Piston Slap: Fabric Tops Vs Polar Vortex?

Sajeev Mehta
by Sajeev Mehta
Josh writes:Sajeev –Great news! After research, waiting, and a little bit of compromise, I have finally bought my first ‘real’ car. Last month, I bought a ’05 BMW 645i convertible with very low mileage and a clean bill of health. It is wonderful and brings me a little joy every time I start it.Bad news! The country is currently gripped in a cold snap the likes of which we haven’t seen in 2 decades, and also, by the way, I live in Denver.While I am more than comfortable with RWD in the snow, and I am getting used to not having a real spare tire, I realized that I had not considered maintenance of the top in cold-weather conditions. It is currently parked outside, and while a carport is available if I want to go that direction, I am more concerned what the combination of H2O and low mercury will do, at least until I move to a place with a real garage again.Any suggestions how I can extend the joy and minimize loss when it comes time to sell? Thanks!Sajeev answers:Minimize the loss when it comes to sell? Be more concerned with the litany of possible BMW E63 gremlins to keep at bay before selling it on to the next fan of such “real” cars.And keeping the interior in tip-top shape, especially if you run everywhere with the top down.But let’s talk about snow and convertibles: it could be a problem, considering last week’s polar vortex. If wet snow and/or ice breaks tree branches and collapses roofs, they could bend your convertible’s metal frame. Perhaps you could scratch plastic rear windows (not applicable here) with your ice scraper, too.My advice is to keep the top free of snow accumulation so you’ll never worry about bent frame supports when hitting the switch.Everything else? Well, if you keep it around for years with no garage, the top’s gonna need replacement no matter what. And considering the price of a re-pop top, there are far scarier powertrain/suspension/electronic replacement items on this Bimmer that I’d be worried about.Bonus! A Piston Slap Nugget of Wisdom: Do not leave valuables inside your car in plain sight! A bad idea with any car, but even worse in a drop top. Taking a brick to your window to steal your iPod is one thing, but a knife to your fabric roof to grab spare change on your console is another. Hell, I’d consider leaving your convertible unlocked so someone can easily open it, look around for something to steal, find nothing and NEVER slap you with a $1000+ repair bill for fitting a new top! [Image: Shutterstock user Jake Hukee]Send your queries to sajeev@thetruthaboutcars.com. Spare no details and ask for a speedy resolution if you’re in a hurry…but be realistic, and use your make/model specific forums instead of TTAC for more timely advice.
Sajeev Mehta
Sajeev Mehta

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  • Cabriolet Cabriolet on Jan 13, 2014

    Snow will not harm the top but sun will dry it out. There are a few companies that sell special cleaning liquids and sealers for convertibles. I have been using them for years with good results. The least you can do is keep the top clean and free of dirt. If you have a plastic back window fold the top with the window clean and covered with a towel. Enjoy, Nothing like a top down convertible on a warm summer night.

  • BobinPgh BobinPgh on Jan 13, 2014

    Also, never have an umbrella in a convertible. That is how Peter Brady was in trouble with his dad and spoiled Greg Brady's date.

  • Rochester "better than Vinfast" is a pretty low bar.
  • TheMrFreeze That new Ferrari looks nice but other than that, nothing.And VW having to put an air-cooled Beetle in its display to try and make the ID.Buzz look cool makes this classic VW owner sad 😢
  • Wolfwagen Is it me or have auto shows just turned to meh? To me, there isn't much excitement anymore. it's like we have hit a second malaise era. Every new vehicle is some cookie-cutter CUV. No cutting-edge designs. No talk of any great powertrains, or technological achievements. It's sort of expected with the push to EVs but there is no news on that front either. No new battery tech, no new charging tech. Nothing.
  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
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