 Attention convertible owners: READ THIS!, Vibration from design of convertible top |
 Jul 22, 2013 - 10:00 PM
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Enthusiast Joined Jun 3, '10 Currently Offline Reputation: 0 (0%)  |
I recently experienced a bizarre situation with my Celica convertible and I would like to hear comments and experiences from other convertible owners.
I have a ’99 Celica convertible that I only drive in summer and it is garaged the rest of the year: It has 57K miles, with brand new tires that were recently spin balanced. I live in suburbia and most of my driving is local, with occasional highway speeds of 65 MPH at most. If it isn’t raining, the top is always down, so I rarely drive with the top up. I recently drove 200 miles on a trip into the rural countryside. Due to a thunderstorm my car was all wet so I had to drive back with the top up, as the weather was unsettled. The rain had stopped, it was merely cloudy and there was no wind. While driving on an interstate highway at speeds of 75-80 MPH I noticed an unusual vibration in the steering wheel and throughout the entire car. It seemed worse on a downgrade and somewhat better when turning or on level ground. This was very disturbing, as considering the excellent condition of the car and having practically new tires, there was nothing to account for it. The vibration condition continued for 50 miles, during which the sky cleared and the top became dry. I stopped at a rest area and put the top down. I continued my trip, purposely driving at the same relatively high speed – and the vibration disappeared entirely. With the top down, there was NO further vibration whatsoever! There is only one conclusion I can draw: The convertible top on a ’99 Celica plays havoc with the aerodynamics of the car when driven at higher speeds. My previous convertible, a ’89 Celica didn’t do this – but that car had a much narrower track width and a smaller convertible top. Comments? Has anyone else noticed this? |
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Sep 11, 2013 - 1:57 AM
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 Enthusiast  Joined Jun 2, '10 From Davenport, Florida Currently Offline Reputation: 0 (0%) |
top isn't that heavy, i've had mine off and was able to lift it rather easily... i would say 40 to 60lbs max
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Sep 11, 2013 - 3:37 AM
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 Enthusiast Joined May 13, '06 From Kaimuki, HI Currently Offline Reputation: 10 (100%) |
QUOTE (b22ri22an @ Sep 10, 2013 - 8:57 PM)  top isn't that heavy, i've had mine off and was able to lift it rather easily... i would say 40 to 60lbs max good to know, that's not enough of a weight transfer to make what I said earlier true then. -------------------- -Jay
95 GT conv. project car: Manual, Gen III 3sgte, JN pisons, Eagle rods, overbore, crank knife-edged, crank scraper, ARP head/main/flywheel, Autronic EMS, Haltech Dual Wideband O2 controller, Audi 1.8T individual coils, FMIC and SSQV BOV, 3" downpipe, 3" ultra-high-flow cat, 2.5" Borla muffler, +other 01 S2000: FMIC, Haltech EMS, Haltech wideband, 570cc inj, forged pistons/rods, sleeved block, 5 angle valve job, ported and polished 02 R6, all stock, except for braided stainless brake lines, frame sliders, and adjustable brake/clutch leve |
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