Removing T4 Pop Top Roof

[zennorboy]

Morning all...

My pop top roof is in need of restoration. Years of sitting on the beach have induced faded paint and peeling lacquer...and I need a new bellows. Visited a high quality body shop yesterday and the general consensus is that it would save a lot of time and money if the roof was off the vehicle for restoration.

I intended to remove the rear seat/bed box (easy enough), the upper bed platforms, the rear roof cupboard and the bellows. I"m hoping I can then close the roof and drive it to the body shop where they will remove the roof, do the work, refit the roof with a new seal and new WESTFALIA stickers.

They obviously haven't taken a roof off a Cali before and asked me how difficult it is and how long did I think it would take?

I know there are very useful threads concerning removal and fitting of the bellows, but I can't find anything about removing the roof.

All feedback and current knowledge would be greatly appreciated.

 

[bxl_lad]

Why can't they just mask the rest of the van - would seem to be the easiest option and least intrusive to the vehicle? How would they paint a van roof that couldn't be removed?

 

[mrcheesbrough]

Yeah. I can understand why they might want to get the thing down to ground level. It would certainly make it easier to guarantee more consistent paint coverage. However it seems like a lot more work on everyone's part (yours included) for no real benefit. In fact I'd reckon removing the roof cap might give you potential problems with weather sealing after you've had it restored and refitted. Once the bellows are out the body shop have an easy job 'bagging' the van so it's safe from any paint intended for the roof. You also don't need to remove all the cupboards and the like to replace the bellows. Check out the excellent breakdown on doing the job by @sidepod.

 

[sidepod]

Why remove the bellows? They sit well inboard of the painted surface. Leave the roof down.

As said. Remove the trim seal. Bag/mask off. Paint. Done.

 

[Joaquin]

I removed the roof out to the ground while changing the roof canvas. It is not a difficult job, like 3 hours both taking it out and placing it again, and it gives you big facilities to work with it. Don't be scared, is easier than it looks! Click the link to see the process. Sorry that the forum is in spanish, but I can help you if you don't understand anything
https://www.furgovw.org/index.php?topic=305814.0