A full tonneaux is a cover that protects the entire cockpit of a roadster.They usually have a zipper that divides the cover into two halves, which letsyou keep the passenger seat covered while you drive. This allows toplessdriving in cool weather with the heater blasting, keeping at least the lowerpart of your body cozy. A warm hat would be advisable for those who want to tryit!I recently installed a full tonneaux cover, ordered from Moss Motors,for my 1973 MGB. The price was right during their spring sale, so I jumped!
When I opened up the box, I realized that "installation" meant more thanjust snapping the cover onto the car! The cover is great, but the Lift the Dots(LTDs) and snaps come in a little plastic bag with the cover. Installation of atonneaux cover means installing all the snaps that attach the cover to the carin the proper place.
Once over my initial shock, I realized this is actuallysmart, since every car may be different, and we all want a custom fit, don'twe? Amusingly enough, the only instructions that Moss sent with the cover are"take it to an upholstery shop"!
Well, don't! It's not that hard to do, and I'd hate folks to spend money ona job so simple. So here's how to do it. Once I had the proper tools, it tookabout one hour.
NOTE: Some of this may apply only to the MGB, but the general rules apply the same to Midgets, Triumph, and other open cockpit British sportscars that use a tonneau cover.
Shopping List
To install the Lift-the-Dots, You'll need the following tools:
Chalk
String (for non-headrest cars)
Hole punch or "wheel punch pliers" -- preferred and much easier! (Sears, ~$10)
Regular metal punch (and a small button anvil, if you want)
X-acto Knife or small utility knife, (razor blade if you're brave)
Hammer or mallet
Pliers (I used standard "Channel Locks" for leverage)
Eyeballs, a steady hand and patience
Warm weather or a heated garage - makes the cover more pliable.
Procedure:
Vinyl tonneaux's shrink with cold, age and weathering. Keep this in mindand give some slack, especially if the ambient temp is warm.
Lay the tonneaux over the cockpit. On my '73 B, it was easy to orient onthe headrest pockets in the cover, but older cars don't have this advantage, soyou use a string and the chalk to mark lines to give you reference points. Hookthe back portion into the metal "hooks" at the rear of the cockpit. There aretwo pockets with reinforcing plates. This is your point of reference.
Work from back to front, side to side. This is critical for a good fit.
Stretch the cover and mark over the male LTD connector with chalk on thecover. Punch a hole, NO LESS than about 3/8", so the fabric doesn't bind in thesnap. Look at the female LTD opening to give you an idea of how big to make thehole. Don't make it too big! Otherwise the LTD won't have fabric to grab forthe little "teeth".
Punch a hole on your chalk mark.
This is the tricky part... orient the top LTD piece over the hole, narrowend toward the edge of the cover, hold it in place and flip over to theunderside. Push on the upper LTD and find the points where the little teethwant to stick through, CAREFULLY cut the underside of the fabric at thesepoints in small slits, and push the metal clips through.
Once all the teeth are through the fabric, fit the under side piece ofthe LTD over the teeth and bend them to the INSIDE with pliers.
Take a deep breath, drink a beer, or do whatever relaxes you. You'llrepeat the above step over and over, working back to front, side to side. Yourfingers will get sore from this procedure, but not bloody, as long as you'recareful with the knife.
When all the "Lift the Dot"s are in place, (don't forget the one on thedash, too!) you may have a couple of "snaps", female side, to install. In mysituation, I was short two female snaps. (Check that little baggie!) I went toa local upholstery shop and got them for free.
For the snaps, same procedure. On my MGB, there are two male snaps on thewindshield posts, left and right, and one each behind the edge of each door.Mark with chalk, but punch a hole a bit smaller than the shaft of the snap.Push the shaft of the snap through the hole.
Lay the head of the snap on a hard surface. (There are small "anvils" forthis, and upholstery shops have them. I used the driveway with a rag underneathand my sore fingers to hold in place.) Hammer the metal punch to splay theshaft into the snap, once splayed, the snap is set into the body of the snap.
It's really a very quick and easy job that can be done in an hour or so! Andthe tonneaux is much easier than the "hood" if the skies get dark.
