http://s206.photobucket.com/albums/bb48/vlos4/PattisSupra/

tell me what you think of the job... and who can do better....:biglaugh::sarcasm: