[jadesded]

So I love the panoramic roof (that is definitely crazed lol) on my '09 passion I bought a yr ago, but I was curious if anyone has ever removed the roof from it's adhesive & then found a way to mount it to a locking system that would allow for an easy removable roof (Kind of like Jeeps removable hardtops). It's been a thought of mine for awhile & I think I still need to do some research on the build of the car, but thought I'd test the waters in the forums on what everyone else thought.

Tl;dr: Just for clarity I'm not talking about getting fancy with the trunk or anything, but just making a system so I can take the top roof panel on & off whenever I want.

Source for Jeeps L-shape locking system:

Source for removing the roof (I'm sure y'all have seen this already):

Source for a couple of kids just "shitty-car-modding" ™️ their car & just straight up bolting their roof in: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q26RmXlFiuY&feature=emb_title
(although the bolting method might not work considering the material of the 4two's sunroof & it would be shitty)

 

[smark]

I doubt anyone done what you want. Those removable panels, were design, and engineered into the jeep. You would have to add rain Gutters to shed the water. I personally wish smart offered, a power glass sunroof, similar that on my Fiat 500. The glass roof lift up, and moves backwards towards the rear of the car. The smart car would retain its roof pillars strength. Which is lost on the cabriolet ones.

Now what you could Do. Is sand to scuff up the plastic roof on the smart car. Paint it the color of your choice. Buy a pop up sun roof, they still sell. Cut a hole, out of you plastic
painted roof. Install a pop up sunroof, on your smart car.

 

[Shalmaneser64]

Velcro strips. LOL Or go retro/vintage and do a vinyl top and rear wings. There are some pretty interesting vinyl choices out there these days. The top on the pure actually has some sort of wrap on it. Mine is starting to lift at the corners.

 

[jadesded]

I doubt anyone done what you want. Those removable panels, were design, and engineered into the jeep. You would have to add rain Gutters to shed the water. I personally wish smart offered, a power glass sunroof, similar that on my Fiat 500. The glass roof lift up, and moves backwards towards the rear of the car. The smart car would retain its roof pillars strength. Which is lost on the cabriolet ones.

View attachment 63860

Now what you could Do. Is sand to scuff up the plastic roof on the smart car. Paint it the color of your choice. Buy a pop up sun roof, they still sell. Cut a hole, out of you plastic
painted roof. Install a pop up sunroof, on your smart car.

View attachment 63861

Definitely considered a more traditional sunroof route @ one point. I remember seeing somewhere there was a garage that specialized in replacing the 451 roof with a 450 sunroof which had a sliding one, which means it definitely can be done with roof swapping/what you suggested. It's not necessarily the vibe I'm going for here, but it may be one of the less headache inducing methods. Regarding raingutters I could always go G-Wagon style & install literal-not-so-subtle gutters 😂😂, but yes sealing the roof would be something to put into consideration.

 

[jadesded]

Velcro strips. LOL Or go retro/vintage and do a vinyl top and rear wings. There are some pretty interesting vinyl choices out there these days. The top on the pure actually has some sort of wrap on it. Mine is starting to lift at the corners.

I don't think... 😂😂. Ragtop wouldn't be bad it's just be worse cabrio, but I feel like there's a reason nobody uses a clear vinyl for a ragtop & it's probs insulation or melting of the vinyl in sun or something.

 

[jadesded]

Thanks for the replies guys all useful feedback. I'm going to keep looking into this, but honestly I think the conclusion might be that I'm out of my element -- not to say I'm going to give up,buttttttt

 

[wahi]

Godfather was the first documented forummer to have done a sunroof operation. I have actually seen his handiwork firsthand! I am posting the link to that thread. And if you go the the last post (# 44), you will see Zorro doing a different sunroof with some pics. Sunroof

-wahi

 

[Shalmaneser64]

I don't think... 😂😂. Ragtop wouldn't be bad it's just be worse cabrio, but I feel like there's a reason nobody uses a clear vinyl for a ragtop & it's probs insulation or melting of the vinyl in sun or something.

My suggestion was to recover the existing polycarbonate roof panel with vinyl top material. Not do a ragtop. You could still put a sun or moon roof in.

 

[jadesded]

Godfather was the first documented forummer to have done a sunroof operation. I have actually seen his handiwork firsthand! I am posting the link to that thread. And if you go the the last post (# 44), you will see Zorro doing a different sunroof with some pics. Sunroof

-wahi

I'll check out the thread thanks

 

[jadesded]

My suggestion was to recover the existing polycarbonate roof panel with vinyl top material. Not do a ragtop. You could still put a sun or moon roof in.

oh fosho

 

[DreamCarOwner]

I changed the solid roof on my Fortwo to a Panoramic one. You buy a sealant kit from MB called E22 seal kit. I was able to find this kit on Amazon at one time. The roof is hard to remove because it sort of sets down in the rain gutter. I used a very sharp knife made from an old file. But the angle to cut it apart is difficult on the sides. If you cut in from the outside you cut into the plastic trim inside. If you try to cut from the inside you knick the tridion on the outside because of the way the gutters are designed. The front seal bead is back under the roof and it is hard to cut without hitting the end of the windshield. The rear of the roof is deeply under and in a zig zag pattern. I thought it might be nice to hinge the roof somehow at the front and then I could raise it at the rear for airflow, but the problem is without sealing the sides tight the water runs right inside the car.

 

[jadesded]

I changed the solid roof on my Fortwo to a Panoramic one. You buy a sealant kit from MB called E22 seal kit. I was able to find this kit on Amazon at one time. The roof is hard to remove because it sort of sets down in the rain gutter. I used a very sharp knife made from an old file. But the angle to cut it apart is difficult on the sides. If you cut in from the outside you cut into the plastic trim inside. If you try to cut from the inside you knick the tridion on the outside because of the way the gutters are designed. The front seal bead is back under the roof and it is hard to cut without hitting the end of the windshield. The rear of the roof is deeply under and in a zig zag pattern. I thought it might be nice to hinge the roof somehow at the front and then I could raise it at the rear for airflow, but the problem is without sealing the sides tight the water runs right inside the car.

Hmm, yes, I'm seeing a consistent problem here with water/the elements. This is why I'm a sculpture major & not an engineer -- I just come up with the ideas & don't muddle with the logistics 😂😂, but really thank you for the useful information. I just signed up for these forums & everyone's so helpful here. Also love the subtle HotWheels sticker it's fitting.

 

[Shalmaneser64]

I changed the solid roof on my Fortwo to a Panoramic one. You buy a sealant kit from MB called E22 seal kit. I was able to find this kit on Amazon at one time. The roof is hard to remove because it sort of sets down in the rain gutter. I used a very sharp knife made from an old file. But the angle to cut it apart is difficult on the sides. If you cut in from the outside you cut into the plastic trim inside. If you try to cut from the inside you knick the tridion on the outside because of the way the gutters are designed. The front seal bead is back under the roof and it is hard to cut without hitting the end of the windshield. The rear of the roof is deeply under and in a zig zag pattern. I thought it might be nice to hinge the roof somehow at the front and then I could raise it at the rear for airflow, but the problem is without sealing the sides tight the water runs right inside the car.

Are the four white dots in the bumper proximity sensors?

 

[DreamCarOwner]

Are the four white dots in the bumper proximity sensors?

Yes as crazy as it sounds I have front & rear proximity sensors. Even crazier I also am installing a camera system that has blind spot cameras under each side mirror plus front and back cameras. I've had back surgeries and a DRG back stimulator implanted so it makes me so stiff it is hard for me to twist turn around enough to see to backup. DCO

 

[Shalmaneser64]

Not crazy at all. I've considered doing the same. How difficult was the install and how sensitive are the sensors? I've seen the under mirror camera systems, and have been considering front and rear cameras as well. I currently have a Garmin Bluetooth reverse camera with my GPS, and a larger rear view mirror with built in DVR/camera and two video inputs. Haven't wired it up yet. Finding a mirror that would fit the existing mounting bracket proved to be interesting.

 

[DreamCarOwner]

Not crazy at all. I've considered doing the same. How difficult was the install and how sensitive are the sensors? I've seen the under mirror camera systems, and have been considering front and rear cameras as well. I currently have a Garmin Bluetooth reverse camera with my GPS, and a larger rear view mirror with built in DVR/camera and two video inputs. Haven't wired it up yet. Finding a mirror that would fit the existing mounting bracket proved to be interesting.

The proximity sensors are calibrated to read in meters which is just over 39 inches. So I just consider it in yards and it works well for me. The front ones are handy pulling into a parking spot with a light post ahead or sneaking into a tiny place no one else would dare park in, although I try to center myself in a spot so that someone doesn't come speeding around the corner and pull into a spot they thought was empty but my Smart was in the way.
I too have had the rear view mirror with the MP5 player and 2 video inputs (they are getting hard to find). Mine just clamped over the existing mirror. With the sunshade open it isn't bright enough of a display to see very well, but it is handy to close the overhead shade and watch movies while I wait on the wife at the doctors office. The camera DVR splits the display into 4 quarters and that goes to each of the 4 cameras. Since it is illegal for the driver to be watching movies while driving I'm afraid one of the days a cop will pull me over thinking the camera display is a movie. Occasionaly for some reason the mirror glitches and won't turn on or sometimes it freezes during a movie and locks up. I then have to pull the power lead in order to reset it. I hope you have better luck with yours. Lastly I couldn't get a satisfactory angle on the side cameras mounted under the side mirrors. They needed more of an angle to cover the lane beside the car. So I ended up going to Lowes and purchasing a couple rubber door stop wedges. I cut about an inch or so off the wedge and glued it between the camera and the mirror. Haven't tried that out yet but I think it will show the blind spot pretty well. Glued them with contact cement so I hope they stay mounted at 90 mph on the interstate. DCO