94-04 Mustang : Replace Worn Out Convertible Top Cylinders

NOTE: This is a great write-up and I followed it / learned a lot from it:

https://stangnet.com/mustang-forums/t...

kudos to Oh3Yeller on StangNet for a great write-up!

The cylinders I bought:

https://a.co/d/01P35ee


STEPS

Remove seats
Flat Screw Driver
Metric wrench for rear seat back varies based upon year.

Remove seat belt bolts near floor pan. (T40)

Remove floor panel plastic floor / door trim with hands.

Remove side plastic pieces
Plastic Push Pin Fasteners x 4

Remove speaker boxes --
3x T20 screws
Unhook connectors each side x 2.

Run Top Up and look for leaks.

Undo headliner trim just behind rear window (by hand).

Remove the cylinder actuator pins : 1x T40 per side.

Cut any cable ties that are holding lines to car body, taking note of location.

Remove the cylinder pivot retainer nuts and retainers
(my car had M13)

Run the top actuators up and down detached from the roof.
(watch for fluid leak locations -- confirm it is just the cylinders)
NOTE: if the lines are leaking, replace the lines along with the cylinders.

Place new cylinder next to old one, transfer lines.
M11 (my car)
Crescent wrench to hold the square line end.
Paper towels.
NOTE: Inspect new cylinders & new o-rings.

IMPORTANT: Transfer the lines one at a time making sure you keep the
orientation the same.

For my cylinders I tightened the lines until they seated and
then carefully worked them tighter until the square part of
the line that I was holding with the crescent wrench no longer
turned freely. Anything less tight and they leaked around the
thread. I did not use Teflon tape of any kind.

TEST cylinders before bolting in place!

Use Dextron III fluid.
Tools: A Bulb Turkey baster.

Run the top up and down with the lines attached but without attaching the cylinder hardware & watch for fluid leakage.

Add fluid if you hear excessive whining / gurgling.

NOTE: The plug just pulls out with perseverance and patience.

NOTE: Use a bulb turkey baster to add fluid as needed.

NOTE: I did my cylinders one at a time and tested independently but this could have been done with both replaced.

You will hear gurgling from the pump until it has enough fluid and there should be no sputtering as well, which indicates air in the lines. Keep adding fluid until the cylinders are going up and down smoothly and quietly.

Also make sure that the fluid reservoir is topped off. Fluid should be level with the bottom of the fill hole in the pump reservoir, which is hard to tell but with the turkey baster, not impossible.

Reassembly Begins
Tools: M13 and T40
Lube: Teflon spray lubricant

Replace the cylinders in their mount after spraying the pivots with Teflon lubrication. This includes the ends that attach to the top.

Replace the cylinder retainer steel parts and the nut that holds them to the body.
Tighten the nuts.

Use thread lock on the T40 bolt pins before putting them into part that actuates the top.

Note: The top should be in the UP position and the cylinders should be fully extended.

You can wiggle the top a bit to get the hole to align and you can also work the switch for the top action
slightly up and down to align the cylinder hole with the top.

Tighten the T40 pin for both cylinders and you're ready to test.

Test Top, it should go up and down fairly quickly and quietly.

Reinspect for leaks.

Re-install cable ties holding cylinder lines to body (same ones you cut earlier). NOTE: this isn't captured on the video.

Component Install

Reinstall speaker boxes and re-attach speaker connectors, 2 per side.
Torx T20, 3 each side.

Reinstall seat side pieces
Run seat belt through hole and re-attach T40 torx at bottom.
Replace plugs:
2-3 in seat back area (per side)
1 near top seat area in the middle of the side piece near top.
1 near floor carpet area across seat bottom brace.
2 small ones on a rubber flap.

Replace seat back and re-attach bottom bolts or screws on older models,
taking care to have seat belts in front of seat.

Replace seat bottom and snap into place, running back seat belt bases through holes.

Leave a comment if this video helped you or especially if you have advice and tips. These cylinders lasted
over 25 years on my car and its not like I do this kind of work often.

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