Thanks for the compliments on the top guys, I greatly appreciate!

I've been receiving quite a few PM's in reference to wanting to see photos in more detail of the install, so I took some today as well as some photos detailing the difference in the moulding that I replaced due to myself feeling that the one that VIS provided for the rear wasn't up to par to do the job. I've tried to grab photos from all the angles as well so if I missed something that you would like to see in better detail, let me know and I'll do such. I'm happy to be able to provide you guys with the feedback from my experience with the hardtop because I know that before I purchased there were loads of questions running through my mind, so if this thread can't help out at least just one person than I feel it's more than served it's purpose.

Like I said though before, any other questions feel free to ask me!

First off, here are the two moldings side by side. As you can see there is a significant difference between the two. Now I'm sure everyone has their personal preference in reference to this. Like I stated in the earlier posts, I felt like the moulding VIS provided me with in the install kit just wasn't up to the caliber that I felt safe driving with, plus I swore I could hear wind noise on the first drive home from the body shop thus the main reasoning behind why I chose to replace these with that of the new molding that I purchased at Pep Boys. This molding ran me, with tax, around $32.00 total. I've also taken a photo of the packaging so in case any of you decide to pick some of it up in the future for your purchase.








Now, here are the shots that I did of the sides as well as the rear so that you all could see how the molding meets the car and provides the needed insulation from the weather and such. Sure, it may be a bit higher and noticeable than would be the case with the VIS molding, but in the long run I'd rather run this look as opposed to having to worry about damage from water and the constant annoyance of wind noise!








Here are some photos dealing in reference to the plexi glass window and it's fitment in to the window moulding that was provided by VIS.








Here are the brackets and soft top latches installed, also a shot of the top of the interior since a lot of people were curious to see it in better detail! I need to give the interior a proper cleaning as it's still a bit dusty from where we were fiddling with it during the reinstall, thus the lack of clean!












Last but not least, here are the two side window moldings that were provided by VIS, installed, as well as the front of the top mated to the windshield pillar using the stock molding trim...








A few of you asked me about the install process. Now granted I did not install the top on the very first time after it was painted, the body shop did that, but I did uninstall and reinstall the top when I decided to replace the molding.

The install procedure is pretty self explanatory:

1) Take the molding for the rear that you choose to use, be it the one VIS provides, or an alternative such as the one I chose, and these are self adhesive, so gently flip the top over on a soft surface (such as a carpeted floor) and stick the molding to the outline of the bottom of the top, this is fairly easy, just time consuming, also be sure to press down as hard as possible so that you can get the best stick between the two. I was able to do this by using all of the same strip without having to cut it, depending on how you choose to do it, you may have to take and cut the molding in to sections if you can't get it to bend in the proper angles that are needed.

2) Removal of the side sill paneling, removal of the plastic trim behind the seat which is held in by the two hooks (Phillips head screw inside each one, 2 hooks per panel), as well as the removal of the side door panel trim. This shouldn't take you more than a few minutes, the difficulty is basically in finding a means to maneuver yourself amongst the seats/interior to get a good access with your tools to do the work that needs to be done.

3) Once all the trimming is removed it's then just a matter of unbolting your soft top latches from your current setup and installing them on to the VIS top, as well as lining up the brackets, that VIS provides you with, to the two bolts on each side door panel which then attaches to the VIS top itself. The bolts that you use that aren't attached to the car under the trimming is all provided by VIS and in my case was already drilled and installed in to the hardtop itself upon arrival so this should be the case for anyone who orders from VIS I'd imagine. The main problem that we ran in to while installing the brackets was that it takes a lot of maneuvering around to get the brackets to line up because the hardtop is so big so it's best to try and do a test fit to figure out where and how exactly the top should be placed to get the proper alignment between the top and the body of the car. You've got to remember that when your doing all this alignment someone needs to be inside the interior watching all the sides so you know when the proper alignment has been achieved. If I could go back and do it again, I'd totally have removed the seats from the car as there just isn't any room at all to move around to get the access that you really honestly need for this install. In the process of doing this and dealing with the lack of space we lost 2 of the bolts total that VIS provided us with when they fell down in to holes that were exposed due to the interior trimming being removed. Doing all of this the night before Thanksgiving we had to improvise and make a run to Walmart to try and find a similar screw. The screws in the top are hex screws which naturally were impossible to find at the store we went to, so we were able to improvise by picking up a Phillips head screw that was a bit wider and stronger as well as a few washers, thus the difference in the one of three screws show one both bracket photos. This actually has in my opinion helped hold the top on even better because I could feel the top getting tighter and snugger to the body of the car as we bolted those 2 up. Again, you guys if you're careful won't have to result to doing this if you can keep from losing your screws and shielding any holes on the interior by means of tape or something similar, believe me, this will save you A LOT of headaches and bickering amongst all participants in the install!

4) Once you've bolted everything up to the bracket though you're pretty much done. VIS provides you with the molding for the side windows as well which is just a matter of peeling off the self adhesive and sticking them on evenly.

5) After all this, just reinstall all the interior trimmings the exact same way in which you removed them and go for a test drive to make sure you don't hear any squeaks (if you do encounter any, just take your tools and tighten the bolts as tight as you can get them!). Also be sure to test some water on it as well to make sure there are no leaks!


This install over all took the two of us about 3hrs. If it hadn't been for the loss of the two bolts as well as the lack of removing the seats, this job would probably have only taken us roughly about 15 to 20 minutes tops. Most likely even quicker the more and more that we familiarize ourselves with it. THis is a total DIY install that can be done with just basic tools, nothing major whatsoever!

As I stated before, hopefully I covered everything that you guys were curious and had questions about, if you have any other questions or would like to see any other photos, please don't hesitate to ask because like I said earlier, if this thread can't help out at least just one person than I feel it's more than served it's purpose.

 

awesome!! thanks man, getting the exact same top soon.

 

Glad to help!

You'll love the top though, best of luck with the install!

 

well if use to swap motors for fun then i dont think putting this top on should be a big problem. haha

 

Oh yeah, well in that case it should be record timing for you to install it. Like I stated in the earlier posts, it's not that it's difficult, it's just the fact that it's time consuming because you're having to maneuver yourself around in the interior to get the access that you need. That is though provided that you choose not to remove the seats for the install. None the less though, be sure to post some photos up once you've got it on!

 

I Want ONE

 

Go pick you up one, it's one of the best investments for this car in my personal opinion and talk about changing the overall look of the car so drastically! S2000's from my experience create a lot of attention wherever they go, add a hardtop to it, watch the necks start breaking even more so!

 

i agree with you man, but the problem for me is the international shipping & the installation, i dont trust most of the shops here & no one has any experiance with the S2K

 

There's liable to be some of these Mugen replica tops located somewhere in "The Old World" wouldn't you think?

Or perhaps you could manage to go through a shop there and have them be the ones that order it, sure you may have to pay a little to them on the side but as long as you're buying the product from them I'd imagine it wouldn't be as expensive, or perhaps I'm wrong?

I think you could do the install yourself if you don't feel safe with others doing it due to a lack of experience with the S2000! It's really simple, promise!

 

I have one, but not installed yet. I need some free time to get it done...