Welcome to the carbon fiber roof replacement DIY. While this is a DIY for the BRZ/FRS/86 chassis, this method can be applied to pretty much any steel body chassis where someone in the aftermarket is producing a carbon roof panel for.
Right off the bat, lets talk about the specs. The stock roof panel for the 86, while being small and sunroof-less, still weighs an astonishing 12lbs. The replacement carbon panel we will be replacing this with weighs in at 2lbs 5oz. The “roof” of the car is comprised of a few elements, namely the roof panel or roof skin and the roof frame structure. This roof structure is integral to the chassis and cannot be removed without turning the car into a wet noodle. We will be drilling out spot welds on the roof structure/frame and gluing our carbon panel onto it. Remove any ideas in your head about turning this car into a convertible now. Removal of the roof frames WILL make the passenger cabin unstable and unsafe in the event of a crash. The roof structure will remain intact for this walkthrough.
So your carbon fiber order showed up and your anxious to install it all. Great. So lets break this down. Throwing a bonnet or trunk on is easy enough. But the roof panel install is a big project. Plan on doing this over the course of two weekends. I opted to wait until the roof was complete to install my other bits as I didn’t want the glass guy scratching my new carbon parts.
Ease of install: 4/5. Difficult.
Prerequisite knowledge: drilling, spot weld removal, how epoxy works, windshield removal/replace
It is recommended to YouTube videos in any of these methods if you have never attempted it before.
Time to complete: one weekend if you are doing the windshields yourself or a friend that knows how, two weeks if you are relying on your local glass shop to R&R the front and back glass.
Items you will need:
A carbon fiber roof panel.
Trim tools
10mm socket
Flat head screwdriver
Razor blade
3m body panel adhesive 08115
Center punch tool
Spot weld drill bit
Hand drill
Wire wheel attachment
Sanding disc attachment with 120grit pads
Shop vac
Fabric drop cloth
Touch up paint
8-10 hand clamps. 2-4” c-clamps or 3” vice grips will work fine
Cardboard
Lint free microfibers.
Heavy weights (small tool boxes, paint cans, actual weights)
Roof panel in this walkthrough is from Joel at MPH. The carbon fiber from Joel at MPH is very high quality. He does not use any fiberglass in his parts, nor any gel coat. I had all of my parts clear coated by him with an automotive UV clear to protect the UV resitant resin in the carbon. There is no gel coat that will yellow over time with these panels.
http://www.marshpowerhousefab.com/pr...t86-roof-panel
Epoxy used. 3m 08115 body panel adhesive. I bought the combo off amazon with the special calking gun and mixing tips.
https://www.amazon.com/3M-Adhesive-M...words=08115+3m
Here is the time lapse video of my install. It does not cover glass R&R or a lot of cleanup in between steps.
The rest of the tutorial can be found below.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58Nn3cIiaGU[/ame]