1976 Eldorado Convertible top issue

[Mihai Tarţa]

Last time I've tried to close the top on my '76 Eldo, I couldn't lock it in place on the right(passenger's) side because the locating pin is about half an inch further (forward) and about a quarter of an inch towards the left from the position of the hole.
I've read in the Fisher body manual that this condition is corrected by screwing the set screw in, but how on earth could this have come about?! Is this a common situation, or could it be an indication of some other problem?

The top was installed by the previous owner and since I've bought the car, I've opened and closed it for about 12-14 times. Also, the car sat in the garage with the top lowered for about the last 3 months. (btw...is it important how it's parked, as in top up or top down?).

I'll check whether the locating pin is in it's proper position, and then attempt to correct this via the set screw, unless someone can point out another possible problem which might need to be addressed first.

Please let me know what else to check.

Thanks,
Mihai Tarta

[TJ Hopland]

Are you talking about the 'peg' that goes in the hole on the top of the windshield frame that was out of alignment?   Or the hook part?  I think the hook is the part that can be rotated, I don't think the peg can be moved.   Disclaimer:  I was just working on the Wife's car and I'm too lazy to go out and look at the Caddy to refresh my memory.


It has been discussed and debated here and other forums if you should keep top up or down and most 'top guys' say keep em up.
Most owners seem to say and practice keeping them up.   
Do people leave them down?  Yes they do.   
Do some not seem to have any issues from leaving them down for extended periods?   Yes
Do some people have issues (like the one you describe) from leaving them down?  Yes

The Wife and I have for the most part kept em up.   All but one of the convert owners I know keep them up but one and she and her car got very wet a few weeks ago when it started pouring rain on an otherwise sunny day.   2 other guys and I had to go out and help her get it latched so she could drive home.   Apparently she leave it down all summer, it only goes up in the winter.  Apparently its an older top. 

It seems to depend on the age, quality, and condition of the top.    When I got my car 20+ years ago it had a fairly new top on it.  Leaving it down overnight it was very difficult to get it to latch.    3-4 years ago before I replaced it I could leave it down for weeks and unless it was cold out it would latch just fine.   My new top which is less than a year old if its down all day and its a cooler night it can be a little tricky to get it to latch.   I get it up as far as it will go then let it sit that way for maybe 30 minutes then I can latch it.   That works fine in your garage but would be a big pain if you got caught in the rain while you were out somewhere.    The wife's Mustang is pretty much the same so its not just a scissors top issue.

[Mihai Tarţa]

It's the peg. The hook from the latch can grab the notch in the windshield frame, but I can't close the latch because the locating pin (peg) rests on the frame of the windshield instead of lining up with the hole like it's supposed to.

[Scot Minesinger]

The relationship from the hook to peg should remain in adjustment.  It may be that the latch that has the hook is out of adjustment and loose and that is how it shifted.  On the other side the peg and hook might be two inches apart for example, this relationship is fixed and independent of top frame alignment.  Either hook and peg are both off or it lines up, but not one fits and the other does not.

[Mihai Tarţa]

I don't quite understand. Would you please elaborate?
Thanks

The hook lines up with its coresponding notch in the windshield frame. The peg does not line up with the hole. It's a little too forward and a little towards the left(inside) from where it's supposed to be. It's not that far off...only enough not to line up with the hole. It's off maybe by something between 1/4 and 3/8 inch
I don't know whether the latch would close in this position or not. Given that the peg rests on the windshield frame instead of going into the hole, I can't test that. Maybe the latch is a little off as well.

So what should I do? Should I try to adjust the set screw to try to get the peg not to go too far forward, or do you think the issue lies elsewhere?

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

Don't forget that you have to locate the left peg into the windscreen socket first, as that is a hole, whereas the right hand hole is an actual slot.

This allows for slight adjustment and flexibility.

The factory manual shows ways of trimming the pegs to gain improved weather sealing across the top of the screen, and I have done this myself, but it ended up that this didn't fix my problem.

If your pins don't fit, then you need to investigate other alignment issues.

Bruce.