Thanks to all + Tonneau cover

[CtrMint]

Hi All,

So I think I've pretty much finished my build, with only one major tasks remaining, the tonneau cover.

Thanks to everyone that has offered technical assistance, advice, but above all else the morale support!! 

The build hasn't been as I'd thought, weirdly having now done it I'd do it again, having the knowledge I now have, but that's not to say the enjoyment during the build has been there.  My first and probably only build has been far too stressful.  I'm sure I'd have thrown the towel in if I'd have had an easier out.  But everyone here kept me moving forward and so thank you!  Best forum on the internet bar none!  I've learnt an incredible amount about the 'spannering' and some personal stuff about me too, its definitely been an education, or life lesson!

 I'm afraid I do need to ask for your assistance once more though.  Fitting the tonneau cover.

I've read the assembly guide (2015) and have to say I'm very nervous about drilling the car bodywork to fit the press studs.  I don't want to screw up on this, especially given I might ruin the cosmetics of the car. 

Any recommendations before I start would be really appreciated.

[Paul Richards]

Make sure the tonneau cover is warm and pliable when you fit it and stretch it tight otherwise you will find it sags when in normal use. 

[CtrMint]

Thanks Paul, I'll warm it through with my wife's craft heat gun.  That should do the trick.

Is there anything particular I should watch out for when drilling the bodywork along the side?  Seems fraught with potential fubar possibilities.

 

[John Vine]

Agree about the pre-warming.  I draped the tonneau over a warm radiator.

As the IKEA-style Assembly Guide makes no mention of the tonneau, I take it you'll be using the "february_2015c" edition?  If so, be aware that the Fig refs in the text don't match the actual diagrams.

I fitted my tonneau many years ago, but I can't remember whether you're supposed to drill into the chassis tubes (for the side-mounted fixings) or not.  So I can't be sure whether CC's precise measurements in the AG are designed to hit the underlying tubes or miss them.  Best check with CC first.  Or maybe a recent builder with a better memory can advise?

JV 

[CtrMint]

It is rather confusing I have to say.

I've read a number of earlier threads in which people have commented they put an additional washer on the inside of the rivet.  I assume in that case you are supposed to miss the tubes.  The confusion though is that my car has all the interior panels in place, so I couldn't add a washer anyway.

Getting the cover tight seems impossible with the cover designed for the race seats, the raised sections for seats have too much excess fabric, so I'm aiming for a neat install rather than a trampoline. 

 

 

[CtrMint]

Anyone recently done the install???

[Mark w]

Start in the middle of the car and work out , Middle front , middle back . etc . 

If you are thinking of fitting half doors at some stage i would buy them now and fit them first and then use the half door fixings on the car for the tonneau placement .

 

 

[CtrMint]

Thanks, I don't think I'll buy the half doors.

It's mainly drilling the holes for the extra studs that bothers me.

[SLR No.77]

Unless you intend to run only with an aeroscreen in which case you probably want a tonneau, here’s a completely different point of view but just my personal thoughts .... don’t fit the tonneau yet, get the car registered on the road and use it for the summer then decide whether you really need it.

When I bought my first Caterham 20 years ago it had already had a tonneau fitted and I used it for a couple of years, it’s a bit of a Heath Robinson setup though with the need for a cut hole in each side to anchor the doors in place. Also if you have armrests fitted it’s a complete bodge.

My second Caterham had previously had a cage fitted with a tonneau plus half doors resulting in a mass of holes in the sides and scuttle ... and I never ever used the tonneau, in fact I sold it within 12 months of buying the car. I’ve found it much easier to just use an umbrella (poppered to the screen) to protect from the heat of the sun, or throw the half hood on if I think it’s going to rain.

Then when I had the car repainted last year I took the opportunity to remove all the tonneau popper bases and tidy the sides giving a much cleaner look to the car.

I’m mentioning this because I know I’m not alone in being a tonneau-non-believer, they have their place and followers but once you’ve drilled the side skins you're stuck with the popper bases, like them or not.

Just my thoughts ... I’ll prepare to be flamed!

Stu.

[Mark w]

I agree with Stu .

Unless you are going to fit half doors and run with an aero some of the time there’s no point having a tonneau .

if you are going to run Aero ( good idea !)  then you need to fit the poppers to first suit the Aero central fixing points and then the doors . Once you have those in the correct place you can fit the additional perimeter poppers on the car and the female fixings on the tonneau .

if you approach it in reverse order you will end up with a mess .

Get a half hood if your running with a screen . Keeps 90% of the water out of a car parked in rain .

[Paul Richards]

Stu makes a good point. The tonneau is not really needed. Shower cap and half hood are what you need. 

[John Vine]

I have to say that I find the tonneau (at least, the passenger half) invaluable for a sunny winter blat when the temps are low.  It cuts the draught-inducing vortex, keeps the heat in and makes the cockpit very cosy (with the full screen).  Mind you, if you don't have a heater, the tonneau is probably only of value with an aero.

But I don't use it at all for parking in the rain, as a combination of half hood and SBFS long-nose shower cap does the job perfectly.

 

JV

[SLR No.77]

Ha ha, and I really thought I was going to be flamed! Day out use an umbrella, overnight or if it's particularly wet, half hood and shower cap.

Stu.

[John Vine]

... I really thought I was going to be flamed!

Flamed?  No no, we don't do that (XF exhausts excepted).

JV

[Geoff Brown]

Think about having head rest pockets fitted to the tonneau as you WILL get frustrated in having to remove the rests every time you wish to fit the tonneau.

Thundersport do a rework by return with the members discount of 10%. Give them a call as they will then give you precise points to measure from to ensure the pockets are located correctly.

I have owned two cars with the tonneau fitted & IMO they can be invaluable when parking up to protect from the odd light shower, bright sun & general carp flying about on a windy day. Also an added layer of protection when parked up in the garage with the car cover on.

Having the passenger half fitted on a cold crisp winters Blat makes things a little more cosy especially if there is no heater, though a 2.0L Duratec is all one needs for cockpit heating !

 

[CtrMint]

Guys,

Thanks as always for your input. 

There's been a number of points which may or may not be up to date, but as mentioned I appreciate your input.

With reference to Geoff's comment and the rests, the tonneau I have has been designed to fit the carbon seats I have.  I'm half way through the fitting, no holes drilled yet, so the pic shows how far I've got.  So far I've only used holes fitted by CC already and fitted the poppers to the cover.

I do have the aeroscreen as well, though the wife isn't that eager to see me fit it.  She hates my Exige having the fire suppression system in the passenger side footwell, so if "trackify" the 7 as well, i.e. fit the aero I'm sure she'll force me to sell one and buy here an MX5! She wants the 7 to be a fun car she can drive too.

My decision to immediately fit the tonneau was for weatherproofing while the car is transported to a local specialist for an equivalent to the PBC.  I did intend to send it with the full hood but decided the tonneau would be easier for the garage to store without risking damage, hence the immediate fitting.

I am a little confused now about the combination of half door, full door and aero..  ????  Is the issue basically additional popper bases which are considered unsightly, especially if other options are considered?  Or am I missing something more serious?

As an aside, living on the IOM, the Seagulls can be a nightmare, and I don't mean bird poo, which would make a mess on the fabric seat covers.  They are seriously cheeky and I wouldn't be surprised to see them in the cockpit of an unattended 7.  Although I am aware of the other covers and half hoods etc, I did wonder whether they'd be as effective against over-enthusiastic gulls.

 

[CtrMint]

the pic I mentioned.

[CtrMint]

I've been through the comments a couple of times.  

Regarding the aeroscreen and location of poppers etc.  CC supplied my chassis with two popper bases, top centre under the windscreen.  I assumed they were used for the tonneau so have secured my tonneau there.  I've just checked the aero and that is where the aero actually fixes, however the aero popper fixing is doubleside, so the aeroscreen sits on the chassis and then the tonneau on the areoscreen.  That seems nicely compatible with both options.

One comment however which I think is super relevant is the side door arm rests which I did specify.  With the tonneau in place and the doors closed the arm rests will foul.  That might be a show stopper............ 

Anyone have any suggestions on how to work around?

 

 

[Mark w]

Doors , with or without arm rests are incompatable with a fully fitted tonneau , you just cannot fix them shut and have the tonneau properly popered shut .

This means on a breezy day they just blow around on their hinges .

One option is to lift the doors off and lay them in the car before the tonneau is fitted .

I am glad to hear you’ve got an aero , that gets over getting the front fixings in the right place .

the reason I said you need to fit the half doors first and then use those fixings for the tonneau is that the half doors are more sensitive to fitting locations , whilst notionally similar in shape / profile your likely to find that doing it the other way round results in it not being possible to fit doors without adding poppers based in marginally different positions leading to a bit of a mess .

 

[aerobod - near CYYC]

With the doors fitted, you can just not popper the bottom of the tonneau, fold the bottom edge over and rest on the top of the armrest with the door fully latched. Best to push the edge of the tonneau up near the door, so that rain water pools on the tonneau as opposed to running down on to the armrest.

[ScottR400D]

“I do have the aeroscreen as well, though the wife isn't that eager to see me fit it.”

If you’ve fitted the captive nuts at the stanchion bases and sortedcthexeiring connections, it’s literally a ten minute job to change from windscreen to aeroscreen and back. 

I find the windscreen, with full doors, by far the best option on the road, the aeroscreen essential on track. 

[CtrMint]

I'll follow some of the advice given.

Leave the tonneau for the time being, and invest in a half hood.  Plus see what my use is like, I might consider the half doors before completing the tonneau.

Question is which half hood should I go for?  Note I have the trackday roll bar.  Which one gets the best review?

[SM25T]

You'll find supporters of both. I prefer the design of the tensioning straps on the SoftBits Half Hood ... and the fabric construction ... rather than the vinyl of the Oxted HH

[SLR No.77]

And I prefer the design of the straps on the Thundersports version, much simpler.

Stu.

[Geoff Brown]

CtrMint - did not realise you had the fandango carbon seats !

Things in favour of the Thundersport half hood:

Vinyl - so no reproofing required as against SB fabric hood. 

Bottom half of side straps attached to rollover bar secondary bolts  -SB straps poppered & come undone too easily.

My opinion obviously but experience from having first an SB hood then a Thundersport product.

Thundersport & SB give 10% off to club members.