Motors, hydraulics, cables
Convertible Top Repair
Motors, hydraulic cylinders, hoses and pumps, cables, relays, switches and broken frame parts. We find the fault before anyone talks about a new roof.
Chapter 01
What actually breaks inside the mechanism
A convertible top that won't move is rarely the fabric's fault. The failure is almost always in the mechanism underneath it: a worn motor, a hydraulic cylinder or hose that's lost pressure, a pump on its way out, a cable or set of gears, a relay or switch that's stopped passing current, or a frame part that's simply cracked or bent. We work through all of it in the same shop in Scottsdale.
Sunroofs run into the same kind of trouble, with the same short list of usual suspects: motors, switches, and drainage that's clogged rather than broken. If yours is stuck, grinding or leaking, it's worth a look before you assume the whole unit needs replacing outright.
Silver convertible mid-repair with the top frame and bows exposed
Diagnose first, always
One customer found out what skipping this step costs. Kris brought in a 2014 Nissan 370Z roadster after the dealership said the entire roof and its components needed replacing, a $12,000 job. Todd's team looked first and found the real problem: a bungee kit out of alignment and a length of wiring that had broken. A few hours of work and $750 later, the top worked perfectly.
That's not a lucky outcome, it's the standard approach here on every job that comes through the door. Every top that stops moving gets diagnosed piece by piece before anyone reaches for a parts catalog, because most of what looks like a dead roof is really just one part away from working again.
Chapter 03
If your top sticks halfway
Don't force it. Pushing a stuck top past a jammed motor or a bent frame part turns a small repair into a bigger one. Keep the car covered if you can and give the shop a call at (480) 946-0817 rather than working the switch over and over hoping it frees up.
Most of the time repair is the honest answer and the cheaper one. Replacement only makes sense when the fabric itself is shot, the frame is damaged beyond straightening, or the mechanism has failed in more places than it's worth chasing one at a time.
Upholstery Shop & Tops. Written warranty on every convertible top installation. Call (480) 946-0817.
Roofs we've put right
Top stuck or acting up?
Call the shop in Scottsdale and tell us what it's doing. We'll diagnose it before we quote anything.