Hardtop wanted for JPS

If you don't have a used one for sale... please suggest other builders, cost vs quality.

Thanks,
David

have u talked to john at jps
he has one sitting there

David,
Been a long time.
Where have you been?

There is a hardtop for a steel Speedster on eBay now.

I don't know if it would be made to fit a fiberglass Speedster.

check with automotive legends in malibu... I've heard they are great & have reasonable prices.

..... waiting,
..... waiting,
..... waiting,
..... cummon'! Somebody has to say it!

Somebody ALWAYS says it!

Cracking me up, Stan. You don't mean the inevitable FiberSteel reference, do you? Or PlastiCon?

I got your hard top right HERE!

Give the fireman from out east the prize!












...... hey! I was just on the website of some place called "Fibersteel"-- they've got two types of hardtops for replicas "coming soon". Sliding windows, too!

Stan, I see you caught this from David Charvet. Now YOU step awaaaay from the keyboard.

The last JPS hard top I saw was so far off on the passenger side it had to be trimmed 1.5" and then reglassed.
I sold mine hard top shell to Jim Andersen, any update to the hardtop design? ~ Alan

Hi,
I have a mold to build a stylish hardtop if you are still interested by an hardtop.
This hardtop have been designed for an Intermeccanica Speedster, but other Speedster owners (VS, PGO, Chesil) have successfully fit this hardtop with minor modifications.

Some pix:

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/2831/85204439ep8.jpg
http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/7199/35836145dm0.jpg
http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/2676/18475705pg1.jpg
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/2557/48755987pf8.jpg

Ok this is what I don't understand. Why doesn't Beck or Vintage offer a hardtop as an option? For that matter one with sliding windows. The way it is now a speedster is essentially a vehicle that you primarily want to use only during clear blue sky's. The standard cloth or vinal tops offered I doubt have very good weather protecting capability.I know that people drive speedster's in the rain etc.However wouldn't a decent quality hardtop give someone the ability to enjoy your speedster all yr round? Or is the issue "decent quality" the catch word here.It sounds from what I read here that this does not seem to be the case with the companies that offer them. It would seem that if Vintage and Beck would take the plunge they could offer a quality product for a pretty penny and customers would still splurge to by it.I'm sure somewhere on this forum this has already been brought up. I should have searched for it.My apologies

You might want to do a search on this.

The answer to the "why" question is "because it would be pretty darned difficult and expensive". Not as difficult and expensive as trying to come up with it on your own, but still pretty hard. Think THOUSANDS of dollars.

... Coupled that with the fact that a lot of leaks don't come from the top, as everybody supposes- they come from many other places that various builders may or may not care enough to seal up during the build.

A hard-top does no good if there is air and/or water pouring in from around the doors, or where the pan joins to the body behind the seats, or from the hood hinges, or even up the tunnel. Some builders care about sealing these places up, others..... not so much.

All this has been covered MANY times.

Stan-I know it's been covered. I read about the "Green JPS Coupe" saga. But I also read that not all buiders build alike. I keep hearing very positive things about Vintage and Beck. IM would not be in my price range unless the Canadian dollar loses it's value by about 50% against the US dollar.

Paul, it's probably related to return on investment. The time and money necessary to develop a really well done top could be used elsewhere, like Beck's C Cabrio and Convertible D projects. Most folks who want these cars think about top-down driving, with the top up for shade on occasion, making it likely to take a while to amortize the cost of developing a good hardtop. That's just my theory, though. Personally I'd like to have it as an option.

Did someone mention sliding windows? Hey, you better get in line. My set is the next to be produced, and they've been or order since mid '03. :)

Seriously though, regarding the hardtop. I have one here, it's been modified to my specs, modified again, changed around, and then modified again. The fact of the matter is that I may get 1 or 2 people a year that ask for a hardtop. Not quite the demand to warrant making molds and such. On top of that, there are such variances between cars it's not like I could make a hardtop that will work for everyone.

You may not have considered it, but little things like windshield placement varies from car to car, even within the same manufacturer, let alone across the board. Other things like the manor in which the soft top is affixed to the car is different. The majority of the aftermarket tops that have been produced to date (at least the ones I've seen) require that the trailing edge of the soft top be removable, and in the case of my cars, the rear bar that actually anchors the top would have to be removable too. Possible, but not practical.

If one of my customers wants it bad enough, I'll do it, but it has to be done on the car... and bring your checkbook.

I have a hard top, and I know a guy here in Honolulu who does fiberglass who has offered to make a mold of it and produce copies. They would have to ship from Honolulu, and fitment can be an issue. However, I installed my windshield according to a template I found here and the top seems to fit fine.
John at JPS does have one sitting in the shop, but it is a comeback due to fittment issues, and I think you would have to catch him in a really great mood and promise not to complain about fittment to get him to sell it to you.

"but little things like windshield placement varies from car to car"

Ain't that the truth!

~WB

Bill - HA!, That must be THE universal Speedster hartop - here it is sitting on my Speedie! Wonder how Jimbo is doing on it? He had side window opening fiberglassed last I talked to him. Top has more miles on it than my car!