GAHH Top, Engine Access - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

tonycarreon · 04-04-2011, 12:44 PM

i know a lot of people always ask what the engine bay access is like after installing a GAHH (glass + 3 bow) top. decided to clean the MAF today and took a few pictures.

clickman · 04-04-2011, 02:30 PM

I looked at the first one and went

The ones after that don't look too bad!

Thanks for posting.

tonycarreon · 04-04-2011, 02:37 PM

it honestly wasn't too bad. i wouldn't want to have to do a lot of work through it, but getting the air filter out and the MAF out wasn't too much trouble. ended up having one hand come from outside and the other went through the inside and behind the seat. looked through the glass to see what i was doing.

was able to get the air filter out (wasn't bad after a year and a half (1 yr with no snorkel)) and was able to get the MAF out, clean it and put it back in.

as a side note after cleaning the MAF i've noticed that it seems to idle better (it used to "hunt" for a few seconds upon start up. now it just goes right to 800) and the exhaust doesn't smell anywhere near as "rich" as it used to.

jaykay · 04-04-2011, 04:09 PM

Thanks for this Tony.....doesn't look too bad. What do you think ...20 percent reduction in access?

tonycarreon · 04-04-2011, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaykay

Thanks for this Tony.....doesn't look too bad. What do you think ...20 percent reduction in access?

yeah, 20-30 tops. depending on where you stop the top you get a little more or a little less. i found that opening it further than i did with the plaatic gave a little more since you can push the glass in a little, but then the z top kind of gets in the way. for smaller jobs not an issue but like i said i would hate to do a lot of intricate work.

2TrunkSteve · 04-04-2011, 08:43 PM

I did the GAHH top about 18 months ago. I would concur with the 20-30% reduction in the workable opening. I like the top much better though and the clear glass is 90% better than my old clouded plastic window. I'd say it was a great trade-off.

shlim8 · 04-05-2011, 01:35 AM

Fantastic pictures... thanks ! This settles one of the fears that I had about changing to a aftermarket glass top....

The other worry I have is about the smaller rear view... can I bother one of you guys to measure the size of the glass window ? Just wanted to know how much smaller it is... Thanks..

Ideally I would like to have original 03/04 boxster convertible top, but it's impossible to find one locally, might wait till I travel to the US in Oct to hunt at the scrapyards....(if I can wait that long, it's abit bothersome to have to polish off the cloudiness every few weeks - hot sun here... and doing the chop everytime I lower the roof).

Mike_Yi · 04-05-2011, 04:40 AM

Thanks for the pictures! That made my mind up. I'll be replacing the vinyl or getting an '03/'04 factory top.

tuanle16 · 04-05-2011, 10:48 AM

thanks tony!

tonycarreon · 04-05-2011, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shlim8

Fantastic pictures... thanks ! This settles one of the fears that I had about changing to a aftermarket glass top....

The other worry I have is about the smaller rear view... can I bother one of you guys to measure the size of the glass window ? Just wanted to know how much smaller it is... Thanks..

Ideally I would like to have original 03/04 boxster convertible top, but it's impossible to find one locally, might wait till I travel to the US in Oct to hunt at the scrapyards....(if I can wait that long, it's abit bothersome to have to polish off the cloudiness every few weeks - hot sun here... and doing the chop everytime I lower the roof).

i don't know how much whole tops are going for over there but for me, the cost of replacing the old top with the GAHH was worth it. the window size is more limited (than the plastic top) but not so much that i ever feel like i made a trade off or really had to sacrifice anything. i would not be patient enough to find one in the right color that was not sun damaged...

went out and took a few snaps of the old top (with plastic window) over the new top. you can see the difference in size. it seems (and i can confirm from driving and looking in the mirror) that most of the height reduction was taken from the top. looking in my mirror i see mostly the grills / bottoms of cars and rarely into the driving compartment itself.

also found a before / after comparison

Andrew McD · 04-06-2011, 01:39 PM

Sorry daft question, but how have you held the hood open?

Thanks, Andrew.

tonycarreon · 04-06-2011, 04:07 PM

54" rubber bungee one end hooked to the ring latch for the top (the one you pull to open the top) under and through the back up and over the top with the other end on the front of the top where it meets the windshield.

shlim8 · 04-06-2011, 09:46 PM

Tony, once again thanks !

The glass does look quite a bit smaller, not only in height (though mainly) but in also in width (using the roll bar as reference). It looks like the blind spot from the C pillars would be even bigger than before (noticed it everytime I reverse out of my driveway)... hmmm, decisions decisions decisions... BUT no such problems with the top down.... (unfortunately, it's less than30% of the time due to the rain and hot hot weather).

shlim8 · 04-09-2011, 05:31 AM

Hi Tony, what did you pay for the GaHH top ?? Was it the acoustic A5 material ??

I had a look at the price on their website... prices seems to be alot more than the ones advertising on ebay (diff company). Is there a difference in quality to justify the premium ??

tonycarreon · 04-09-2011, 10:17 AM

with shipping it came out to around $988, plus i paid another $400 to have it installed. yes it's the A5 acoustic material.

i have no idea what the other ones on ebay are. what year is your boxster?

it isn't that much smaller width-wise, maybe an inch on each side. think about how often you need to look behind you. 99% of the time it's when you're backing up and you're barely moving. i've learned to adjust to using the side mirrors to see behind me the other 1%...

putting on the new top is a decision i have never regretted. honestly i don't do a lot of top-down driving unless it's at fairly low speeds. over 80 for any extended period of time and it's almost painful to drive with the top down. plus i wear hoodies and they tend to whip around and smack me while i drive.

plus i get sunburnt quite easily...

shlim8 · 04-09-2011, 03:57 PM

My box is a 2001. I was parked beside a 03 box s yesterday so had a chance to compare the glass size. Surprisingly it was quite a lot smaller - by at least almost 3" narrower. Don't know if it's a Porsche top or aftermarket though.

The auto quote for shipping from gahh is crazy - almost 380. The shipping quote from the ones in eBay was only 100+ but I'm not too sure abt the quality of the top - warranty is 7yrs vs gahh lifetime.

tuanle16 · 04-09-2011, 04:14 PM

check out autotopdirect.com. was thinking of buying from them.

tuanle16 · 04-09-2011, 04:19 PM

autotopSdirect.com

sorry, forgot the s. but i just checked again. $599 + only $27 for shipping to atlanta. so not that bad.

on side note, is "acoustic" a huge difference. my existing top is grey and for the acoustic one, it only comes in black. should i stick with my grey or go black acoustic. same price, but i like my grey.

thoughts?

Frank M · 04-09-2011, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonycarreon

it seems (and i can confirm from driving and looking in the mirror) that most of the height reduction was taken from the top. looking in my mirror i see mostly the grills / bottoms of cars and rarely into the driving compartment itself.

You probably have to somehow mount your rear view mirror on the dash for better rear visibilty.

tonycarreon · 04-09-2011, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank M

You probably have to somehow mount your rear view mirror on the dash for better rear visibilty.

would probably make it a little closer to its inspiration, but no thanks.

(* i know the 550 didn't come with a rearview mirror, but i like this pic)

Quote:

Originally Posted by shlim8

I was parked beside a 03 box s yesterday so had a chance to compare the glass size. Surprisingly it was quite a lot smaller - by at least almost 3" narrower. Don't know if it's a Porsche top or aftermarket though.

porsche included the glass top in the 03 model. look for the "ribs" in the top. if there are 3, then it's an aftermarket top. if there are 4, it's the newer top, which allows the window to folder up a little better than the GAHH / aftermarket tops.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuanle16

on side note, is "acoustic" a huge difference. my existing top is grey and for the acoustic one, it only comes in black. should i stick with my grey or go black acoustic. same price, but i like my grey.

i can't say for sure since i have never had the non-acoustic top installed. from what i understand the material is a little thicker and maybe a tighter weave to provide more sound dampening. if you don't have a headliner you'll want to get one since that should help with the sound as well. of course if a little road noise doesn't bother you... i have a black car so i only wanted a black top. take a look online for some grey / black boxsters and see what you think. i also have no idea about autotopsdirect. from what i hear they're pretty much the same as a GAHH... just preference i guess.