T-top
Encyclopedia
Pillar (car)
Pillars are the vertical supports of the greenhouse of an automobile — known respectively as the A, B, C or D-pillar moving in profile view from the front to rear....
to the center of the next structural bar, the panels of a traditional T-top are usually made of auto grade safety glass.
The T-top was patented by Gordon Buehrig on June 5, 1951. It was used in the design of the unsuccessful TASCO sports car.
The 1968 Chevrolet Corvette
Chevrolet Corvette C3
The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors for the 1968 through 1982 model years. Corvette chief Zora Arkus-Duntov wanted a striking new Corvette; although engines and chassis components were mostly carried over from the previous generation, its...
coupe was the first U.S.-built production automobile to feature a T-top roof. This increased the popularity of the coupe, such that it outsold the convertible and later led to the discontinuation of the Corvette convertible after 1975 until it was revived in 1986. Post-C3 models were built with a targa top instead of a T-top.
The T-top was made famous in the movie Smokey & the Bandit, mainly because the 1977 Pontiac Trans Am driven by Burt Reynolds
Burt Reynolds
Burton Leon "Burt" Reynolds, Jr. is an American actor. Some of his memorable roles include Bo 'Bandit' Darville in Smokey and the Bandit, Lewis Medlock in Deliverance, Bobby "Gator" McCluskey in White Lightning and sequel Gator, Paul Crewe and Coach Nate Scarborough in The Longest Yard and its...
in the movie was outfitted with a T-top.
Examples of traditional T-Top
- Chevrolet CorvetteChevrolet CorvetteThe Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car by the Chevrolet division of General Motors that has been produced in six generations. The first model, a convertible, was designed by Harley Earl and introduced at the GM Motorama in 1953 as a concept show car. Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after...
(1968–1982) - Chevrolet CamaroChevrolet CamaroThe Chevrolet Camaro is an automobile manufactured by General Motors under the Chevrolet brand, classified as a pony car and some versions also as a muscle car. It went on sale on September 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year and was designed as a competing model to the Ford Mustang...
(1978–2002) - Chevrolet Monte CarloChevrolet Monte CarloThe Chevrolet Monte Carlo was an American-made two-door coupe introduced for model year 1970, and manufactured over six generations through model year 2007. It was marketed as a personal-luxury coupe through most of its history, with the last model version being classified as a full-sized coupe...
- Chrysler CordobaChrysler CordobaThe Chrysler Cordoba was an intermediate personal luxury coupe sold by Chrysler Corporation in North America from 1975-1983. It was the company's first model produced specifically for the personal luxury market and the first Chrysler-branded vehicle that was less than full-size.-History:In the...
- Datsun 280ZX
- Dodge MagnumDodge MagnumThe Dodge Magnum name has been used on a number of different automobiles. The most recent is a large rear-wheel drive station wagon introduced in 2004 for the 2005 model year and produced through to 2008. This new Magnum is Dodge's first car to use the new Chrysler LX platform, shared with the...
- Dodge MiradaDodge MiradaThe Dodge Mirada was a full-sized, rear-wheel drive coupe built from 1980–83, and was one of the three cars based on the Chrysler J platform, the other models being the second generation Chrysler Cordoba and the Imperial, these three vehicles being Chrysler's response to the downsizing of its car...
- Ford Thunderbird (7th generation)Ford Thunderbird (seventh generation)For the 1977 through 1979 model years, the Thunderbird nameplate was shifted to the smaller 114" wheelbase chassis that underpinned the 1972-76 Ford Torino and its replacement, the concurrent 1977-79 LTD II, as Ford's first effort at downsizing the car. The squarer, sharper styling was popular, and...
- Ford Mustang (2nd generation)
- Ford Mustang (3rd generation)
- Mercury CapriMercury Capri-First Generation :See also Ford CapriThe Mercury Capri was built in Cologne, Germany, and was sold through Lincoln-Mercury dealers in North America. The European Capri was first sold in the US in April 1970 and carried the Mercury marque identification as Ford already had a Mustang for the same...
- Nissan NXNissan NXThe Nissan NX is a car produced by Nissan Motors. The Nissan NX was essentially a B13 platform Nissan Sentra or Sunny with a different body shell...
- Nissan 300ZXNissan 300ZXThe Z31 chassis designation was first introduced in 1983 as a 1984 Nissan/Datsun 300ZX in the US only. The 300ZX, as its predecessors, was known as a Nissan in other parts of the world. This continued in the US until 1985 model year when Nissan standardized their brand name worldwide and dropped...
- Nissan EXANissan PulsarThe Nissan Pulsar is an automobile that was produced by the Japanese automaker Nissan from 1978, when it debuted as a subcompact car, to 2007, when it was replaced in all markets by the Nissan Tiida. It was originally conceived as a replacement for Nissan's first front-wheel drive platform, the...
- Nissan URGENissan URGEThe Nissan URGE is a concept car that debuted at the 2006 North American International Auto Show. Referred to as a "design exercise," many of the car's design elements were influenced by an internet survey aimed towards young automotive and video game enthusiasts. The design incorporates unique...
(concept) - Pontiac FieroPontiac FieroThe Pontiac Fiero is a mid-engined sports car that was built by the Pontiac division of General Motors from 1984 to 1988. The Fiero—meaning "proud" in Italian and "wild", "fierce", or "ferocious" in Spanish—was designed by George Milidrag and Hulki Aldikacti as a Pontiac sports car...
- Pontiac FirebirdPontiac FirebirdThe Pontiac Firebird was built by the Pontiac division of General Motors between 1967 and 2002. The Firebird was introduced the same year as the automaker's platform-sharing model, the Chevrolet Camaro...
/Pontiac Trans Am (1976–2002) - Pontiac Grand PrixPontiac Grand PrixPicking up where the Pontiac Ventura model left off, the Grand Prix first appeared in the Pontiac line for 1962. It was essentially a standard Pontiac Catalina coupe with minimal outside chrome trim and a sportier interior...
- Rover 200 Coupe (1992-1999)
- Oldsmobile Cutlass SupremeOldsmobile Cutlass SupremeThe Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme was a mid-size car produced by General Motors for the American market. It was always at the top of the Cutlass range. It began as a trim package, developed its own roofline, and eventually was mechanically divorced from the later, smaller Cutlasses.The Cutlass Supreme...
- Suzuki Cappucino (has an optional solid roof which can be converted into a T-top)
- Suzuki X-90Suzuki X-90The Suzuki X-90 was a small SUV sold from 1996 through 1998. It was related to the Suzuki Sidekick, but had extremely rounded styling, two doors, seating for two and T-section removable roof. It replaced the Samurai for the United States market....
- Subaru BratSubaru BRATThe Subaru BRAT was the coupe utility version of the Subaru Leone from the 1970s...
- Toyota MR2Toyota MR2The Toyota MR2 is a two-seat, mid-engined, rear wheel drive sports car produced by Central Motors, a part of Toyota, from 1984 until July 2007 when production stopped in Japan...
(AW11/SW20/SW21/SW22)