I'm currently trying to figure out the extent of rust damage on my tops. Right now, the metal piece that holds in the weather stripping along the T bar has almost rusted away.. can these be replace or repaired without serious surgery on the entire roof?

 

I went through this on an '81 Z28 I had. You have two options....#1 find another roof, or #2 A replacement panel must be fabricated. Either way it's serious surgery. Anyone else got a better idea?

 

Man, I feel your pain.
I had those T tops on my 82 Cutlass Supreme. I don't think it was a really popular option. You might want to check and see if you can find donors from Pontiac and Buick. I think the body style for 83/84 t tops is compatible, but I'm not 100% on that. Also, don't limit your search to just 83/84. Like I said, they were avail in 82, but could also be as high as 1988 model year. Did a little on line research for ya. There are lots of donor applications for your G Body. Have a look:

1983 Pontiac GP T Top


1987 Olds T top


1987 Buick Regal T top

As far as will it be major surgery? Every rust repair I've had to do was. That means you want your headliner and interior out of the way, or really well protected from cutting and welding. Can you post a pic of the damage? It might be something a good fabricator can duplicate, but I'd bet the $$$ would be unbelievable.

 

Thanks for the info and doing a little research. Here are the pics of the worst spots.. It's all under the seal, I can't tell if its any worse under the plate or not.

 

I think i've talked to you before, i live in Charlotte, mi. Anyways i JUST went through this as i just had my car completly repainted, mine looked worse than yours, GOOD news is you can buy that whole black center support, BAD news is you better have $400 laying around. gbodyparts.com is the only place selling them new, there aftermarket but VERY nice quality and stainless steel!!!! better than oem which you cant find anyways. They have every t-top part you could want, for those two front "wings" they want $125 a piece but i found a mint set at a junk yard. Here the link to exactly what your looking for: http://www.gbodyparts.com/index.php?...cfb256c34f649f

 

Thats amazing!! I'm so glad that someone makes these parts! Thank you very much. I really appreciate it. I'm glad at least it sounds like that I won't have to cut the roof off and solder a new one on. How bad was yours? did it eat away at the front as well by the windshield? Mine is just starting to there, so I think I should be able to save it when she goes in for cosmetic surgery.

 

Yeah the worst part was across the windshield but the body guy did a sweet job putting it all back together!! when you order you just need the center rail lower section, you can take the center ridge cap off your old center rail and rivet it back on to your new one. it will save you $125. most likely you'll need the front weatherstrip retainer strips as well. those were the worst part of my ttop setup. But rest asure anything you get from those guys is stainless steel, like i said very nice stuff!

 

Did you take it to someone around here for the body work? I'm not sure if I trust just anyone with messing with the construction of my T-Tops, lol. But glad to know they won't rust again! mine just began to rust like 5 years ago, but for some reason this winter when she sat the rust got out of control. Thanx again!

 

yeah no problem, anytime, I took mine to a good friend of my cousins who has his own shop in Imlay City, bout 100 miles from here but it was worth every mile, good price and even better work!!! got a lot of compliments at the olds homecoming a few weeks back!