The P5: What Would You Change?

[skygazer6033]

All you really need is something to give the cloth shape and maintain a profile to shed rain. Two longitudinal bows slipped into battens sewn into the roof fabric and you have your shape set up and the taper of the fabric no longer of concern. With the top down it would it would basically wad up at the back because of the taper but you could cover it with a canvas or vinyl cover. I'm not really a ragtop guy myself but I don't think this type of retractable fabric roof would be all that difficult to develop.

 

[RUCRAYZE]

Love this stuff, keep in mind just how small an opening your working with, I remember seeing dimensions for moon/sun roofs, Just maybe, a small dog, in an emergency, could get through the opening

 

[wizard of ahs]

I really think you are right. A tappered-folding soft top sounds cool but it defies the "K.I.S.S." principle. Removable panels would be more aerodynamic, both closed and open. More secure. And having separate (front and rear) panels makes them easier to store, too. IIRC, in pics of the Elio "tube" frame, there is a cross tube in the vicinity of the rear edge of the door. This could be (non removable) "roof" between the hatches, allowing the interior & headliner to cover that part of the frame.

But, a tapered folding Rag Top would be SOOO COOOOL!...along with Red wheels and wide White Walls...Very "retro"

Come and get em : Sliding Ragtop Kits

 

[floydv]

How about doing something really different and have the canvas top open longitudinally (lengthwise), instead of folding it front-to-back? Maybe fabricate/3D print a semi-tubular cutout to store each half of the top, with each tube color-matched and shaped to conform with the Elio's roofline? Maybe look like long wind deflectors? You could use fiberglass poles (like for tent framing) to provide the stiffness and for rolling up each half of the cover. And this approach would avoid the need to have flexing/collapsible ribs.

Anyway, it was a fun, out-of-left-field brainstorming thought.

 

[McBrew]

Someone in here has the Fiat with the sliding roof, ask him to measure it on the outside of the material and then compare it to the true opening width on the inside; there's about 2" of overlap on both sides that is frame work. So outside is one size, the inside should be about 4" smaller side to side.

That's me.

 

[Coss]

That's me.

That's the one; now take those side frames and once you get it into an Elio you're left with 8" to 10" of opening.
Hold a piece of paper over your head (length wise so it's 8.5 wide) and you'll get an idea how big it would be.

 

[slinches]

If you don't mind forgoing the sliding mechanism and a perfectly weather-tight seal, it could be packaged quite a bit smaller. I know Jeep Wrangler soft tops just use a strip of plastic around the edge that slips into a groove that's no more than 0.75" wide. That setup should fit nicely on top of the frame tubes and the taper would likely help with the install.

 

[outsydthebox]

Seth I know what you're talking about with the snap on panels but you're still going to need some kind of solid piece for the front header.
Otherwise it will whistle and "buzz" (or flutter) at speed.
Aero on roof panels is crazy; we fought "booming" sounds when a sunroof was open and side windows closed; rattles that we could never recreate until one time when the customer dropped off his car for another attempt, and this time we saw him take his golf clubs out of the trunk before leaving. Because of the acoustics in a car, where the heads of the clubs sat, he would hear it next to his head (we had him put covers on more of his clubs, and move them to the other side; problem solved).
So you will run into these little head scratchers once you cut that hole in the roof.
To test weather proof, you could build a mockup of a roof panel; put your cover on it, and set it outside. Make sure the lower part is away from the elements; something like a old cooler, build a curved panel for the top, and a clear, removable side to view the interior.
You've got time, and we still have a lot of weather left before summer; plus next fall; lots of time to prototype different ideas.
And I would much rather experiment on a cooler than the roof of a new toy.

Thank you for that info about how cabin acoustics could be affected. Got me wondering if the P5's exhaust was moved to the side for this reason.

 

[outsydthebox]

How about doing something really different and have the canvas top open longitudinally (lengthwise), instead of folding it front-to-back? Maybe fabricate/3D print a semi-tubular cutout to store each half of the top, with each tube color-matched and shaped to conform with the Elio's roofline? Maybe look like long wind deflectors? You could use fiberglass poles (like for tent framing) to provide the stiffness and for rolling up each half of the cover. And this approach would avoid the need to have flexing/collapsible ribs.

Anyway, it was a fun, out-of-left-field brainstorming thought.

Ok, I'll play! How about...if it opened from back to front? This way would avoid " puckering" or "bunching up" the canvas, and if the pleats are made to lean to the back, it would form a "wedge-shaped air deflector" at the leading edge. Using some strategically placed rare earth magnets in the pleats ( as it folds up, the pleats would stick together) would keep the narrow end from hanging down thru the opening.

 

[NSTG8R]

Ok, I'll play! How about...if it opened from back to front? This way would avoid " puckering" or "bunching up" the canvas, and if the pleats are made to lean to the back, it would form a "wedge-shaped air deflector" at the leading edge. Using some strategically placed rare earth magnets in the pleats ( as it folds up, the pleats would stick together) would keep the narrow end from hanging down thru the opening.

Now THAT's thinking outside the box, uh...outsydthebox!