Fiberglass Top Installation
After freezing my butt off during the first winter with my D90 and the BestTop soft top, I decided that a hard top would be a worthwhile purchase and located a used one that a friend wasn't using anymore.
These fiberglass tops were really made for the '95 and '97 models...and I have a '94. Like other retrofit kits for the '94s, Land Rover made yet another one for the hard tops, but I didn't have that. Luckily, I didn't need it. Since my car was made so late in the game in '94, it came from the factory with the necessary threaded bolt inserts in the rear side capping. However, I still had to trim the side panels where they fit around the roll cage (this area is slightly different on the '94s). Besides the trim, no additional modifications to the top or the vehicle were needed.
I was able to repair the broken side panel with some high-strength marine adhesive. Any adhesive should do the trick as long as it dries clear. I even went as far as taking the car to a paint shop and matching the color with a meter, then making up a batch of paint which I applied over the adhesive. The end result looks acceptable.
Installation overview: The installation manual leaves out at least one vital step and is generally vague in other areas. It seems they only want to take you so far in the directions and leave the follow-up steps to you. Luckily, I figured out the solutions to the problems before getting trigger happy with the Dremel and cutting the top into oblivion! See below for details.
The fiberglass top is fragile and you do NOT want to break it, as they're an extinct part! You'll definitely need two people to perform a proper and risk-free installation. It took me all day to install it the first time, though my day did include about 4 trips to the hardware store for various nuts and bolts. When installing it this past fall, I had it installed in a couple of hours at a leisurely pace. Remember: take your time and don't break anything.
Necessary tools: socket set (10mm for most of it) and ratchet and nut driver; Dremel with cut-off attachment and 1/16" bit (the Dremel might not be necessary, but it's very helpful); a tube of silicone sealant.
Installation manual: I've modified the installation manual to include some comments and the step that the LRNA folks left out. Download a PDF of it here:
Fiberglass Hardtop Installation Manual
Photos and such to come...
updated 03.02.2005