Fitted (well nearly!) a KaYu hood to my Roadster.

I followed the instructions on the www.miata.net garage section (without removing the frame from the car) and have encountered a couple of hickups.

Firstly, you cannot get in to rivet the 2 (each side) that are inside the side panel without taking out the frame.... Or is it that these are not really important. Seems like the flap is just cosmetic rather that functional.

Secondly, the gluing bit on the top plate/rail. I bonded the leather to the top using the Kayu holes to line up with the holes in the frame, however this has made the end corners too loose and it sticks up, you can get you hand in between the hood and the side of the frame, and the hood looks ripply. Any cure?

Thirdly, Kayu Recommend fitting the corner guard or something. Its a metal strip that fits on the corner of the hood that moves when you fold the hood up and down, next to the back of the door window. After seeing the amount of damage that raising the roof a few times has caused, this is definitely a 'must' have item. Anyone now what I need to order from Mazda and the price and fitting of it?

Lastly, the area of the frame where there are 3 rivets and 3 screws is quite loose (bottom of third problem) how can you tighten this up? Is my hood now useless or can some professional rectify my mistakes and make it beautiful? It took me 6 hours! If I knew it was going to be that tough, I would have paid the 100 pounds to have it done professionally! BE WARNED!!! :) (7/01)

Seems like the flap is just cosmetic rather that functional.

At first, I put in a self-tapper here (we're talking about the bit of the frame that sticks out from behind the seats, right), but later I took the frame off to attend to a flap I had missed out on the "B-post"; Duetto had failed to mention this in their instructions, and its only really apparent when you've removed the frame.

Any cure?

The Duetteo hood didn't have any holes here; I used, as recommended, the front seam line. The seam has to sit just over the edge of the frame. Check though whether you have a flap down by the b-post. On mine, fitting this had the effect of tightening and pulling down the side seam. Also check your side cables are intact (you did thread them through the hood, didn't you?).

Anyone now what I need to order from Mazda and the price and fitting of it?

Dunno, probably disproportionatly expensive. Ka Yu can supply them.

Lastly, the area of the frame where there are 3 rivets and 3 screws is quite loose (bottom of third problem) how can you tighten this up?

Have to look where you mean.

Is my hood now useless or can some professional rectify my mistakes and make it beautiful? It took me 6 hours! If I knew it was going to be that tough, I would of paid the £100 to have it done professionally! BE WARNED!!! :)

Yeah, but some so-called pro-jobs have looked very amateurish. I spent the time, and my hood now has a very nice fit. Email me off list, and I'll send you a link to a much better set of instructions. Sounds like all it needs is a minor bit of fettling. In retrospect, it seems to me that frame off is definitely easier than frame on (done it both ways :( ) (7/01)