I just acquired a 2010tt cab. I want to keep my top in pristine condition. How do i maintain it? I only drive 100mile/week. Mostly at night. Do i just use car wash soap to clean the top? Should i be applying any uv protectant or some sort?

 

Maintenance- normal cleaning: use a medium pH car wash concentrate and apply UVR protection; periodically (dependant on climatic conditions) as its protection degrades over time, apply a UV protection (303™ Aerospace Protectant) to fabric by keeping spray about 6-8 inches above surface and using a back and forth movement spray lightly but do not soak fabric.
Apply a fabric protector (Harrtz RaggTop Protectant) each quarter (adjust for use / and or environmental conditions)

 

I try to avoid the usage of car soap on my wife's MINI cabrio's fabric top during my weekly washes for fear of diminishing the life of the fabric top protectant. I just vacuum clean it just to take the dust off. I use the Griot's Garage fabric protectant but RaggTop is the brand that is endorsed by HAARTZ, the leading manufacturer of convertible top fabric.

 

There are some marine/boat products that are good and keeping these materials protected. I dont have names but check into it for sure.

 

Look into RaggTop http://www.wolfsteins.com/. I love the stuff and it last a long time on boats I do.

Cheers,
GREG

 

So fabric protector and uv protector is two different things?

 

Fabric Protectors like Raggtopp and the one that Griots Garage carries will provide UV protection and last through multiple cleanings before needing to be reapplied.

 

Yes and no, Raggtop contains a UV protectant, but- Providing protection from ultra violet radiation (UVR) is very important to avoid photo synthesis (colour fading) particularly in an open-air roadster/convertible (303™ Aerospace Protectant ) UVR protection is a sacrificial / renewable component; this is due to the UV protection layer being degraded by exposure to the elements (sun, sand, road or sea salt, and etc) it is also water miscible so it is imperative that you renew it and needs to be re-applied on a regular basis (dependent upon location climatic condition)
You don't have to wash your car's top every time you wash your car, but used occasionally it will remove ingrained soil /road dirt. Every time you wash your convertible top, even with the gentlest car wash shampoo, you are stripping off any previously applied protection. A better methodology would be to vacuum the top using a brush attachment to remove loose dirt and then just rinse the top with clean water.

Rode & Schwalenbert Global Minority Business Network (GMBN) Germany the world leading manufacturer of automobile convertible tops exclusively recommends Harrtz RaggTop Cleaners and Protectant. Developed specifically for cleaning, re-proofing and preserving convertible tops, these cleaning kits consist of two products:
1. Cleaner to remove soiling, stains and atmospheric pollution for both natural and synthetic materials. The best cleaners are formulated from low-pH (low alkalinity) and gentle enough for repeated use over years. They will rely on proteins and enzymes for their safe, but effective, cleaning power.
2. Fabric protector to re-proof and preserve fabric tops from the effects of water absorption, surface soiling and staining, and provide a sunscreen from UV radiation and subsequent fading, and it repels dirt, grease, and oil. It doesn’t make your vinyl top glossy or greasy-looking. It will have the natural matte sheen of new vinyl.
See also Convertible Top Detailing – http://tinyurl.com/m88dmahttp://www.detailingbliss.com/forum/f8/convertible-top-detailing-7902.html


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