swothe

Today I noticed a couple drips of ATF on the floor right in front of the rear tire on my inherited '70 Cutlass Supreme convertible. I remembered when I put the top down that the switch stuck for a couple seconds when the cylinder was at the end of its stroke. I'm wondering if this just forced a little fluid out because it had nowhere to go (and it's not a problem) or if I blew a seal. I didn't have a chance to poke around the pump yet, and I'm hoping that I won't be replacing it... Any thoughts? I don't want to put the top up if I'm likely to be spraying fluid all over, and would appreciate any ideas on how to check. This car is pretty new to me and I've never had a power top before. I haven't really dug into the top operation yet, and I'm hoping to work on some other things before that!

Thanks in advance.

tkcutlass

Sounds like you may have ruptured a seal on one of the cylinders.
Remove the back seat and access panel to see what you're in for.

BangScreech4-4-2

Generally, it doesn't pay to crowdsource an answer to an automotive problem. It is what it is and peoples' opinions won't really matter. Best to just get in there and have a look, at which point somebody may be able to offer some useful advice.

acavagnaro

To access the lift cylinders requires removing most of the interior and trim behind the front seats. A bit of a pain to diagnose a leaking cylinder. The pump is accessed from the trunk. It's behind the rear bulkhead and you'll have to move the well liner out of the way. Start there. You'll be able to see the flexible lines going left and right to the cylinders.
There's a thin sheetmetal piece that gets screwed to the top of the vinyl covered piston covers on the inside. If you have access to a borescope, you should be able to get a look at the condition of the cylinders without having to remove all of the interior and trim. If not, get a phillips head screwdriver and dive in.
Good luck.