1979 Sunroof to Syro Poptop Conversion

[alinghi12]

I finally managed to track down a Syro small pop top. We can't do a full westy top because of space limitations in our garage so this is the best solution for us(O Yeh, you know I looked into cutting a hole in the ceiling). Its in pretty good shape but its going to need some gel coat repair and paint which is right up my ally. In addition the wood has water damage, so lots of fun projects in this. Obviously the hard part is finding information besides a few posts here on the samba.

The biggest problem to be solved is figuring out of to get the brackets to line up with the roof. The sunroof hole is cut much wider, about an inch on both sides. I don't think this will be a huge task to take on as there is that much space on either side. Curious about thoughts on this.

The one thing is the Seal, Can't seem to figure out what the right seal is any thoughts? 64-67 seems small.
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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[alman72]

for some reason in my head I think that early bays have a different roof curvature?
If this is true (is it true samba folks?) I hope your top is a later top

[danfromsyr]

the early Bay Westfalia have the same (curved) roof as all Bay tintops/sunroof vans. essentially were a sunroof van.
the late Bay Westfalia have a different (flat) roof deck to accommodate the the upper double bunk
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[alinghi12]

[alinghi12]

Finally had a break in the rain so started sanding things down. Debating weather to go with filler then paint or a whole gel coat. I initially thought there would be more moisture damage but things are looking real good.

Put it on top to check out the put, looks real nice . The only hitch is the edges look poorly cut, hoping I can class it up and make it more even.

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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[alman72]

I think seals will help that a bit

[jtauxe]

BusDepot sells poptop seal by the foot, and that should work for your application. I have used these in the past, and am happy with them.
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John
"Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippie trail, head full of zombie..." - Colin Hay and Ron Strykert
http://vw.tauxe.net
1969 Transporter, 1971 Westfalia, 1976, 1977, 1976, 1977, 1971, 1973, 1977 Westfalias,
1979 Champagne Sunroof, 1974 Westfalia Automatic, 1979 Transporter, 1972 Sportsmobile, 1973 Transporter Wild Westerner, 1974 Westfalia parts bus, 1975 Mexican single cab *FOR SALE*, 1978 Irish 4-door double cab RHD

[Globespotter]

Pretty sure you could have gone with a regular late bay westy pop top and just take out the garage door opener. That's what I did to fit my Westy in the garage.
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1977 Westfalia - October 2015 - Current
1971 Super Beetle - May 2012 - Current
1979 Westfalia - 1986-1991
1971 Super Beetle - 1977-1980

1971 SB Survivor Story: https://globespotter.com/
Road Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=511800&highlight=
My 77 Westy Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=647114&highlight=

http://vw-mplate.com/mcode.php?lang=EN&id=30990
https://vw-type2-id.xyz/mplate/72067382

[alinghi12]

[Globespotter]

[alinghi12]

So I just did my final measurements and wanter to share for future projects because I couldn't find the info on the sunroof anywhere. Here is how it breaks down:

Syro Poptop: 61.5"x 46"
Inner Diameter of sunroof hole: 43"x36"
Outer Diameter of sunroof: 45"x41"

Its gonna be tight but after lining things up It will work. Need help figuring out the correct type of seal for the top, also wondering if anybody knows where to find the complete rubber latches. Finally the big one is the canvas, any dimensions on the 64-67 small pop top, wondering if it will work.

VS

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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[alman72]

number 2 will be more forgiving for gaps...

[alinghi12]

So Just finished sanding and doing filler. It took 3 rounds of filling and sanding to get things perfectly smooth. Ready for paint now! Seals on the way, Shoutout to richard from Wolfsburg West for the back and forth to get it all right. Now its just about finishing cleaning up the brackets and rebuilding the wood subframe.


Any Ideas where I could find the canvas for it?

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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[alinghi12]

So after a few months of painting and sanding and figuring out the stuck sunroof progress has been made. The painting was a lot more time consuming then I was hoping but think it came out ok, not perfect. Next step is reassembly and installation.

In addition still have not figured out how to source the canvas for it. Anybody out there with one that could get dimensions?!?!

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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[notchboy]

Dimensions for a SYRO pop up turret.

Ill send you some free stickers if we get someone here that has one just like yours. Syro is pretty obscure and rarely seen. Yours is longer than typical Westy or Rivi tops as well.

Install yours - brackets and what not and make it work, then measure it out.
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[alinghi12]

Notchboy I think thats the way to go, Hoping for those stickers now. Someone from the Baypride facebook group is hopefully measuring for me so hoping that comes through. The last part I need to figure out is the rubber tie-downs for the top and how to fit it to the top. It looks like the correct install point is where the sunroof section is. I am wondering if I should add wood to the inner seal to compensate OR add wood to the pop top subframe and move the brackets an inch or two outward and attach right to the roof tin. The roof dimensions are:

Poptop: 44x35.5

Sunroof Inner most: 44x 36
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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[notchboy]

[alinghi12]

Yesterday after work I pulled out the bus to put the poptop up and do some measurements. I am quite happy with the fit I gotta say. I am now planning on securing the side brackets in the sill for the sunroof and the front to the roof. This gives 17-16" of space when opened up from the inner roof and plenty for me to stand. Still trying to figure out how to tackle the canvas. Specs are 44x35.5 on the top and 44x36 for the inner roof cutout. Very open to ideas on potentially just modifying one if I can find it close to exact and NEW.

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1986 Westy Stock 2.1l
http://www.cdyphotos.com/

[notchboy]

1) Whats wrong with your sunroof/slider in the first place?

2) Do you plan to remove all the sunroof/slider components?
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[alinghi12]