Let's get Cars, Inc. to make a targa top!

[mark 74 carrera]

Hey guys there seems to be a lot of us out there that want a "hard" targa top. There have been many threads on this and you all know how many responses they receive.

So, I was thinking if we got organized and had a set list of people that would purchase the tops, what is the possibility of getting Cars, Inc. to manufacture them?

I am going to e-mail them now and ask if they have or would they ever consider doing it. Could you guys let me know if you would be interested.

Thanks, Mark

[Wayne 962]

What ever happened to Sundial?

-Wayne

[rfix'n]

If it's water proof, I'm interested. Recently had my top rebuilt my Dave Brown and now I'm afraid to fold it. If its nice when I leave for work I take off the top and leave it unfolded in my garage. Not nice, the top stays on all day / night.

Days like today I'm glad to have a Targa, I'm not saying that in January!

[mark 74 carrera]

I also e-mailed "Made by Hand" I will update once I hear back form both of them.

Wayne, I thought Sundial just kind of faded into nothing. The last I heard, the one person on the board that bought one wasn't happy with the tops performance at high speeds and I think it leaked.

See Ya, Mark

[pbs911]

Better yet, get Saratoga to make a batch of Targa tops!

I would be interested in the Cars, Inc. top IF it was leak proof and emitted no wind noise.

[JMPRO]

I have looked into making the hard top and found that to make a factory quality top it is just to expensive to make in the limited quanities necessary, Even if you want to make 100 tops w/ a low pressure injected frp process the costs of tooling and production are fairly high. Hand layups are cheaper to tool but take more time to produce and you get a rougher part . The big costs , almost as much as the top itself is the hardware, latches, locaters, rubberseals. You can buy factory parts, roughly $300.00 worth or have them copied. You will still wind up with an investment of over $15,000 and tops you have to sell at about $1200 each to make the whole thing worth while. If the market were bigger i would do it.
Jerry
78 911 SC Targa w/ factory hardtop

[s2per]

Couldn't the latches could possibly be "recycled"; i.e., take them off your old folding top if they're working well? I can appreciate teh need for new seals, but recycling the latches could lower the cost somewhat.
I'd be a buyer, and either a factory or Saratoga type would be great to have.

[JMPRO]

The factory latches on the hard top are different than the soft top and actually less money. If you wanted to build a top that used the soft top latches the mold would have to be reworked{more expence} and the soft top latches could be used, but then you need more expencive parts to finish the product unless you sold the top sans latches and related hardware, of coarse then you would narrow the market share to only those customers handy enough to put the thing together themselves or take it to a professional to do the final assembly. Then you still have the question of the exterior finish and headliner. The best bet is to make a completely finished top , take it out of the box and put it on the car. no batteries or assembly required. Don't make a product that will be trashed by everyone on this board like sundial did. Many people think there is an easy answer to making the complete product {making the fiberglass part is} it is all the fit and finish along with putting out a quality product that is the hard part.I am still working on all of these questions and may have an answer in a few months.
Jerry

[mark 74 carrera]

Got an e-mail back from Cars,Inc. They said they thought it would cost more to set and make than they could reasonably charge for the tops. He did say it sounded interesting. I wrote back and asked if he would change his mind if he had 25 pre-ordered. We'll see. I have not heard back from Made by Hand. I'll keep you updated. See Ya, Mark

[Ilan]

I'm definitely in for a quality hard targa top. Loved the one I had on my 914 in the 70's. Assuming the top reduced windnoise and leakage, I'd be willing to spend $1200.

[red911]

I would be interested if the price was right. I purchased the hard top from sundial. It seemed to be ok. The latching was not the best and not much in the way of side seals. I returned the top with a full refund. It really had some promise.

Bill
83 SC

[mark 74 carrera]

I guess there is not as much interest as I thought considering 273 hits on this thread and only ten responses. Spoke with Cars,Inc. twice today via e-mail.

He says he thinks he needs $10,000 to get started. I suggested he consider doing the first batch at cost. (For initial our investment we get a top at costs, he gets a new segment of business but makes no money on the first batch)

He has thought about doing this for a long time but I got the sense that it has not been important enough to justify the initial outlay of money. This seems to be a recurring theme (See Sundial)

So I guess this will die here. I might put up $500 to get a top for $1000, but would there be 19 other people to give $500 to someone we all have never met to build a top that would really be a first of a kind and likely would not be perfect.

I guess I'll just keep looking for a factory hard top. See Ya,Mark

[JMPRO]

Most of the factory hard tops wound up in northern europe because of the climate there. If you want to find one start looking there. It is my understanding that only about 800 hard tops made it to the US in years 74-75. I was told that the hard top was standard for 1975 and the soft top was optional,but because most cars in that year were dealer ordered cars ,they decieded that the soft top would be the favorite.
Start looking on the swedish PCA wedsites and classified.
Good luck
Jerry

[osidak]

I know Dan very well (known him for the past 14 years). I sent him a private email telling him I would also be interested. I would also be willing to put up $500 up front to get a what I would bet to be a top quality top.

Omar Sidak

[Joeaksa]

I have the sundial top and would be interested in getting a "factory quality" top if available.

Just because you have only 10 responses does not mean that much as the 350+ hits shows that there is a lot of interest. I would refer Dan in NJ to this thread and see if there was a way we could finance the first run of the tops and get the "beta" versions at a reduced cost.

Joe

[BlueSkyJaunte]

I'd be in for $500 up front too for a Dan-made hard top. My suggestion: refurb a soft-top frame and glass up a hard skin for it. Lock the hinges. Bam, you gotta hardtop.

My glassing days are over (sportbike panel repair) for now--no time and no room what with all the other projects.

[clnilsen]

Ok.. I'd be in for a $500 top.

And even more.

Here's why:

If you look at the tops on ebay (hard or soft) they all pretty much start at $500 for a decent one.

The current glass top on ebay is at $550.

To get my soft skin recovered, it's around $800

So, if I could avoid having to get my soft covered again, I'd be willing to pay anything less that 800$.

I gotta believe that something could be done in that price range that's decent. Hell, I'd think you could fabricate one out of aluminum skin at that price point...

I'd like to hear more about this. I think the biggest hurdle is a viable solution to this.

"If you build it, they will come"

Look at how many and how fast the bids went up on the glass top on ebay. There's 7 people right there willing to shell out some $$ for this.

Later!

Chuck

[Halm]

Are the Targa tops being discussed interchangeable with the early cars like a 1970? If so, I would be in also.

[mm86911]

I would also be interesting for something of quality in the $500 to $750 range.

[schubee]

I'm in for 5 hun.