Targa bar cover

[Fuchs915]

New to the forum, but from a general look around, will be a regular. I have a '84 Targa, which I have had for 9 years. Can the targa bar cover, the metal bit on the outside, be removed readily? I am doing a bit of refurb work, top recovering, seal replacement, interior drying out (as a consequence of the first two!), etc. and targa bar cover could do with sprucing up as the sun has reduced it to a pale grey.

Any guidance gratefully received. Thanks.

 

[harvey]

Hi there, I don't know if you can take the roll bar off, however, I don't think you need to. I had some scratches that I rubbed down and filled. As the factory finish is lightly textured I sprayed some textured hamerite over the smooth area and it created a similar slightly rough textured finish. I then masked off everything, a good 4 foot all round and sprayed all the roll bar satin black (halfords own). The finish was excellent. Where the targa roof panel fits against the roll bar, it rubs the paint back to bare metal in a few places, but at least the tight fit meant the roof never leaked. Good luck.

 

[Fuchs915]

Harvey - thanks. Had thought about trying this but was not sure how to deal with the Targa badges. Not sure if they stick on or if they are screwed in. Any tips? Have found out that the cover can be removed - useful article on the Pelican Parts website - but obviously if it can be done in situ, life is much easier.
Thanks again
Kevin

 

[bones]

Personally I think the only way to get a good job done on this is to remove it completely, the snag is when refitting you have to be extremely careful not to damage anything when refitting. I removed and had mine painted some few years ago - here's how I remember the job being done.
Remove rubber seals and all fastening screws from around the bar, then remove the four nuts that are up unside the front of the rear wing panels. At this point the bar is freed up and it's a job best done by two people to lift it off as it is flexible and liable to bash into the paintwork if not held steady. If you are repainting rather than rubbing doen and leaving 'nude' the undercoat needs to be etched, the black Porsche finish is still available if you can find a supplier. Buy new fasteners everywhere as the old ones will be rusted.
The Targa badges have pins on the back which push through holes in the bar, then they are fastened to the bar with serrated push on washers from the inside. You can only fasten the badges on when the bar is off unless you take a chance on using glue. []
If your Targa bar is basically in good nick and just needs sprucing up the first trick you can try is to cover the whole thing in Vaseline, leave over night and carefully wipe off, it may restore the black finish, you can use this trick to spruce up dowdy Fuchs too. Try it you might be lucky.

 

[harvey]

Bones is indeed correct the Targa badges pull off, just do it slowly, evenly and gently. I blended the edges painting in situ with no issues, there wasn't an obvious edge. The most critical point was at the bottom of the roll bar. The paint can come away easily from the matt black horizontal beading which it butts up against, carefully when masking, as the paint might come away when you remove the tape. I tried different things to keep the satin black finish looking good, before I repainted, but I never got a good finish that lasted. Once painted, try and stick to one product (maybe a black car polish) and do it evenly. Cheers, Harvey

 

[Fuchs915]

Thanks for all the feedback. Going the whole hog and have stripped it all off. The Targa badges were fixed on with nuts, like the ones that secure the bonnet badge I am sure they have a technical name, but no idea what they are called. Targa bar resprayed and current resting on some bits of old targa bar seal. Will give it a clean and probably another coat or two to get the finish as even as I can.

Have also stripped the Targa top down - Hmmmm. It was one of those jobs that you start with modest intentions, just a re-cover I had thought. However the more you unscrew/remove the more you find to do. I am trying to get my head round doing it myself or bagging up the bits and sending off to Southbound. Time is tight and I do not want to have the car off the road for very long. I try to drive the old girl every week, all year round, so am getting withdrawal symptons. Has anyone else completed a rebuild of the top? It is more getting everything to align afterwards than doing the work itself that is the concern.

 

[bones]

The Targa bar badges should be fixed with serated washers, I assume that is what you mean. I with the help of a friend have completely refurbished the Targa top, one person can do it but four hands are better than two for the job. Buy a kit from Southbound it will save you a lot of money and if you are careful you will acheive the professional 'factory look'. The key is to do it on a hot day and use the sun to help stretch the vinyl fabric to it's final shape. There is a lot of information on the pelican parts website about this job but the Southbound instructions should be good enough . The whole job took about five hours, we then allowed a further day for the glue to really work and it's been fine ever since. The old fabric had worn so thin it was starting to crack in places.