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Buying a Convertible Top Online vs. Having a Shop Supply and Install It

2026-10-07

Search for a replacement convertible top and you'll find plenty of online retailers selling tops for almost every make and model. It's tempting to buy one and either install it yourself or bring it to a local shop. Sometimes that works out well. Sometimes it turns into a second order, a delay, or a fit problem that no one wants to own.

Don's Auto Interiors & Tops is in an unusual position: we sell convertible tops online and install them in our Alsip shop, as we have since 1977. Here's an honest look at both routes.

What you're really buying

A "convertible top" listing can mean different things. Before you order, check whether it includes:

• The rear window, and whether it's plastic or glass, already sewn or bonded into the top, or sold separately
• Pads (the strips that run front to back over the frame)
• Cables and straps that hold the top's shape
• Well liner (the fabric that keeps the folded top off the body)
• Weatherstripping
• Header and tack strips, adhesives, and hardware

Many listings are just the top cover. That's fine if the rest of your parts are in good shape, but a new top over worn pads or cables often wrinkles or leaks. A shop doing the install will usually check those parts and may recommend replacing them. Better to know before you're mid-job.

Fit: getting the right top for your car

Convertible tops are specific to year, model, and sometimes trim or body style. A top for a power-top version may differ from a manual one. Some generations had mid-year changes. Before ordering online:

• Confirm year, make, model, and trim.
• Check whether your car has a power or manual top.
• Look for notes on rear window type or factory options.
• If your car has an aftermarket or previously replaced top, the old top may not match factory spec.

Shops that do tops all the time can usually tell you which top fits your car and catch problems before ordering.

Installation: DIY or a shop?

DIY: Some owners successfully install simpler manual tops. Expect a full weekend or more, special tools (such as hog-ring pliers and the right adhesives), and warm temperatures so the material relaxes and stretches properly. Power tops with tension cables and complex frames are much harder.

Shop install of your top: Many shops will install a customer-supplied top. Ask first:

• Will you install a top I bought elsewhere?
• What if it doesn't fit or is defective? Who handles that?
• Does your workmanship warranty apply to a customer-supplied top?

Shop supplies and installs: The shop orders the top, verifies fit, and installs it. If something is wrong with the part, it's their problem to solve, not yours.

Warranty: who stands behind it?

This is the biggest difference between the routes:

• Online top, DIY install: the top manufacturer's warranty may require professional installation. Read the terms.
• Online top, shop install: parts warranty sits with the retailer or manufacturer, and labor warranty sits with the shop. If there's a dispute about whether it's a part or a fit problem, you're in the middle.
• Shop-supplied and installed: one business is responsible for both the part and the installation.

Get warranty terms in writing whichever way you go.

Timing

Ordering online can be quick, but if the wrong top arrives, or the shop finds you also need pads and cables, it adds days. In Chicagoland, spring is when shops are busiest. If you're planning to buy a top and have it installed, book the install date before or right when you order.

At Don's, a top installation takes 8 to 12 hours of shop time.

When buying online makes sense

• You have a simple manual top and the experience to install it
• You've confirmed exactly which top fits your car
• Your pads, cables, and frame are in good shape
• You've confirmed a shop will install it, if you're not doing it yourself

When having a shop supply and install makes sense

• You have a power top or a complex frame
• Your car is older and you're not sure what's been replaced before
• You want one business responsible for parts and labor
• You'd like the shop to check pads, cables, weatherstripping, and frame adjustment

How Don's handles it

Don's sells convertible tops online with a year, make, and model selector, and we install tops at our shop. If you'd like us to supply and install your top, we'll confirm the right part for your car, check the related parts, and give you a free estimate first. Learn more about our convertible top replacement, or read how to choose a convertible top shop.

Call (708) 371-8020 Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., or send us your year, make, and model with photos.

Request a free estimate or call (708) 371-8020.