Sales were low, but the Eldorado Seville with its vinyl roof was produced until 1960. The fabric was applied over a thin pad with two parallel seams running the length of the roof to mimic the appearance of a convertible model. The recommended cleaning methods were the same for the Eldorado as regular convertible tops. Probably the first modern vinyl roof as it would later be accepted was the 1956 Cadillac Eldorado Seville that came standard with a roof covered in an early vinyl material called "Vicodec" which was simply diamond point convertible fabric. įor the 1959 model year, the Chrysler's Imperial featured a Landau top and the 1959 Desoto Adventurer Sportsman hardtop had a full roof that was not covered with vinyl, but both models had a textured black paint that was designed to look like leather. Lincoln simulated the appearance of a convertible on some Cosmopolitan coupes in the 1950s, as did the Kaiser on Manhattan sedans, although the material was still canvas as was used on the folding tops of convertibles of the time instead of vinyl. In addition to numerous standard equipment and features such as 14- karat gold plated hood ornament and nameplates, the cars special upholstery and padded roof now featured a grass-patterned "Bambu" vinyl. The interior vinyl upholstery featured simulated reptile pattern and an optional padded vinyl covered roof with a lizard skin pattern that was named "Dinosaur." The automaker introduced a special luxury model, the Kaiser Dragon for the 1953 model year. Kaiser Motors introduced a unique trim option in 1951 for their all-new full-size four-door sedans. This was not popular and the vinyl-covered models were discontinued the following year as Ford introduced pillarless hardtop models for 1951. Because Ford did not have a hardtop body style offered by General Motors and Chrysler, a vinyl-covered roof was optional on the 1950 two-door Ford Crestliner, Mercury Monterey, and Lincoln Lido models as an effort to simulate the look of a convertible. The pillarless hardtop body style was introduced to resemble convertibles. This four-door sedan model was a fixed-roof version of the Kaiser Manhattan four-door convertible and the roof was covered with the same nylon fabric as the convertible. Smoother, pontoon bodies began to be fashionable with metal.Īfter World War II, the first example of using a fabric-covered top as a styling element, rather than a functional accessory, was the 1949 Kaiser Virginian. The technique fell out of favor in the 1930s as painted steel was considered a better roof. This Model "A" Special Coupe's vinyl roof had two exposed seams on the back corners, with a lateral seam on the top covered with a narrow trim strip. The use of vinyl to cover the roofs of regular automobiles was to "give fixed-roof cars some of the flair and appeal of their convertible counterparts." An example is the 1928 - 1929 Ford Model "A" Special Coupe, featuring a roof completely covered with a vinyl-like material. Some coverings replicated the appearance of a movable top, similar to those on horse carriages, along with landau bars. Other materials included leather and canvas. The vinyl roof cover was during the 1920s as a necessity to keep precipitation from occupants of the car. Vinyl roofs were also popular on European- (especially UK-) and Japanese-built cars during the 1970s, and tended to be applied to sporting or luxury trim versions of standard saloon (sedan) models. Vinyl roofs were most popular in the American market, and they are considered one of the period hallmarks of the 1970s domestic cars. This covering was originally designed to give the appearance of a convertible to models with a fixed roof and eventually evolved into a styling statement in its own right. Vinyl roof refers to a vinyl covering for an automobile's top. 1975 Opel Manta with factory fitted vinyl roof 1971 Humber Sceptre MK III with factory fitted vinyl roof Lincoln Town-Car with vinyl roof 1976 Toyota Corona Mark II 1972 Nissan Laurel 1980 Lincoln Mark VI with canvas look "Grand Floridian" aftermarket top on a Toyota
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