how to replace old canvas top - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

muddywaters03 · #1 03-25-2009, 02:03 PM

any help on the steps to replace old top. canvas is ripping

Steve Gutman · #2 03-25-2009, 07:25 PM

There are a lot of posts about this but basically this is a difficult job to get right and you should take it to an upholstry shop. I want to do mine myself (it's bad) and I don't care if it's not exactly perfect but it sounds like it can come out very badly. I have read the instructions a few times and it seems simple enough but getting the tension right is supposed to be hard. THe top is not expensive but the install is. I would give it a try just for the learning experience but I m just too busy lately. I heard Mercedes will warranty the part and replace it if you ruin it on install but please do not take my word for it. Good luck!

muddywaters03 · #3 03-26-2009, 08:01 AM

thanks for the info

Strife · #4 03-26-2009, 08:21 AM

I did it and it can be done if you read the directions carefully in the shop manual and take notes and pictures on how you removed it and where everything was (edges, creases) when you removed it. The tips I would offer would be:

1. Get lots of glue - I used a little OVER a quart - and read the instructions. Contact cement needs to be appled to BOTH surfaces and then you WAIT for a little while for it to partially dry before gluing anything. While you are getting glue, get mineral spirits to remove it, too. MIX/SHAKE the glue before using.

2. Setting the back bow height is absolutely critical. If you screw this up nothing else will fit. See the instructions at World Upholstery on how to measure and do this.

3. Buy new side cables. Using the old ones is a PITA.

4. Put masking paper or plastic entirely over the front and back of the plastic rear windows before even opening the can of glue. The plastic will be instantly eaten by contact cement. Put plastic over the interior, hood, and trunk, too. This stuff can be messy and drippy.

5. A useful tool for this job is a wallpaper edge roller - a little 1-1.5" roller with a handle on it made of wood or plastic.

6. If possible, borrow someone else's 107 with a good-fitting top to look at during this process!

7. Expect this job to take 12-15 hours the first time you do it. Think before gluing or cutting.

donbryce · #5 03-26-2009, 08:49 AM

I concur...what Strife said. I'll add a couple of things, learned from my top install last spring.

- Lighter fluid is a great contact cement remover. I used high quality 3M spray and liquid cement as well.

- There is only one published how-to available on the internet, that I could find anyway, and it is on the World Upholstery site http://www.worlduph.com/topmbinstructions.htm. There is also a hard-to-get video, Video 2040, which should be still available from Robbins. http://www.robbinsautotopco.com/homepage.html I snagged a copy on EBay. The World Upholstery article is an almost verbatim printing of the video voice-over, so if you have both, it's almost like getting a personal lesson from the best. I say almost, as World changed a few things to accomodate their product line, and there are a few minor errors.

I had planned to post a how-I-did-it thread on my top install, but the project died when the weather turned nice and I went driving instead. I did take lots of pictures though, so just ask if you attempt the job and run into any problems.