Did I misunderstand?

Hello, I recently upgraded my 2001 top with vinyl with a 2003 top with glass - both frame and top were upgraded. The job went smoothly as others have stated, however no matter what I try the clamshell will not close entirely when opening the top. Am I missing or misunderstand something. Thank you for all you guys do and any help you could offer an old man would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so very much!

The swap to the '03/'04 convertible top is not a plug-n-play installation.
The two tops are mechanically compatible, but there are some microswitches that need to be moved and/or installed for the conversion to work properly on a previous model year.
I don't recall exactly where, but there are several articles that explain the installation. You cab google it.
Happy Boxstering,
Pedro

Pedro Bonilla
1998 Boxster 986 - 311,000+ miles: [www.PedrosGarage.com]
PCA National Club Racing Scrutineer - PCA National HPDE Instructor - PCA Technical Committee (Boxster/Cayman)

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Racecar spelled backwards is Racecar

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"If you wait, all that happens is that you get older"... Mario Andretti

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A good friend and I did the 01 to 03 top a long time ago and it was absolutely plug and play but we measured the exact spot and marked where we disconnected the arms to make sure the positioning was correct. It did not require any additional work. There is a need to do microswitch work if you have a 97-99 model though, but your 01 wouldn’t require any additional work. You probably need to adjust your connection points to get the clamshell to close correct.

I did this swap early in COVID. 2000 t0 2003.

Maurice did a great write up. You should be able to find it in google. Search Maurice, Boxster, convertible top upgrade or similar.

If you pop the socket arms off, there is no reason to mark anything. But buy the sockets in advance. They often break and if you need to replace one, you had better have one on hand. And yes, you must mark or measure the location of the old one to make sure the new one goes in exactly the right spot. But if yours do not break, you do not need to mark anything. This is MUCH easier in warm locations as the plastic in cold can be brittle.

Get the plastic ones, they are meant to be sacrificial. They were really inexpensive at the time. The metal ones will ruin your top and clam shell if a cable snaps or the motors get out of alignment. And also take your time popping those off. They are on really tight. You will need a long bar to pop them on and off. I used a 4 ft breaker bar. A long screw driver will not work for instance.

You need two people to manipulate the tops, and lining up the mounting holes is a bit of an effort, but this is a very doable upgrade for a longish weekend afternoon. Assuming you plan ahead and have the plastic sockets in hand.

And BTW way, make sure you clear the speaker wires before you put the bolts in, or you will need to re-do the whole job. Ask me how I know. (Doh!)

[sites.google.com]

That is the site.

I thought you might be out of the Boxster game since my links to Bombay digital no longer work.
Have you saved your instructions someplace?

Your brake job instructions were the best I have ever seen BTW.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/16/2022 01:52PM by JM-Stamford,CT. (view changes)

All credit should go to Maurice. I just, in the case of the series of articles about the top, hosted them as a place to make them available. Sadly the site hosting some of the pictures has deleted some of the pictures.

I don't own a Boxster any more ... gads it has been about ten years now. But still check in from time to time out of affection for the car and why not offer to help when I have something to offer. BTW, brake job article wasn't mine.