540 vette

The tonneau cover on my convertible dosen't stay up. What holds it up. One of those pistons like on a trunk lid or some sort of spring and where can I get one. And how hard is it to replace.

65GGvert

Yes, gas strut, one on each side.

Accessible through the trunk, they're about 8" long. If either side is bad, the tonneau won't stay up. They run front to back just under the body at the top of each side of the trunk space.

540 vette

Thank you for the quick response. I guess I can get these at an auto supply stor. Autozone, Pep boys.......

65GGvert

I saw these on ebay. They'll give you an idea of what you're looking for.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-Corvette-S...item35aea408a1

jmsbank

I had this same problem and just completed this repair on my 2001 convertible, made a world of difference. I read several posts beforehand that indicated this was a difficult repair because of the accessibility of the struts, which are the parts that you will be replacing.

There is a service document that shows how to do this - unfortunately I don't have it for this post - which basically says to open the convertible cover first, pry the strut retaining clip up with a small screwdriver to remove the ball end, close the cover, open the trunk, and do the same for the remaining strut clip and remove. Apparently you can't have both covers open at the same time. The installation process is the reverse.

The accessibility issue is really on the ball end of the forward struts closest to the seats, and it is really hard to access following the service document. I found that the easiest way to do this was to FIRST pry up the strut clip from inside the trunk with the trunk lid open, insert the blade of the screwdriver all the way through the clip, close the trunk lid and then slowly raise the convertible cover.

If you've done it right, the forward strut end will be fully extended and the screwdriver will still be held in place by the strut clip, then simply pull it off the ball end. Follow the rest of the procedure to remove the entire strut. Repeat for the other side. Once I got the hang of it, it took me about 10 minutes per side.

One picture is worth a thousand words, but unfortunately I don't have one, hope this helps.

You can find these struts easily online for a little less, should be a little over $20 each, but I just bought them from my local dealer.

DeeGee

Here ya go:

Document ID# 656600
2002 Chevrolet Corvette
________________________________________
Folding Top Stowage Compartment Lid Struts Replace
Removal Procedure



1. Open the folding top stowage compartment.




2. Remove the forward end of the strut from the hinge ball stud.
3. Close the folding top stowage compartment lid.



4. Open the rear stowage compartment lid.
5. Remove the strut from the rear ball stud.
Installation Procedure
1. Open the rear stowage compartment lid.
2. Position the rod end of the strut through the access hole between the quarter panel and the support.
3. Install the strut to the rear ball stud.
4. Close the rear stowage compartment.
5. Open the folding top stowage compartment.
6. Install the rod end of the strut to the front of the hinge.
7. Close the folding top stowage compartment.
________________________________________
Document ID# 656600
2002 Chevrolet Corvette

540 vette

Thanks for your help guys.

headache57

Ok. I should have mentioned that it’s a power top. It doesn’t have a single piston in the middle of the tonneau cover. Plus I already did the fix for the tonneau cover hitting the rear glass Years ago and that’s not the issue. But I guess people hear tonneau cover and automatically think window problem. But I do appreciate t your responses.

Dads2kconvertible

@headache57 I think you replied to the wrong thread, this thread is from 2011.

hyperv6

I just pushed the strut down and strapped it. Snapped it on and then released the bull strap. It was easy.