Roof off or on dilemma

[s5tuart]

When parking my Chim in public car parks I always put the roof back on. Recently I have seen a few other convertibles parked in the likes of Sainsburys with the roofs down and the owners gone shopping.
Being such a PITA to put the roof on, is it worth the risk to leave it off, and how would the insurance be affected if the car did go missing whilst left open?

[ShadownINja]

It's a risk. Check your insurance - mine used to say that it was not covered if I left the roof off. Mind you, if someone really wanted to get the roof off to steal the car, it isn't difficult (if you/thief don't mind causing damage).

[bigdods]

Tesco express (small parade of shops ), local tesco which is just outside of town, or parked in the centre of our very small town - roof off.

Public surface or multistory car park in larger towns town roof has to go on. Anywhere that there are likely to be a significant number of people around I tend to put the roof on.

Sometimes I break my own rules and put the back section and windows up then set the alarm, but only if I will be back shortly.

Oh and if you leave the top off take everything out of the car that you dont want to lose. IME people will, given the opportunity take pens, lighters, packets of mints - even the ciggy lighter knob .

[V8 GRF]

There was a discussion about this on the TVRCC site a few months (year?) ago and the feedback from insurance companies was if you left the roof down but the car locked you'd be insured for theft of the car, you wouldn't, quite logically in my opinion, be covered for any loose items you'd left in view. Which actually is the same if you leave your laptop in full view on the back seat of your locked eurobox.

I think as people say use discretion, busy street in a nice area leave the roof off, multistorey carpark or dodgy area roof on. Be careful parking unbder trees as well unless you want bird mess all over the interior.

[x 7usc]

if its not going to rain i always leave mine off and doors locked, never had a problem yet

[.Mark]

x 7usc said:

if its not going to rain i always leave mine off and doors locked, never had a problem yet

+1 and even when I thought it wasn't going to rain but did.

[quattrophenia]

Unfortunately I am so paranoid about my car that I dare not leave it anywhere. I am still in the honeymoon period I guess and I know that in order to fully enjoy the car and get it on some long distance runs, I will have to eventually lock it up and walk away! I can’t stop worrying about it once my back is turned though.
In lue of my obvious paranoia, and in answer to your question, I would leave the roof up.

[scotty_d]

quattrophenia said:

Unfortunately I am so paranoid about my car that I dare not leave it anywhere. I am still in the honeymoon period I guess and I know that in order to fully enjoy the car and get it on some long distance runs, I will have to eventually lock it up and walk away! I can’t stop worrying about it once my back is turned though.
In lue of my obvious paranoia, and in answer to your question, I would leave the roof up.

I am still the same two and a half years on, only leave the roof down at home or if round at a mates but never in public.

[Hoover.]

never really thought about it... the roof is such a pain I leave it at home nearly all the time.

Infact I don't how long I've been leaving my car unlocked, as I found the the locking door solanoid was not was working.... but for how long for

[Don]

If I am just stopping for a few minutes I'll leave the roof off - but I never park the car anywhere dodgy anyway, it just isn't worth it. If the car will be out of sight and I will be away a little longer I put the roof on.

I can do the whole roof thing in well under a minute anyway so it's not a great hardship.

The reason I started always putting the roof on every time the car was out of sight was when I discovered that some utter st at Windsor rail station had decided to flick his (lit) cigarette butt at the car. It caught in one of the bonnet vents and burned down slowly leaving a burn and damaged paintwork. If it had gone in the cabin the car would likely have gone up.

[jessica]

just make sure you tape the tax disc holder closed. Makes it harder to just reach in and take.

[Daston]

I once sat through a whole meal at a pub with the roof off. Every valuable taken out of the car exept the keys in the ignition luck would have it 80% of the cars in the carpark were TVR's as well.

Lesson learned and all that!

[Kwacker]

It is only a car at the end of the day. And if someone wants to nick it, steal from it, or deface it in some way, roof on or roof off isn't going to make a lot of difference.
But common sense should prevail and don't leave valuables in sight.

Get your top off! Thats why you bought it!!!!

Kwacler

[LordGrover]

The worst that's happened to mine was a bunch of kids half filling the fecking thing with conkers when I left it sans la lid at the gym. They must've sat on the wall lobbing them in for an hour.

[JonathanT]

Kwacker said:

roof on or roof off isn't going to make a lot of difference

I agree, the main deciding factor for me is whether or not it's going to rain.... Anything valuable (not that there's much) goes in the boot.

[jmorgan]

Kwacker said:

It is only a car at the end of the day. And if someone wants to nick it, steal from it, or deface it in some way, roof on or roof off isn't going to make a lot of difference.
But common sense should prevail and don't leave valuables in sight.

Get your top off! Thats why you bought it!!!!

Kwacler

Yeah but lets not help them (tea leaves) and the hassle sorting it out and it will result in threads on PH with people telling you you should have put the lid up.


Personally I put the lid on, doesn't take long. Added to which, should I wish to leave it off, I have fitted a secure tax disk holder to stop any temptation.