alternative carbon fiber hardtops

[doug]

It came up that a hardtop designed for the Elise should work on the Roadster as well.

The soft tops are already identical, and a "short" Elise hardtop would sit the same way... extending only to the front of the roll bar. The Roadster hardtops extend over the carbon fiber (CF) roll bar so that so that the body color doesn't get broken up with a dark band in the middle. But that wouldn't be an issue with a CF top that should blend in with the Roadster roll bar.

I suppose there could be an issue with the pitch of the CF weave not quite matching. Also the Elise hardtops have this styling/aero notch that Roadster owners might not like. Still, it would be interesting to see someone try it.

Here are a few aftermarket Elise CF hardtops I found with a quick web search:

Elise Parts - *>**>*S2 Elise "Short" Hardtop (http://www.eliseparts.com/products.php?product=81)
http://www.eliseparts.com/Images/Products/800x500/sytviueabbof.jpg



Elise CF Hard Top - Sector111 aftermarket parts for Lotus (http://www.sector111.com/products/exterior/body_panels/carbon_fiber_hardtop.cfm)
http://www.sector111.com/images/products/carbon_fiber/exterior/downforce/hardtop_medium.jpg



RevoZport Racing Technology Ltd. (http://www.revozport.com/revozportRT.htm) Near the bottom of this page (http://www.revozport.com/Lotus.html).
http://www.revozport.com/webpics/LOTUS/S2%20Elise/Carbon%20Hardtop/Elise%20S2%20Carbon%20Hardtop%20Late%2004%20%282%29.JPG

[ChadS]

I had the same thought, and contacted Sector111. But they said that their Elise hardtops definitely do not fit the Tesla. (They do have wheels that fit, and a replacement rear view mirror).

The soft top does fit, as James noted in another thread.

[Vger]

I like the idea of a "low" CF hardtop a lot! With all due respect to those that have them, I think that current Tesla hardtop does NOT flatter the lines of the car. I wonder it enough of us got together and committed to a purchase, if a custom outfit would be willing to engineer and build a run of (say) a dozen or so of these, fully designed to fit the Tesla, in the soft top position.

[doug]

I had the same thought, and contacted Sector111. But they said that their Elise hardtops definitely do not fit the Tesla.
Did they say what about the hardtops doesn't fit? You'd think size wise they would. Maybe it's the latching hardware.

[James]

I wonder it enough of us got together and committed to a purchase, if a custom outfit would be willing to engineer and build a run of (say) a dozen or so of these, fully designed to fit the Tesla, in the soft top position.

I would be happy to run it through my company and list it under the Tesla Roadster aftermarket accessories.

Post a response here if you are interested in an aftermarket carbon firber hardtop that fits in the softtop position, without covering the rollbar. If we get 10+ responses, I will look into it and try to get prices. I would likely order an extra 10+ to keep in stock for other Roadster owners that find this later.

[vfx]

I was wonderig what would be faster in the 1/4 mile. A heavier smoother hardtop of a lighter rougher softtop.


...and a replacement rear view mirror).


I want a smaller rear view mirror. In right hand uphill turns the stock mirror blocks far too much vista. Very disconcerting.

[Tdave]

I'm interested, but probably only if I'm able to cancel my CF hardtop I have on order.

[ChadS]

Post a response here if you are interested in an aftermarket carbon firber hardtop that fits in the softtop position, without covering the rollbar.


I am interested. Actually less in a top that doesn't cover the rollbar, and more in a top (hard or soft!) that can be removed really easily--although it seems that one fitting in the soft top position may be more likely to fill the bill. It doesn't have to be carbon fiber, either.

[ChadS]

I want a smaller rear view mirror. In right hand uphill turns the stock mirror blocks far too much vista. Very disconcerting.

Here's a link to the smaller mirror:
microMIRRORâ„¢ Rear View Mirror for the Lotus Elise and Exige - Sector111 (http://www.sector111.com/products/interior/accessories/micromirror.cfm)

[ra-san]

I'm interested in the CF hardtop that is the size of the soft top rather than covering the CF rollbar, so long as it matches the existing CF (as in goes with, not necessarily is exactly the same)

[mpt]

I am interested. Actually less in a top that doesn't cover the rollbar, and more in a top (hard or soft!) that can be removed really easily--although it seems that one fitting in the soft top position may be more likely to fill the bill. It doesn't have to be carbon fiber, either.

I echo that; I'd prefer the visual style of a 'same as softtop' profile and removable.

I'd also like to add; it sould be as quite as practical too. The extra height in the TM version; is that sound proofing?

Has anyone asked TM if they have anything in the works?

[Vger]

Thanks for offering, James. Count me in, but with a proviso. I note that the Sector111 product is marked "Off Road Use Only". Presumably this is a safety homologation issue. I would not want that restriction. My desire would be to have it to use all winter long, not just on track. Perhaps this is another reason the stock hardtop is bulkier and sits in the higher position. Perhaps that design was required for safety (like the CF shattering in a roll-over, I watch Formula 1!). We would need this issue clarified.

[vfx]

Here's a link to the smaller mirror:
microMIRRORâ„¢ Rear View Mirror for the Lotus Elise and Exige - Sector111 (http://www.sector111.com/products/interior/accessories/micromirror.cfm)

Thanks Chad, I was looking at a small racing rectangle mirror but I notice this one has a nice testimonial from Martin Eberhard.

Testimonial:

The short answer is that the Sector 111 MicroMirror is a total success - greatly improved forward visibility, no significant degradation of rear visibility. I thought I would miss the day/night feature, but I don't at all. I recommend this as an upgrade to every single Tesla (and every single Elise for that matter).
-Martin Eberhard, Founder and former CEO of Tesla Motors

[samcarney]

I'm interested in the CF hardtop that is the size of the soft top rather than covering the CF rollbar, so long as it matches the existing CF (as in goes with, not necessarily is exactly the same)

James I would also be interested in an aftermarket CF hardtop.

[Tdave]

One problem I see with not covering the current CF rollbar is trying to match the look, color, and texture of the two CF pieces, especially with them being right next to each other.

[doug]

Sector111 has found their top fits, but as I suspected, the weave doesn't match:

http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=412&stc=1&d=1253480019

Sector111's Tasty Innovations Blog: Tesla Evaluation @ Sector111 (http://sector111.blogspot.com/2009/09/tesla-evaluation-sector111.html)

Our Carbon Fiber Hardtop actually fits. The weave on the top is quite different from the roll bar cover that is on the car. This is an aesthetic consideration that can be addressed with new CF fabric. We built our top to be a lighter version of the stock Elise top with a focus on use with track oriented cars.

[mpt]

I'd be happy to take a CF or fibreglass version if I can paint it to match the car; it's silver and I think would look better painted plus, better at reflecting heat.

I'd be happy with un-finished interior; I'll line it myself.

I've reached out to them to see what they can do; perhaps they can retail through James?

[James]

I've reached out to them to see what they can do; perhaps they can retail through James?

That is exactly what we are doing. I am building a complete Tesla Roadster aftermarket section. We have the Roadster Foundry MC, Steve Casner's front license plate kit, the Sector 111 Lotus upgrades that fit the Tesla and a few other items.

[vfx]

I really liked the way the CF top fits in place of the soft top. It's too bad it the car was not designed to fit this hardtop behind the seats or under the hood or boot. It's manage-ably small, super lightweight and I like it better than the stock hardtop look. The style indentation done down the middle is a bit unmotivated but still works for me. You just cant thinlk about it too much.

Mounting requires tools and some time but that's not too uncommon either. We did not check for water tightness but the windows seemed to work normally.

Sector 111 plans to have their supplier use the bigger weave to match the Tesla look but the angles may never line up.
Are the rollbars the same from one car to the next?
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/qq324/vfxshots/CIMG7091.jpg


There is also a join point at the rear where the window/top/rollabar meet that lines up just perfect but it's angle does not match since the Elise bodywork is different. It's such an small anomaly that it was hard to photograph.

Hopefully I will have the CF top on my car for the upcoming SoCal Greenspeed Drag races coming up so LA locals can see it.

I wish we had taken the car outside for some beauty pics!

[kgb]

bummer

[mpt]

Back in November, December it was becoming clear that Tesla Motors weren’t going to be bringing a CF hardtop out in time for Santa’s annual delivery run so I thought I’d have a go.

Disclaimer: Once again; this is all on you; as you’re fiddling with the roof bits, make sure it’s all compliant with your local authorities, what you read here are simply my experiences.

Difficulty: Medium

Tools:
5mm Allen key
Rivet tool + 12x 3mm x 3mm rivets
A little rubber lubricant or Vaseline
Electric drill + 3mm (1/8”) + 5mm bit

Time:
Basic install – all afternoon really.
Plus Lining – another afternoon.

Parts
RevoZport.com
FRP Carbon Elise Hardtop RevoZport Racing Technology Ltd. (http://revozport.com/Lotus.html)

LotusGarage.com
1 x 02 Seal, hard top to side glass, LH SKU:A116V0249F
1 x 02a Seal, hard top to side glass, RH SKU:A116V0248F
1 x 04 Seal Carrier, LH SKU:A116V0241F1
1 x 04a Seal Carrier, RH SKU:A116V0240F
2 x 05 Double Sided Tape, 12mm, carrier to hard top SKU:C075U6071V
1 x 09 Trim/Clamp Panel, front, hard top to screen header SKU:A116B1078J

Local fabric shop
Off-cut of faux suede in gray to fit – get plenty
Two pieces of half inch foam to fill the left and right blisters
Tin of aerosol fabric glue

The parts list starts with the staple; the hardtop is from Ken Cheung of RevoZport.com. He’s based in Hong Kong and makes the CF hard tops to order, it takes about a month to create them and ship them over, plus, as he’s in HK time email is the best way to communicate. Ken studied some of our pictures in the threads on the site and chose the carbon weave to match the car. The roof arrived packed in not one, two or three but four layers of differing packaging to ensure a safe arrival. I have to say that he’s been very helpful through the process; he was kind enough to warrant the fit with a return it if it didn’t fit perfectly; thanks Ken, it did!

To complete the build, additional parts are required and LotusGarage.com in the US stepped in. The roof comes with some of the basic fittings but omits the rubber seals on the side and the interior trim piece that finishes the job off nicely.

Lastly, I decided to line the inside of the roof with suede to create a more ‘plush’ result. The CF roof is bare on the inside but for a little extra can be lacquered to match the outside. I chose my own solution to create a warmer, slightly more soundproofed option.

Getting to work
Step one: fit
After unpacking the roof I tried it on the car first to make sure the fit looked good; it did. Use this time to understand how the supplied brackets work, the pins at the front, the hooks on the rear and the center clamp. Also note the extra three bolts along the front edge; they’re there to hold the trim piece.

Step two: Fitting the rubber seals
Refer to the exploded diagram attached; the rubber seals clip into the rails that then affix to the hardtop.

If you lay the roof on its top on a soft surface (I used a beanbag) you can study the edges where the rails fit the roof. Look at each rail and study the shape; you’ll see how they’re left & right handed and which side fits which.

Using a gentle pressure bend the rails to match the profile of the roof so that they fit reasonably well. It should only call for a few gentle flexes of the rails to get them to almost fit the curve. Don’t worry if they’re not perfect they’ll be pinned in place with the rivets later.

Take a look at the roof, you’ll find marks on the roof that match the holes on the rails; holding the rails against the roof, drill 3mm holes into the surface for each of the rivets.

To ensure a watertight seal, use the thin double-sided tape to hold the rail on initially. I recommend applying the tape to the rail and using a screw/nail, etc. in the first rivet hole to locate the rail in its final place before pressing it home.

Apply the rivets to each hole working from the inside, center out to the edges.

Now we need to add the rubber seals. Study both seals to see which side fits which. Also note that the seals have a built in adhesive strip along the top; don’t pull that off yet!

Carefully feed the rubber strip into the rail, you should be able to complete this by hand, sharp tools may damage the rubber. When you have the rubber strip in, check from both top and bottom that the seal is in place. Don’t pull the adhesive strip off yet.

Looking at the ends of the rubber strip, you’ll see clips to fit into the hardtop. Again, carefully drill the holes (5mm) into the roof to match the location of the holes in the rubber.

It’s now time to release the adhesive strip on the rubber seal. Check the fit of the seal and peel away the strip. Seat the rubber to the top of the roof and press down to seal.

At this point you’re pretty much done and are ready for fitting.

Lining
To add a little extra to the result I wanted to line the inside. I found an offcut of faux suede in light grey at a local fabric shop. I folded the ends that reached to the left and right to ensure it didn’t fray and added foam inserts into the raised area above the drivers and passengers heads. This lost a little headroom but added warmth and a little extra sound insulation. All of the material was held in place with aerosol adhesive. You can see in the finished result how far I took the material. Any further would interfere with the mounts.

Final step: Installation
Installing the finished roof is simple work if fiddly. I have a couple of recommendations: Take a moment to insert the bolts into the roof to get a feel for the effort and the angle that they go in; DO NOT USE power tools at this stage; whilst the retaining bolts are good, a cross-threaded bolt would be a disaster. And, do take care not to drop the bolts as you put them in, especially the rear ones as they can (did) fall behind the seat. Lastly, I recommend applying some rubber lubricant or Vaseline to the cars rubber seals; I don’t intend to remove the roof; I’m not a soft top fan and the lubricant will protect the seals.

Open both windows and doors.

For simplicity I sat in the car and mounted the clips loosely at the back first. Then, the front pins and finally the rear center clamp. Tighten the bolts firmly by hand (no power tools), pressing down the seals.

Carefully check that the doors close ok and then re-open the doors, close the windows and check the fitment again. Take care, if something went wrong you’ll pick that up easily and safely.

The front trim piece was a challenge; it’s difficult to explain but, the angle of the thread in the roof called for the bolts to go in at quite a steep angle; basically, I couldn’t get them in without trimming the holes in the trim piece, opening them up a little to allow me to get the bolts in straight and not crossed. This is good reason why you don’t use power tools; you can’t feel the bolt being cross-threaded. I chose to replace the bolts with black ones to keep things a little neater; they’re M8 sized.

The finished result is I think, fantastic. It looks good inside and out and an extra bonus, the car is quieter, especially at speed. I’d prefer to get some pictures of the result in the sunshine but it keeps disappearing every time the car comes out.

The total project took about 5 hours. Best project to date.

Update: Liner Fail: Come the summer time the liner started to sag; the glue stopped being glue. In the end I took the liner off and went down to my local paint shop. For $300 they pained in inner surface silver, same colour as the car. I then injected expanding foam into the void between the panels through the bolt holes; result; it's sonically inert and has better insulation properties... and, matches the car.

Update 2: I found that the front edge mounting brackets began to squeak; the pin that goes into the a-piller had rubbed a little paint off and was squeaking. Grease didn't help for long so I tried a 1cm length on polythene water pipe to create a tight fitting bush. This has been squeak free for months.

[doug]

Looks like the Sector111 top might fit better than RevoZport one.

[mpt]

That's a Tesla thing I think; the Roadster roll bar is curved more than the Lotus bar/top. I don't know if it's because the Roadsters CF whilst the Lotus is fiberglass but interestingly, check the top of the door in http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/attachments/tesla-roadster/522d1262014948-alternative-carbon-fiber-hardtops-exterior-closeup.jpg it's actually cut out to take the hardtop lip that sticks out a bit.

It's interesting that TM cut the door to fit the Lotus hardtop yet didn't use that in their own design seen in this vid; http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/tesla-roadster/3553-exposed-carbon-fiber-hardtop.html#post39939

[vfx]

The Sector 111 top went on very easy. It has hardware that you need tools for (I believe it was 8 hex head bolts. I think it should be a no tool job but I've seen similar on other cars like older Mercedes.

I was told Will-I-Am's Roadster has a CF top. That was months ago so it's not likely a Tesla top.

[William3]

Any updates on this? James?

[mpt]

Any updates on this? James?

You might want to reach out the James directly at evcomponents.com

[DZCPA]

How much do the CF hardtops cost?

[Jaff]

I think that the CF hard tops are about $5,000 CDN.

[cinergi]

$3500 US for painted and $5000 for unpainted exposed CF (yes, more $$ for exposed CF)

[TEG]

$3500 US for painted and $5000 for unpainted exposed CF (yes, more $$ for exposed CF)

With the painted, the "weave" underneath can be imperfect, but must be much better aligned if it has a see through coating which may explain the added expense.

[cinergi]

With the painted, the "weave" underneath can be imperfect, but must be much better aligned if it has a see through coating which may explain the added expense.

Yup, that's exactly what my sales rep told me.

[Andy Spaziani]

Michael,
Do you have a picture or the inside with silver paint?
Thanks,
Andy Spaziani