Need OEM Hardtop Expertise (Fitment and Noise)
 

Hey guys,

So thanks to the help of the s2ki community, I was able to purchase an OEM hardtop yesterday and just had it installed. I've been driving around with it for a bit now and noticed a couple of issues I was hoping to get help with. While the fitment was 100% as OEM was stated to be, there are still some gaps/noises I'm trying to address. I have quite a few questions, so I want to thank you ahead of time for reading my post!

First off, I was wondering if anyone had general tips to reduce the overall creakiness and rattling from the hardtop. I have so far, purchased rubber tubing this afternoon and cut them up to put into the hooks of the front latches to secure the front. Also, I have purchased some shin-etsu grease to help with the seals, but not sure if that is the issue at the time( is there any specific way I should put the grease on ?)

Next, the biggest issue that I have is that I notice a lot of wind noise/wind coming through the driver side when I'm going at faster speeds (greater than 55 mph), especially on the freeway. It seems to mainly be from from my rear driver side, specifically from the side window, closer to my shoulder. The seals seem fine for the most part, but there is definitely a lot of wind.
Attachment 163879

Similarly, I was wondering if there was supposed to be any rubber molding underneath the plastic piece that first hits the driver door?

Attachment 163880

I also noticed that the rear driver side area where it hits the trunk has a little gap. On the rear passenger side, I can't even slide my finger at all, but on the rear driver side I seem to be able to almost fit the entire front of my finger underneath. I checked all the locks and it seem to be secured, but is this gap an issue and is there a fix?

Attachment 163881

Lastly, I purchased the hardtop from an owner that previously had it painted, but there was some leftover over spray on the window trim as well as fraying (where the rear glass window is attached to the hardtop) and was wondering if it was possible to order a replacement trim/molding for this area? The shop that I have contacted to potentially paint the entire hardtop GPW said that they would likely be able to remove the silver over spray, but recommended me looking to see if I could get a replacement trim.

Attachment 163882


Again, thank you guys so much for your time and any help, advice, and information is great appreciated!

100% fitment = gaps/noises?

LOL

You need to adjust your rear catchers. See Page 6:

https://www.handa-accessories.com/S2000/s2k2top.pdf

As for the window wind noise, I did an old car DIY fix of tucking clear plastic tubing by the rubber seals to push them out. I only get wind noise when I'm over 75 mph.

There is a full adjustment procedure needed when you fit the hardtop to your car, as noted in the above link for the Honda adjustment process.
If you get noise from the front latch area you can remove shims from under the latches to tighten up the tension, each front latch has 3 shims under it and removing the shims tightens up the installation.
On each side of the hardtop window seal there is a metal retainer situated under the two rubber seals. You need to loosen the metal phillips screws holding the retainer and move the retainer outwards, this will put more contact between the door glass and the hardtop seals.
The rear window trim with overspray would be tricky to replace as the entire glass unit would have to be removed, let the shop clean it up with paint remover if possible.
The rear gap under the hardtop is somewhat normal, if you adjust the hardtop as per the Honda adjustment process it may even up the gap, it appears that each car is slightly different in how the chassis affects the hardtop installation, you may find some parts of the hardtop sitting higher and other parts sitting lower.
Once you get the hardtop adjusted always loosen up the four latches prior to lifting the car up on jacks or jackstands, this will keep it in adjustment longer. Always close the rear two latches last when tightening the hardtop down, and unlock the rear two latches first when loosening tension on the hardtop.

Any pictures of this procedure? I've been too afraid to remove the seals, worried I won't be able to return it to the original fitment on the metal rail. Do you just yank them out?

It's step 15 on page 7 of 8 in this link https://www.handa-accessories.com/S2000/s2k2top.pdf

Don't take the seals completely off, just pop them off the retainer by squishing them and pushing them to the side, loosen the Philips screws on the metal retainer and then move the retainer outwards , and tighten the screws back up. The seals them just slide back onto the retainer with a friction fit. Fairly easy to do.

Zeroptzero post is terrific summary. You can assess fitment at front of top to some degree by examining the outside along the edge of the windshield - is the top proud of the windshield frame, flush, or lower than the frame? Also, mine fits well, (the car was purchased originally with a hardtop and presumably fitted by Honda manufacturer or maybe dealer?), and I have some but very little creaking and noise, and yet along the back of top where it meets the car body the appearance is as if there is a gap - I think that is the way it is supposed to fit.

Is it fairly water tight?

If it were me I would get the front and rear clamps set where I want them before messing with adjustments to seals.

^^^Back in the day the OEM hardtop was an option and was installed at the dealer or at a place of the owner's choice.
Levi

I spent countless hours adjusting my oem hardtop which rattled a fair bit when I got it. I have since spent countless hours adjusting my Mugen hardtop which creaked quite a bit. So lots of experience :)

There will always be some noise, if you get some movement over large bumps that is somewhat normal, it should be quiet in most daily driving conditions and on the highway. You can't add a hardtop to a convertible car and have it totally noise-free, as there is always going to be some flex in the chassis. Fine tune it to a reasonable level and enjoy it. The top can go out of adjustment from time to time, and weather conditions can affect it as well. Good luck.