Pelican Technical Article: Installing the Hardtop and Installation Kit Wayne R. Dempsey
Time: 1 hr
Tab: $1100
Talent:
Tools:
Hex socket kit
Applicable Models:
986 Boxster (1997-04) 987 Boxster (2005-08)
Parts Required:
Hardtop + installation kit
Hot Tip:
Check your local classifieds or Craigslist for good used tops
Performance Gain:
Quieter cabin
Complementary Modification:
The speedster humps use the same spin-clips
This article is one in a series that have been released in conjunction with Wayne's new book, 101 Performance Projects for Your Porsche Boxster. The book contains 312 pages of full color projects detailing everything from performance mods to changing your brake pads. With more than 950+ full-color glossy photos accompanying extensive step-by-step procedures, this book is required reading in any Boxster owner's collection. The book is currently available and in stock now. See The Official Book Website for more details.
Check out some other sample projects from the book:
One of the neat must-have accessories for the Boxster is the hardtop. This roof attaches to the car and insulates the inside from both road noise and cold weather. If you've never driven a car with the hardtop installed, then you will be in for a surprise: the road noise is cut down tremendously. It really works very well. The roof has a lot of sound padding to assist in keeping things quiet inside, and the addition of a big, glass rear window is certainly welcome in place of the annoyingly small plastic one.
I believe that Porsche still has new tops available for purchase, however, they are a little less than $3000, and then you will have to pay for shipping from your dealer. I've found that the best place to find hardtops is in your local classifieds or on Craigslist. People tend to get stuck with these in their garages after they sell their car, and they are incredibly difficult to ship as well. Plus, you have to find a seller who has the same color car that you had too. The bottom line is that you can typically pick up good used tops for about $1000 or so.
When you purchase your hardtop, it's almost always missing the front and side cover trim pieces which snap on to cover up the latch mechanisms. The part number for the top piece is 986-563-551-00 (1997-04), 987-563-551-00 (2005-08) and it costs about $17. The part numbers for the two side pieces for the 1997-04 cars are 986-563-553-00 and 986-563-554-00 and cost about $13 each (987-563-553-00-A03 and 987-563-554-00-A03 for 2005-08).
In addition, if you are going to be using your car for track racing, many of the racing clubs and circuits require both a hardtop and roll bar extensions to protect you in the unlikely case of a rollover. The roll bar extensions are required because if you're wearing a helmet, then the top of your helmet will stick out above the normal, stock roll bar.
Prepping your car for the hardtop is easy: just install the insert kit as per Figure 2. Actually installing the top is relatively easy too if you have two people. Simply lower the top into the insert holes and then pull the handles to clamp down the top and seal it with the car. The top is not an item that you will want to take on and off every day, but if you want to be able to install it yourself, I suggest you purchase one of the custom-made ceiling-mounted winches made specifically for lifting and lowering the top.
Figure 1
Shown here is the hardtop installed on my Boxster. I've always thought that the hardtop was a neat option for the Boxster. I was lucky enough to find one that was almost the exact color as our project Boxster, however, I have also used this particular blue hardtop on my wife's white-colored Boxster, and it actually looks pretty cool with the two-tone color scheme. I guess you need the right color combination to pull that off. You can install the hardtop yourself, but I wouldn't terribly recommend it: it's too easy to drop it and scratch your paint.
If your car didn't come with a hardtop originally, chances are that you need the super-expensive installation kit. These four parts might qualify for the most overpriced Porsche parts on the car. The spin-lock inserts shown in the upper left (Left PN: 986-563-713-03, Right PN: 986-563-714-03) are about $40 each. The two shoulder bolts are $14 for the pair. They fit into a slit in the chassis, pointed to by the green arrow. There is usually a plastic cap covering this area: remove the cap to see if the inserts are already installed. If not, then simply slide the insert into each side, and tighten down the pinch clamp with the shoulder bolt (orange arrow). Once you place the hardtop on the car, you can plug in the rear windscreen defroster near where the yellow arrow is pointing.
No discussion of hardtops would be complete without mentioning the Zeintop. Designed by an innovative company in South Africa, the Zeintop is an alternative to the Boxster hardtop, and is designed to replicate the look and feel of the Porsche Cayman (the 2006+ Boxster coupe). The top installs very similarly to the hardtop, although with a few more intermediate steps - you need to remove the rear trunk lid and wire up a separate brake lamp. It's designed to be installed for a season of winter driving and then removed in the springtime. With a cost of about $3000, it's definitely cost competitive with a new factory hardtop, and a lot better looking as well.
Comments: Is the hard top for the 986 compatible with the 987?
May 16, 2012
ColinK
Comments: I am looking for 2 small plastic parts that clip on to the two small "ears" that are on the front of the hardtop where it recesses into the windshield frame. I don't know if these are shown on the microfische exploded hardtop parts card. No longer a Porsche dealer in my town. I have a 2003 Boxster S. Thanks, Colin
April 7, 2012
Chippo
Comments: Good afternoon.
I want to buy an imitation of the hard top Caymen. Do you have any for sale?
thank you
April 3, 2012
beach_boy2
Comments: hi there i need help with info of were to buy the boxster cayman hard top? and to get it shipped to the uk im having no joy at all
February 4, 2012
Gare
Comments: where can I buy the shoulder bolt that goes with the spinlocks or do they come with spinlocks
May 9, 2011
Followup from the Pelican Staff: The spinlock part number is 986-563-713-02. The covering cap that fits over it when it's not in use is 986-561-655-00. The bolt that you were asking about, which holds the spinlock in place is 999-219-041-00. You can order any of these by simply cutting and pasting those part numbers into our search engine. - Wayne at Pelican Parts
Check out some other sample projects from the book:
