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#1
06-25-2010, 01:46 PM
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Removable hard top?
I didn't know these existed until a friend sent me a copy of collectible automobile (I think that's what it was) and it had a pic of a black one in it.
How rare are these? They're kind of cool http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CONVE...item43a00e1b01
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#2
06-25-2010, 02:51 PM
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I remember seeing ads for them in car magazines of the day, but have never come across one in person. Maybe the photo is deceiving, but the top in that picture doesn't look long enough to fit on a full size GM car.
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#3
06-25-2010, 02:56 PM
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No it doesn't look long enough at all
I'll scan the pic from that magazine and see what it looks like compared to this one
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#4
06-25-2010, 05:40 PM
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I agree with the length problem. No way would that work on a full size. Possibly the Lemans/Tempest etc mid size cars. The rear quarter post is too big for the roll dawn back window also. You would never get the back window all the way up. It sctually looks more like T-Bird roof. IMHO. Mark L
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#5
06-25-2010, 05:49 PM
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Ok the pic I was thinking of is smaller and not as clear as I hoped and it's a '63 not a '64 like I thought
 Look how fat that post is though
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#6
06-25-2010, 05:52 PM
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Looks like it is designed to go all the way back to cover the canvas cover. If that's the case the rear piller will be longer. It does look like the top in the e-bay ad. Something I never knew existed. That would be a cool thing for a car. Definite conversation piece. Mark L
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#7
06-25-2010, 06:08 PM
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Very nice!
I would like to see one actually on the car. The big rear pillar really looks good.
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"If you do everything you'll win" -LBJ 13 Smiles per Gallon: 66 Bonneville wagon 66 Bonneville 2d HT - In perpetual progress |
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#8
06-25-2010, 06:09 PM
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I didn't know they existed either until I saw this old mag. Pretty cool
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#9
06-26-2010, 03:13 AM
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I don't remember ever seeing anything about them.
The auction listing doesn't show a buyer- did the top sell? Did the seller have just one for sale? That old advertisement makes it sound like the top was a GM option?
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Anybody else on this planet campaign a M/T hemi Pontiac for eleven seasons? ... or has built a record breaking DOHC hemi four cylinder Pontiac? ... or has driven a couple laps of Nuerburgring with Tri-Power Pontiac power?(back in 1967) |
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#10
06-26-2010, 03:55 AM
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That caption does make it sound like it was an option, do you know for sure it wasn't an option? Is there anything PHS could tell us or would it be a dealer option? Or maybe just purely aftermarket, I don't know
It probably sold. I don't think $1000 is too out of line for that thing
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#11
06-26-2010, 07:33 AM
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I have only seen 2 in person.
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The difference between inlaws and outlaws? Outlaws are wanted |
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#12
06-29-2010, 08:25 PM
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Quote:
I'd like to make a "Bubbletop" removeable hardtop for my '63 someday. I wonder if anybody would buy them for their 61-64 GM big car?
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Sometimes towed but never trailered! Last edited by MOJO Catalina; 06-29-2010 at 08:32 PM. |
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#13
06-26-2010, 09:27 AM
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There was an aftermarket hard top, I don't know if GM offered one as a factory option.
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#14
06-29-2010, 05:57 PM
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I wonder if it fit in the trunk like the Ford retractable?
I guess it's safe to say the the window is gone since the fork lift blades are holding the top. I'm going to email the guy and see if he has anymore photos or info on it.
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Sometimes towed but never trailered! Last edited by MOJO Catalina; 06-29-2010 at 06:21 PM. |
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#15
06-29-2010, 08:24 PM
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He says it's been sold. Someone who has been searching for one for years. Doesn't seem like he wants to furnish anymore info about it but if he does I'll post it.
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Sometimes towed but never trailered! |
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#16
06-30-2010, 05:15 AM
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Wow a removable bubble top would be a cool idea
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Robert Lewis 1959 Star Chief 4 Dr HT dual quad 389 4 speed 1962 Pontiac Plain Jane Catalina http://pontiac-59.com/ |
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#17
08-19-2016, 05:21 AM
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Just found this thread and wanted to find out more.
The removable top was "big news" in Popular Mechanics April, 1962.    
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 66 Bonneville 4-door Hardtop - Sold - But it has its own thread here 66 Bonneville Wagon - Sold 63 Grand Prix - Sold |
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#18
08-19-2016, 11:10 AM
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#19
08-19-2016, 01:51 PM
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Quote:
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66 Bonneville 4-door Hardtop - Sold - But it has its own thread here 66 Bonneville Wagon - Sold 63 Grand Prix - Sold |
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#20
08-23-2016, 02:31 PM
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There was a mention of this aftermarket hardtop for the full size pontiac convertibles in the June 2007 Hemmings Muscle Machines magazine:
"...a San Diego, California, manufacturer offered special hardtops for all GM convertibles in 1962 and 1963. They were dealer items. The hardtop was featured on the cover of the April 1963 Popular Mechanix magazine. The company, Le Mans Inc., did not last long; by mid-1963, it was going out of business. The top was fiberglass, weighed about 80 pounds and two people could lift it on or off a car. The tops came in white, black or primer ready for paint. (Information taken from Special Interest Autos May/June 1993.)" |
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