Opening roof while doing 20mph

[wanda]

I am not sure about it but I saw a lady in a 307cc doing just that and nothing went wrong. Why do they say you shouldnt?

[onlyme]

i dare say if the wind was in the right direction what you saw could have been very different!

[k993802]

I'd imagine it is all down to design.

For quite a few years the Porsche 911 has had the ability to drop its roof at up to 30mph (pretty coll when you think about it).
Its entirely possible that the Peugeot cc may have been designed to permit the roof being dropped at 20mph.

All I know about my 04 Megane CC is that I can't drop the roof at anything over 5mph and that if I am in the middle of dropping the roof and move over 5pmh, the roof drop process stops - which was a bit embarrasing! lol! That said, as its sensor based, I'm sure there's a workaround - problem is, the roof mechanism is unlikely to have been engineered to perform its graceful foldaway at any driving speed other than stationary!

Oh and i'll mention that I have no idea if future Megane CC's have this drive & drop functionality - only that my 04 version can't/won't do it!

[wanda]

i agree i am too scared to try it with mine, i will ask the opinion of a mechanic friend of mine

[Toodeep]

I am not sure about it but I saw a lady in a 307cc doing just that and nothing went wrong. Why do they say you shouldnt?

I feel as though some mechanisms would have an undue strain placed upon them by the parachute effect or going over a pothole or speed hump if not designed for this but the main reason is that it is illegal if the open bootlid would obscure the lights, specifically the brake light. I don't have a Megane CC nor have I seen one with the roof being deployed but it appears to me that the boot deck would obscure the lights while it is open to accept the roof. So even if it is feasible to override this restriction, you would

1. Potentially end up with a roof that opens at any speed (even those that allow opening whilst on the move accept that around 30mph is the limit to achieve this without damage).

2. Run the risk of a fully-laden 40 footer running into the back of you when the driver hasn't realised you've braked in the quarter mile you might cover while the roof is deploying.

[Meggyman]

Tried to drop mine whilst moving and anything over walking pace stops the process with a loud beep and the dashboard telling you to refer to the manual. Stop the car and it happily continues to stow it away.

[ChrisM]

Don't think I would want to, to be honest, that is an awful lot of weight to be pushed against with a 20mph wind, the hindge mecanism is not that substantial to withstand that kind of presure. mine takes about 26 seconds or so to drop and raise, so it is no hardship to pull over those few seconds.
It amazes me how many people have "forgoten" what it was like to own an old convertable, Spitfire, MG Roadster or the midget, even th TR7's where a pain in the bum, having to manually take down the roof and fold it so it lays flat on the boot, streching the cover to pop the prestuds on when you raise it braking nails doing so, plastic "yellowing" rear screens so you can't see nothing rearwards, then the rain ingress through the side flaps, wind noise from the plastic roof and the COLD in winter, my Spitfire and my TR where constantly full of water in winter and so cold no A/C there it took a good few minutes to take the roof off and put it on so when it rained you got a soaking anyway, now sit there and press a button, heated seats, A/C to warm you and dry it out, oh the luxury of it all!I spoke to a chap in Lidal the other weekend in a 307cc with his roof UP!!! I asked him why, his reply, "oh I couldn't be bothered to lower it!" BOTHERED????? you press a button, it does it for you, you don't even have to reach up and un-lock the roof anymore.
Luxury - Pure Luxury!

[wanda]

Don't think I would want to, to be honest, that is an awful lot of weight to be pushed against with a 20mph wind, the hindge mecanism is not that substantial to withstand that kind of presure. mine takes about 26 seconds or so to drop and raise, so it is no hardship to pull over those few seconds.
It amazes me how many people have "forgoten" what it was like to own an old convertable, Spitfire, MG Roadster or the midget, even th TR7's where a pain in the bum, having to manually take down the roof and fold it so it lays flat on the boot, streching the cover to pop the prestuds on when you raise it braking nails doing so, plastic "yellowing" rear screens so you can't see nothing rearwards, then the rain ingress through the side flaps, wind noise from the plastic roof and the COLD in winter, my Spitfire and my TR where constantly full of water in winter and so cold no A/C there it took a good few minutes to take the roof off and put it on so when it rained you got a soaking anyway, now sit there and press a button, heated seats, A/C to warm you and dry it out, oh the luxury of it all!I spoke to a chap in Lidal the other weekend in a 307cc with his roof UP!!! I asked him why, his reply, "oh I couldn't be bothered to lower it!" BOTHERED????? you press a button, it does it for you, you don't even have to reach up and un-lock the roof anymore.
Luxury - Pure Luxury!

Funny those Pegeot drivers

[nipper9]

I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would take the risk of opening a heavy glass roof at any speed. Absolute madness! and, I suggest if you value a CC without leaks do not operate the roof mechanism at all except on a reasonably flat even surface. Oh and stay away from speed humps if possible to avoid twisting the body too much. The scuttle shake is already sufficient!
I have no experience of leaks etc. but common sense would tell me not to risk damage to the roof by trying to open it on the move.
We are on the second and unfortunately the last of the CC, a 1.5 106ps Dynamique S on a 59 plate in ruby red. Bought it in L'pool at a price we couldn't pass up as there is heavy discounting to get rid of the last of the production. It is fast enough for us oldies and the colour is just amazing with the silver roof line.

[wanda]

I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would take the risk of opening a heavy glass roof at any speed. Absolute madness! and, I suggest if you value a CC without leaks do not operate the roof mechanism at all except on a reasonably flat even surface. Oh and stay away from speed humps if possible to avoid twisting the body too much. The scuttle shake is already sufficient!
I have no experience of leaks etc. but common sense would tell me not to risk damage to the roof by trying to open it on the move.
We are on the second and unfortunately the last of the CC, a 1.5 106ps Dynamique S on a 59 plate in ruby red. Bought it in L'pool at a price we couldn't pass up as there is heavy discounting to get rid of the last of the production. It is fast enough for us oldies and the colour is just amazing with the silver roof line.

Welcome to the club I have the same engine on mine and I must say its not really that slow. So what mpg are you getting?

[nipperdog]

I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would take the risk of opening a heavy glass roof at any speed. Absolute madness! and, I suggest if you value a CC without leaks do not operate the roof mechanism at all except on a reasonably flat even surface. Oh and stay away from speed humps if possible to avoid twisting the body too much. The scuttle shake is already sufficient!
I have no experience of leaks etc. but common sense would tell me not to risk damage to the roof by trying to open it on the move.
We are on the second and unfortunately the last of the CC, a 1.5 106ps Dynamique S on a 59 plate in ruby red. Bought it in L'pool at a price we couldn't pass up as there is heavy discounting to get rid of the last of the production. It is fast enough for us oldies and the colour is just amazing with the silver roof line.

Welcome to the club I have the same engine on mine and I must say its not really that slow. So what mpg are you getting?

Goodness gracious,I did not think for a moment that I would warrant a reply!! We love the car, although it took a bit of getting used to after the truly superb three door hatch with all the gizmos. As for mpg, a paltry 42.

[JasonS]

I'm careful where I open and close my roof, I'm always worried there won't be enough clearance in multi-story car parks..

I'll admit that it although it would be cool (and useful) to be able to close the roof when on the move, especially on one of those days where it looks like it will rain, but you chance it anyway, then you end up on the M25 in traffic and are never sure if you'll have enough time to put it up when the inevitable drips start coming in..

My previous convertible was an Audi 80 Cabriolet, that had to be stationary as well, with all the doors closed.
It was Audi's first convertible, so they went all out on roof sensors and microswitches, so much that if the roof decided not to work, there was quite a list of checks to be carried out to get it happy again.. Also, having a plastic rear screen, it couldn't be operated below 5C as the screen could crack..

Fortunately I never had any trouble with mine..

I read that on the later Audi A4 Cabriolet, they did away with a lot of the sensors and allowed the roof to retract when on the move.. However, if something went wrong during the process, the roof would continue to move and could crunch itself up..

[davelowe]

I realise that this is going to sound something of an odd question, but here goes: why would anyone want a car without a 'proper roof'?

[wanda]

I realise that this is going to sound something of an odd question, but here goes: why would anyone want a car without a 'proper roof'?

Because its "cool"

[ChrisM]

davelowe wrote:
I realise that this is going to sound something of an odd question, but here goes: why would anyone want a car without a 'proper roof'?

It has got a proper roof, it just folds up and stacks in the boot on the odd occasion we get some sun in the UK.....