I'm in the process of replacing my 95 325 top. I have the removed the old top and am installing the new top. Need some suggestions on next steps. I read some of the instructions that can be found here (the ones in English anyway) and they don't do me a whole lot of good because they reference parts without providing a schematic/drawing pointing out the parts and their names. So, I've started to replace it in the reverse order of how I removed it.

FYI, the top I have is not OEM. It has the plastic strips with the holes preset for the top on the edges where screw or rivet mounts are required. I have a semi-automatic top.

Current state: I have the old off and the back edge of the new top glued on, screws applied thru the weather strip support thing, all of the elastic straps connected appropriately to the frame locations where the old top was connected. I do NOT have any of the bow wraps glued into place.

Current concern: I'm not sure of the next steps. I suspect it is to place the bottom "point" of the diagonal frame that is directly behind the back windows into the pockets and rivet those pieces together (the top, the frame, and the metal channel that the weather stripping mounts to). I currently have the top in the full closed position and, at least in this position, this will be very difficult as the stretching that would need to occur is pretty significant. Do I bring the top up into a folded position to attempt to do this, or is this the right step? As it is now, there definitely needs to be some stretching between the back and front edge as I have probably about 1.5-2.0 inches short between the front and back edge (again with the top in the fully closed position). I would suspect that I could fold the top up and glue and connect the front, then close the top back to stretch things out. Again, I'm not sure which would be the more appropriate next step. Thoughts or experience from those who have accomplished this task themselves?

Thanks in advance.
Mitch

ok 1st i have a manual top so i don't know how much of a difference w/ the manu-matic would be, but i doubt there's that much difference. 2nd the top i bought is aftermarket so it doesn't have the plactic insert for the quarter window area & rear of the top.

ok when i replaced mine last month this is a quick run down of how i reinstalled mine:
1. i installed the header portion 1st (front edge). the top has some lines on it to line against the metal frame. i had the top half way opened where i stood inside the vehicle to get access to the screws. i started in the middle & worked out outboard to prevent fabric from wrinkling.
2. i reinstalled the back edge of the top afterwards.
3. then i reinstalled the sides of the top. it was pita since i had to punch the holes through the fabric (the oem top is nice since it had that plastic retaining strip) & make it tight also. all along the same time making sure the seal retainer is in the correct place while i tried to pop rivet the retainer. the 1 problem i ran into was the pop rivet gun that i bought at lowes. i had to reinstall the retainer w/ the seal in it since i couldn't reinstall the seal afterwards since it'll be a true pain to get the side lip in between the retainer & fabric top (and i'm a weatherstrip engineer so i do know certain tricks to install seals on cars). the problem w/ trying to pop rivet the retainer/seal back onto the car was the lack of room inside the assembly. the rivet gun was too big to go inside. luckily i found a rivet gun on ebay that had a real small shaft that could somewhat fit inside the channel. some of the rivets i couldn't fit the gun shaft inside so i had to use a small spacer (actually the screwed on end of a spark plug that the plug wire goes onto) to be able to rivet the seal/retainer back on. also remember the seal bottom needs to be superglued to the top.

i'll also pm you my email also if you want to email me directly.

Do you know what the actual thickness of the OEM top is? Is the top that BAV auto has the same one you see on ebay?:stickoutt

don't know on both accounts. i guess i can try to measure the oem fabric thickness & compare w/ my new top.
i would say the new top is a bit louder than my oem top...and if you're to install it yourself be prepared to take some time cause it's not a quick job.

I think I'm going to have to drill out the new rivets as I installed the channel withou the weatherstrip in place. In addition, I started at the back of the top (before my original post above) and have worked my way forward. In order to get the points on the sides into the "pockets" on the new top as I was working forward, I had adjusted the top so that the back was pretty much all the way up as well as the front. Glued the front rail flaps and screwing in the front edge weatherstrip channel last night. I still need to glue all of the blow flaps. Tried to put the top up (covered/closed) position to stretch it out and make sure that everything was lined up for the bow flaps and the back won't fold down. It's like it there is too much tension from the side flaps being installed to close. So, like I said above, I think I'm going to remove the rivets and channel and see if I can get it to close with the motors. If not, I'm going to disengage the motors and see if I can manually get the thing closed. Assuming so, then I will let it stretch for a day and put the side channel/weatherstripping back on.

so does your replacement top have the plastic retainers sewn into the top like the oem top? i wasn't sure when i read your original post.
plus it's best to post some pics of your top. maybe i can help then.
i'm trying to picture what you're posting but i can't seem to envision it.

Yep, it looks almost exactly like a OEM top, plastic retainers, herringbone pattern on the bottom side, etc. I'll email some pictures, my phone is my digitial camera and it apparently takes too good of a picture that won't post here.

now remind me again if the front edge (header area) has the plastic retainer or not?
my aftermarket top doesn't have any plastic retainer so i had to pull the fabric & hold in place during installation. after the new top installation, it's a lot harder to close the top compared to the old. but i'm sure it'll get better after time.

Yes, the front had a plastic retainer strip.

So did the back edge of the top fabric as well as the sides where the riveting occurs and that side metal channel and weather strip goes (where the back side of the rear windows would come up into), the one that connects to the rear weathertrip and wraps clear around to the other side of the car.

So did the back edge of the top fabric as well as the sides where the riveting occurs and that side metal channel and weather strip goes (where the back side of the rear windows would come up into), the one that connects to the rear weathertrip and wraps clear around to the other side of the car.

so what is the question again? i understand what areas you're talking about but i'm trying to understand the question is...

Since both the back of the top and the front of the top are pointing up in the air and are all folded up like an accordian and when I try to "close" the top, the back tries but will not drop down to the horizontal position with the motors, I was considering different options to get it to drop down/unfold and was wondering what you/others think of the options.

Option #1, since I think I have to take the new rivets out of the sides (since I mounted the metal channel without the weather stripping installed), that might help ease some of the tension on the top and let the motor go ahead and pull it down.

Option #2, go ahead and remove the rivets from the side and not even try to get the motor to pull it down (I don't want to burn up the motor). Just disengage the motors with the little red handle and try to close the top manually. Concern here is that once the motor is disengaged, there is nothing to hold the top in a closed (non-accordianed) position.

Option #3, leave the rivets in for now, disengage the motor, and manuall try to pull the top into closed position. Come back later after it has stretched for a day or two and redo the side rivets/channel/weatherstripping.

Option #4, ??????

#D...uh i mean #4, ok try this 1st before doing any of the other 3. get someone to push the rear end down as you're pushing the button.

as for option #2, i don't know what the automatic top does but w/ my top when you pull the header down w/ the latch handle, that's when it kicks the rear end down to sit on top of the tonneau. is yours like that? (but ofcourse it's the motor that lowers the header down & latch it). the tensioning of my top is dependent on the linkage connected to the header portion...i would think your's is similar, but i can be wrong on that point.

also is the rear cross-car bow (right above the rear window) fall onto the middle of the seam on top? mine was off approx. 1/4". i had to reposition the tensioning strap to be in the middle of it. if it's not in the middle, it doesn't stretch the top out correctly & will let water pool up & leak through the seam. i don't know how much this will contribute to the tight top issue you currently have but i just want to throw it out there.

#D...uh i mean #4, ok try this 1st before doing any of the other 3. get someone to push the rear end down as you're pushing the button. I will try this first.

as for option #2, i don't know what the automatic top does but w/ my top when you pull the header down w/ the latch handle, that's when it kicks the rear end down to sit on top of the tonneau. is yours like that? (but ofcourse it's the motor that lowers the header down & latch it). Mine doesn't quite work this way, the rear has always gone down to the cover on its own. the tensioning of my top is dependent on the linkage connected to the header portion...i would think your's is similar, but i can be wrong on that point. I'm not following you on this. What linkage other that the tension straps and the steel cable running along the sides is there?

also is the rear cross-car bow (right above the rear window) fall onto the middle of the seam on top? Don't know yet as I can't get my top to un-fold down and see where the seams are hitting on the bows I will adjust as necessary at that time, when I glue the flaps around each bow. I'll definitely keep an eye on that once I get it un-folded down. mine was off approx. 1/4". i had to reposition the tensioning strap to be in the middle of it. if it's not in the middle, it doesn't stretch the top out correctly & will let water pool up & leak through the seam. i don't know how much this will contribute to the tight top issue you currently have but i just want to throw it out there.

OK, got it all straightened out with the top up/down. The rear bow (goes right above the rear window), was flopped too far forward relative to the canvas on the top.

The only thing left right now, and by far the most challenging part, is to get the front edge header weatherstrip mounted back up to the thin metal retaining strip. This weatherstripping mounts top and bottom to a T-shaped portion of the strip. The top part is a piece of cake, the bottom part is kicking my tail. Any helpful hints/tools/etc from weatherstripping experts out there would be great.

are you talking about the weatherstrip that's mounted to the metal retaining strip that i told you to put urethane on it?
if that's the one i never took the seal off the retaining strip since it wasn't necessary. anyway, i need to take a look at it in order to help you.
it's kinda crappy around here so i can't take the retainer & the seal off.
can you take some pics & send it to my email that i pm'd you before.

I got it on after about 3 hours of inching along, trying about every tool in my toolbox until i found one that worked without damaging the seal. Letting it all dry out there now as I had to use soapy water to lubricate it enought to get it on there. Want to make sure it is good and dry before I put on the urethane. So, urethane tonight (after a little sleep now and work later today). Then, close up the top and glue the the bow flaps/wraps, adjust the toneau cover, and I hope all works and the thing is water proof.

well good to hear. and good luck w/ gluing the blow flaps. let me know what you're using if it works.
i had to use 3m tape that i got from work. i got 2 of the bow flaps so far but i haven't glued the end edge of the flap down since i don't know what's a good adhesive to use. i need to go to joann's to see if they have any good fabric adhesive.
the one thing i didn't know what to do w/ the flap at the bottom of the top (right at the bottom edge of the rear window) since i bought the car used & the lady pulled the headliner & anything else that was hanging down over time. if you can get a pic for me that would be great.

3M 8090 adhesive is what I've been using so far based upon other posts here asking for what to use. I sprayed it into a tin pan and brushed it onto the front and rear headers when I glued them down.

I'm not sure what to do with that rear flap yet either other than putting the mounting screws/plate at both ends. As I recall when I pulled off the old top, it was just hanging down. But I haven't got to the point of inspecting what it looks like with the top up yet. I will let you know if I figure anything out. The flap on the new top is much longer/hangs down much further that the old top's flap.

Tonight is urethane for the front seal (per our discussion), gluing the bow flaps down, and doing the final adjustments on the cover and hopefully will be done. I wouldn't want to do it again but, I would if it saved me $2K again. But, I am so tight I squeak with I walk.

i agree w/ you on changing another top, but i'm as "price sensitive" (that's the politically correct term these days...not cheap skate) as you also. i can't bring myself to have someone charge so much money for something i can do (even if they can do it quicker and poss. better but i doubt it).
where did you get your top anyway? i wish mine would have came w/ the plastic retainers which would have made things a lot easier. but no worries now.

I ran to lunch 3 weeks or so ago to talk with a lady who works for me to talk about some project issues we were having. During the chit chat before we got down to business I asked what her husband did for a living. She said he sold aftermarket autoparts, primarily convertible tops. I asked her to see if he could get one for my bmw and how much it would be. Turned out that he personally only deals with domestic cars but knew another jobber who did foreign cars. He asked this other jobber, and after a trade or two between them, I got what seems to be an OEM quality top for well under $200. I told her that if this one went on well, looked like a good quality top, I could probably find a pretty good market for more if her husband could work out a supply deal with the other jobber but, nope, it was just a one-time special deal where they were able to trade sometops between them that worked out well for them and I was kind of the recipient of the deal that fell into my lap, right time, right place, right question kind of a thing.

Got the top all on (except bow wraps/flaps which I will do last after everything else is working). The top would go down just fine, went into the storage cover closed, etc. Coming back up was another matter. Everything came almost all of the way up but stopped with the rear rail 3-6 inches from laying down against the cover and the top not quite all the way up. Stopped at that point. I can't pull the front down, too much resistance. I can push the back down but the front comes up that much further, kind of like rocking in that position. The cables are fine, there isn't anything on the cover that is too tight limiting the movement. So, since I have to use the car this weekend for a trip, I thought I would disengage the motors and manually put the top down. I pulled on the red handle release lever but never heard the "clunks" that should accompany this. I pulled again thinking I had gone far enough and the handle bent/buckled on me a bit so I figure I've pulled all I should at this time. Still can't move the top nor can I pull up the toneau (sp?) cover so I don't think the motors are disengaged.

Tonight I will open up the access to the motors to see if I can tell whether or not the motors indeed disengaged. I would welcome any suggestions. In the meantime I will search the forum a bit. Thanks.

I ran to lunch 3 weeks or so ago to talk with a lady who works for me to talk about some project issues we were having. During the chit chat before we got down to business I asked what her husband did for a living. She said he sold aftermarket autoparts, primarily convertible tops. I asked her to see if he could get one for my bmw and how much it would be. Turned out that he personally only deals with domestic cars but knew another jobber who did foreign cars. He asked this other jobber, and after a trade or two between them, I got what seems to be an OEM quality top for well under $200. I told her that if this one went on well, looked like a good quality top, I could probably find a pretty good market for more if her husband could work out a supply deal with the other jobber but, nope, it was just a one-time special deal where they were able to trade sometops between them that worked out well for them and I was kind of the recipient of the deal that fell into my lap, right time, right place, right question kind of a thing.

holy crap!! that's awesome...yeah talk about a nice find especially when it's like the oem top. tell me it has zip in backlight window also!!! then for sure i'll be very jealous...
and sorry to hear about the partial functioning of the top. i guess i'm glad mine is a manual top so the only minus is the closing efforts being a bit higher since the fabric is nice & taut.
good luck...

I think so, but I didn't really look. I will have to do so after I get it working.

Hi there..! i KNOW ITS BEEN A WHILE BUT i WAS HOPING YOU COULD SEND ME THE ADDRESS OF THE SUPPLIER OF THE NEW TOP. I NEED ONE AND CAN'T GET TO FIND A RELIABLE SUPPLIER. KINDLY EMAIL ME ON: kagisomere@gmail.com

mp66226 did you ever get your top completed, about to start the same project.....reading this post has gotten me a little worried things might go sour for my install