Cleaning Convertible Top

RaggTopp.

I use regular car washing soap and the Raggtopp fabric protectant - but you may wish to get the Raggtopp cleaner as well. The protectant is simply sprayed on and works extremely well.

Ditto on RaggTopp, heard many good reviews. BMW's brand is good, too. You can get two sessions from the BMW bottle of protectant, as it is mixed with water. I clean our top in the Spring and Fall, but Z4 is garage-kept. The BNW cleaner works, only use it sparingly.

Bill Chesapeake, VA

I just use a scrub brush and soapy water to clean the top on my other convertible. Nothing too rough or too soft, I just need the bristles to get into the grain of the top material, and into the stitching without damaging anything.

I've used Autoglym's Cabriolet Hood Cleaner for our soft tops with great results. It cleans and then re-proofs the hood and protects it from staining. It's not cheap - so others might know of cheaper/better products. HTH Steve

Thanks. Amazon has it for sale at a better price. One review said it worked great after trial and error while the other review REALLY panned it.

You are welcome. As I didn't mean to infer that Autogeek had the best price, I'm glad you found the Amazon site. I read the review that panned it and it seems that this guy might have used the vinyl protectant on his boxster's cloth top - which is probably not a good idea. If not, then you might want to try it out on a small section of your top to see if you have the same discoloration issue he reported. As I've only used it on black tops, I haven't had this problem.

Tom K.

You should be using something else to clean it, too. The idea behind the top-specific cleaners is to prevent fade, both by using gentle detergents and adding UV protectants. The second stage products are to waterproof the top so that a really heavy rain won't soak it through and cause leaks. epbrown

-- "Everybody wants a normal life and a cool car; most people will settle for the car." Chris Titus

My top is light beige so I will be careful. It is a '05 Z4 which I bought used ($10k miles) and I don't think anybody has washed or treated it.

RaggTopp protectant specifically claims U.V. protection. As long as the top is cleaned (regular auto wash soap works just fine), I've never encountered any fade with this product.

Tom K.