Roof replacement
 

The rear window on the old hood came unstitched in the top corners. I ignored it hoping that would miraculously heal but it didn't. Now I am sat in the Car Hood Warehouse while I get a new car hood fitted. Apparently it is about a four hour job.

After 30 minutes it looked like this

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3912/3...c7f56104_c.jpg20170227_130000 by WCA!, on Flickr

Only took 2.5 hours. There was a normal Z3 in just before mine so he might have been quicker as he had just done one.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/724/33...b26d523d_c.jpg20170227_144444 by WCA!, on Flickr
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2947/3...b3ce58ff_c.jpg20170227_144438 by WCA!, on Flickr

Rear window was amazingly clear compared to the old one. Finish on the outside looks good.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/587/33...8cca19e1_c.jpg20170227_144502 by WCA!, on Flickr

Looks tidy.

Car Hood Warehouse near to Chessington World of Adventure

£435 for just the canvas or £600 for them to supply and fit while you sit in their waiting room (or wander over to the theme park to play)

It is important to keep the hood up permanently for the first few days, or preferably a week in this weather to allow the bonding agent to properly set.

It does look very smart at the moment.

Does the rear window still zip out?
It's my only way in if the central locking fails again (if I can fix it that is)

Does look very smart. I fitted a replacement soft top to my Stag many years ago and swore I wouldn't ever try another.

No - the zip out windows are only from BMW but also unzippable from the inside after you have cut free the zipper piece so probably not much use if you lock yourself out.

Cheaper to just smash the side window I would have thought than wreck the hood

You just have to prise the canvas away from the trim around the window and then just work a biro through the zip and gently work it around. No need on most cars but the 250 swb has no access to the door lock because of the skins.
I was considering a filing cabinet round lock. They are held in place with a locking nut that could be bonded inside the GRP skin. If the locking fails, put the key in and unscrew the lock, then you insert your key (would need to lengthen the shaft) through the hole to gain access to the original door lock. You just need to make sure you fit it in exactly the right position.
Let another decision I need to make before it goes to paint.

+1 from me: very smart and probably adds more than you spent to the value of the car to someone not in the know.

The rear window in mine zips out and is 3 years old now. Car lives outside so clouding slightly. I know that after the first time I use the cleaner, it will need doing often.

there not that far from me, I need a new hood also , how were they ?

The hood I was replacing wasn't original so didn't have the zip[ anyway.

They were fine to deal with. Contacted them through the website email and got a response within about 30 minutes confirming the price.

Asked when they could do it and they emailed back almost immediately with three dates.

I picked one date, sent my reg number and then turned up at the agreed time and date.

They have a small waiting room where you can sit for 3 hours using their free wifi or wander over to a garden centre, World of Adventure or other stuff. This is the boring time.

You then get your car back with a nice new hood.

They recommend that you don't lower the hood for the first few days in warm weather or up to a week in cold weather so I haven't actually lowered mine yet.

I can confirm that there are no leaks when left in a storm overnight or driven at 70mph through driving rain.

I see that there are various £200+ rear window repair services around and some £9 replacement zippers on eBay!!!
That makes the total hood replacement price you paid even better value.

Rear window repairs only work on the original hoods as most aftermarket ones are sewn in.

Also when you start pulling around 15 year old hoods and zippers the threads pull out really easily.

One of the guys at the fitters said they had a Z3 in recently where the owner had bought a window replacement, zipped it in place only to find the zip detaching from the hood.

Apparently pressure washing hoods at the local Polish car wash is terrible for ripping the tired thread open and once the sticthing starts to go there is little you can do to repair it

The zip beginning to detach from my roof is my problem. I have managed to sew it back but it won't take much more abuse.

With the original zip in windows you can get a replacement for £85 but you need a zip puller to fit it, hence the £8 zip pullers.
A new window transforms a roof and £85 is a lot less than £600 and I have found that the cheaper windows could do with replacing after 4 years.
I had my rear window replaced on my old E36. I just unzipped the window and sent it of to a trimmer who cut a new window to the pattern of my old window and sowed the original zip back on. Refitted it in 20 minutes and it looked like a new roof. No wrinkles at all.
A new roof on an E36 was over £1200 for an aftermarket roof.

The zip in windows are definitely better than the sewn in ones and much cheaper to replace when they go misty/crack.

One thing I did for my old window when I first got it was to use some car polish or t-cut (can't remember now but google it) to polish the outside surface and it radically improved the clarity. Not something that you can do too often but got rid of/reduced the big white crease mark mine had at the time