sanch3z

Sorry about the dodgy title

In the market for my first S and due to not having a garage was thinking a GT would be the sensible route to protect the soft top in the winter – good idea? Also is it best to buy a GT now or a decent car I like then purchase the hinges and roof separately? Was thinking separately might be a pain and colours might differ?

I have 4-6 months to find a car BTW!

Thanks for any pointer.

Matt1783

Thought this was something about Grand Tour for a moment haha!

Welcome Sanchez There's a few nice S's for sale at the moment, you've picked a good time to be looking but prices are a little inflated due to the best summer in however many years...

Having had a number of convertibles, the issue you have with having the roof folded all winter is that it takes quite a bit of stretching back when you unfold it come the summer time. This can lead to it's own list of problems. Personally I'd chuck a mohair roof on whatever you buy (£450 off the chap in cardiff including a brand new window, fitted) and save yourself the agro of a hardtop. That said, I do have one and probably will use it over winter. If I didn't have one though, it really wouldn't bother me

sanch3z

That's funny just been reading about that Welsh bloke who likes to leave the remains of his lunch in the foot well I must be blind but can't see any decent ones at the moment (no offence). Perhaps i'm best waiting a couple of months for prices to drop as i'm looking for something to own for years? In some ways a roof is a pain as I don't have much room for storage. Will consider covering in winter if I can get away with not using it... So many decisions, difficult having not had one b4.

noodels

Driving top down in winter months is nice & the heaters in the S are brilliant.
We don't get bad winters so much these days,
do have 3 cars though and avoid rain and ice in the S

Matt1783

Yeah, I am aware that he has his shortcomings when it comes to the rest of your car, however... Overall he's extremely busy and quite a few S2000 owners have been through his doors, so i'm not too worried overall. I need to save money to sort out my alignmnet bolts, so cannot justify £900 on a roof when I can pay half that.

I would wait for prices to drop; if roof storage is going to be difficult then definitely do not go down the Hard Top route, they take up a lot of room indeed (mine is most of the rear wall in my single garage!)

sanch3z

so many things to consider. I don't love the thought of storing a roof at the moment but have always wanted a car to keep for a LONG time. My situation will undoubtedly change over the years of ownership so want to make sure I have the right car as I only want to buy once. I have a feeling this will become my hobby and a money pit at times so I want this investment going into the best machine. What i'm struggling to decide is the following:

Route A:
- Spend 10K on reasonable car
- Save £2k for fixes

Route B:
- Spend 12k on car
- Hope nothing immediate is needed

Mike's

Also if you do look for a GT model make sure it still has the fitting kit (hinges) as if there is no hard top with the car chances are the brackets have been sold also. My 03 is a GT model didn't have the hard top but but it still has the brackets in place

Soggybottomboy

When we bought our 05 Gt it had been with the previous owner for four years and I don't think the HT had been off in that time. It was perfect with no damage and went up and down without a hitch.
As our S is not garaged unless we are away and it resides in a neighbours spare garage, we use the HT all winter and it is a great asset to the car. Would I have one without, probably because the car is so special. All things being equal though I would chose one with a HT.
As to the problem of the folding roof fitting after a period under the HT, I can't say I have had any problems. But ours is the original OEM and is regularly proofed and all the seals lubed during the summer. When not on the car the HT is stored in a bag on an OEM stand in the house (I have a very understanding wife).
Would I buy another S? If I could find one like this ........you bet!

But this one will do fine.

har-vey

Easy answer, find a decent car and don't worry about the hard top. At the end of the day the hard top can be purchased at another point, there's always one for sale and if you wait out you will get one in the colour you need. Also as you said storage isn't great without a garage so even more reason to get a car without the hardtop now and buy one in a few years when circumstances change.

qwerty109

I have a bit of regret buying a GT as the hardtop is just collecting dust in the garage (and I spent days building the hoist harness for it) - as noodels said, driving in winter with the top down is nice (and there's always an odd sunny day) and the heaters are excellent. But then again, during the really bad weather the S2K sits in the garage while we drive our little Jazz, so it depends on the circumstances. Hardtop does give you a bit more room inside (compared to the closed soft top).