VMC Speedster on BaT With Hard top

Nice looking car… definitely interested to see where this auction will go,

This is finished in that Mercedes #744 silver that was mentioned @Stan Galat's thread looking for the perfect silver. The excellent photography really captures it, at least on my monitor.

Really lovely car.

So does Vintage Motorcars of Hawaiian Gardens offer that hardtop as an option on new builds?

Yes but still no roll up or power windows.
Just an aside. Carey from SE contacted Intermeccanica in regards to purchasing now unused IM parts/technology and was told that anything regarding prior IM parts/technology such as the Conv D top is not for sale. I figure that all of this was part of Henry’s buyout and is now the property of Electramechanica or whatever they are calling it. That’s a real shame.

@550 Phil posted:

I figure that all of this was part of Henry’s buyout and is now the property of Electramechanica or whatever they are calling it. That’s a real shame.

Sad. If my experience finding a replacement pickup for my 60’s Mosrite Dobro is any indication, all that stuff will get piled into a warehouse and forgotten for 50 years.

(Thank goodness in my case that someone cared enough to find one of Moseley’s grand kids  and dig 150 NOS pickups out of a storage unit in Bakersfield, CA)

@550 Phil posted:

Carey from SE contacted Intermeccanica in regards to purchasing now unused IM parts/technology and was told that anything regarding prior IM parts/technology such as the Conv D top is not for sale. I figure that all of this was part of Henry’s buyout and is now the property of Electramechanica or whatever they are calling it. That’s a real shame.

OK, that is a real shame, but not unexpected.

But...

I keep hearing how nobody can figure out the Convertible D top, and it confuses me.

Used IM roadsters come up for sale from time to time for less than $50K. If a car could be located and purchased, the top and door cards can be removed easily enough to be shamelessly copied. If it really is as magical as everybody acts like it is, then there would be some money to be made in backward engineering (in the east Asian tradition).

Once everything is loaded into a CNC program, it's just a matter of laser-cutting, deburring, and assembly. You could put the car back together and sell it (probably at a profit).

It'd be a nice retirement gig for somebody with some machines or contacts in industrial fabrication, along with copying the overriders Gray Eagle used to make, which seem to be unobtanium now.

Just wish someone could figure it out before my builds starts.  

If anyone wants to copy an IM top convert D frame we have one in SoCal without the canvas on it……it’s still mounted to the car…..

And I guess that’s another question , where do you get the canvas .

PS , also have an original Porsche roadster folding top…….

@imperial posted:

If anyone wants to copy an IM top convert D frame we have one in SoCal without the canvas on it……it’s still mounted to the car…..

And I guess that’s another question , where do you get the canvas .

PS , also have an original Porsche roadster folding top…….

Autos International.

Make sure they use the latest design if you have roll up windows.

There seems to be at least 2 designs of Speedster replicas with roll up side windows,

Early IM Roadsters used a Porsche 356a Convertible D windshield with the taller glass and matching roll up side windows ,

I have seen others that used the stock Speedster windshield and some  shorter roll up side windows that do not seem to fit as well.

are there more designs ?

I was simply speaking of the canvas top from Autos international that gets glued to the frame .

@imperial,  I think Specialty Auto had a design for roll-up windows in a Speedster.  I saw a video of him describing it.  You may be able to find it with a search.

I'm waiting for the day when someone makes a Superwide with a hard top and roll up windows

@WNGD not quite what you’re after but I have a super wide body on order with VMC with a removable hardtop. No traditional roll up windows unfortunately, but it does have hard top windows that are removable.

@Chappy posted:

@WNGD not quite what you’re after but I have a super wide body on order with VMC with a removable hardtop. No traditional roll up windows unfortunately, but it does have hard top windows that are removable.

I see that on their website as a $4500 option, thx.

I think fitted roll-up or power windows might come along eventually. Super Wide Body, power windows, Suby and AC/Heat. I'm a princess what can I say?

I have only seen 3 Super Wide bodies with a hard top. One was a bit of a mechanical nightmare unrelated to the hard top and 1 Troy had (maybe twice iirc)

In Canada, we also have the issue of importing newer replicas and just lost Intermeccanica as an option. If I can't eventually find the unicorn, I may go Coupe.

@Michael McKelvey posted:

@imperial,  I think Specialty Auto had a design for roll-up windows in a Speedster.  I saw a video of him describing it.  You may be able to find it with a search.

On my one and only visit to SAS many years ago, I seem to remember Steve Lawing telling me that he used the power window regulators from the donor Subaru Impreza.  He had made some custom mounts inside the doors and also used the window channels from the Impreza.   It also appears that he had a more substantial windshield frame with tall, straight corner posts more like those on a “Convertible D” to allow the door glass to seal better.

Google “specialty auto sports” and then click on images to see a bunch of his cars for comparison.

He also assembled an articulated top mechanism similar to an original 356 Cabriolet and even powered one of them.

BTW. Carey believes he can construct a convertible top for my Conv D (356 Roadster). I guess I’m the Guinea pig again. And I think I’ll go without the hard top. More headroom and roll up windows. What’s not to like. So with those who want a SE Roadster get in line. It’s now a 4 year wait for any car. 15 months and counting for me.

If you could have a canvas top that like a speedster goes away hidden and under the hard top it would be the best of both worlds.  I passed on the hard top here as my season for it would be snow bound and you cannot drive the car year round but in Virginia you do have a chance to ride it all year.  I wonder if Carey would do that ?

I'm going to go out on a limb here and help y'all out.

Make your car do ONE thing well. One car cannot be ALL of the things you want in one package.

Some of the things you will want the car to do will suffer. I tried, and failed.

I decided I'm happy to let the Spyder be a fair-weather fun toy. The Cayman is for weather good enough to drive in a sporting fashion, but not perfect weather.

That's why Phil has a Spyder and a 356 on order. It's also why I have a Spyder and a Cayman.

And it’s why I have a Spyder, a 968, and a Smart car. All converts.

And lest you scoff, in some ways my Smart is the funnest car I own. And you can raise the top at 60mph on the freeway if you mess up.

@DannyP posted:

I'm going to go out on a limb here and help y'all out.

Make your car do ONE thing well. One car cannot be ALL of the things you want in one package.

Excellent advice, Danny.

Every one of our toys has limitations, but also has one thing it does well.  Once you learn that, and accept that, you'll enjoy it that much more.

Yes it would be great if the soft top of the Conv D would tuck under the soft top.  But the soft top is very bulky and sits high on the rear deck.  I has a cosmetic cover you can place over the folded top but its still pretty unattractive.  Don't know how many of you remember my IM Conv D.  Had a soft top and a hard top.  I'd have to complete remove the soft top and mechanism before placing the hard top.  It was a 2 person operation.  Henry supplied a custom bag for storing the soft top.  It was extremely well done.  Storing the hard top took up even more room in the garage.  When the car had its soft top off is when it looked the best.  I even got my hand on an old CMC hard rear tonneau with a matching leather headrest.  Why the hell did I sell that car?  Guess I missed my Spyder.  Should have just kept the Spyder.  But I was in the process of putting 2 of my kids at the same time through med school and I didn't have a spare nickel.  Still should have kept the IM.  I guess I'm drifting. 

Back to the top.  So 15 months ago I ordered a Conv D from Carey.  He told me that IM would not sell him the soft top mechanism so I'd have to spend $15k+ on a real one.  But he said he could get a Conv D hard top so I said ok, the car looks better without the soft top on the rear deck so when the hard top off it will look killer, kind of like a speedster.  I don't know if it has to do with IM going under but now Carey says he thinks he can do a soft top.  So now the plan is soft top only.  Aesthetically the car will be less appealing but it will be so muich more practical.  Plan de jour.

My conv D top is pretty nice I am sure Carey can copy the mechanism but if he thinks it’s rocket science ElFrazoo can help just kidding.  

You guys will sort it out as you get closer to the build I am sure.

Wow, 72.5k+ auction fee is where this speedster closed.  CRAZY. imHO.   Congrats to the seller…. And the new buyer.  I can imagine they are both doing a happy dance!!!!

The last time this seller listed a speedster replica it sold for $75k.  Both cars arguably fetched a higher selling price compared to other comparable 356 replicas.  Me thinks the gorgeous photography is a big factor in getting top dollar, at least on BAT.  That should be a lesson to all sellers.