tonneau cover stretching?

[steve00136]

Anyone any ideas how to safely stretch a tonneau cover. Bought one recently that had been in storage many years for my mgb and obviously shrunk a good inch poss 2"!!
Thinking i might have to wait for a hot sunny day!

[Ian F]

Hi Steve, this is very topical as I had this problem yesterday on my Mk 1 Midget.

What I always do is put the tonneau in place as best I can, and then put a small fan heater in the cockpit under the tonneau (carefully!). This rapidly warms and softens the vinyl and it stretches easily into place. 2 inches may be a bit of a challenge though!

Ian F

[Ruabon Red]

I had the same problem with the tonneau that came with my car, a good inch and a half short.

I put it on the car as best I could last weekend, left it out in the sun and then put a hairdryer on it for ten minutes or so - job done! I've left it in place this week so that the cover keeps its newly found size when cold.

[steve00136]

Couple of good ideas. I'll give it a go - won't have to wait for summer!

[Ian McKay]

I had the same issue.

Rather that try and stretch it, I simply repositioned the 'Lift the Dot' eyelets to line up with the studs on the car body.

This does of course leave a small hole in the hood or tonneau where the car body stud was originally supposed to pass through, but in my book, that is a small price to pay.

If the 'Lift the Dot' eyelet only has to be moved a small distance, it could even completely cover the old hole, thereby concealing it.

The removal and repositioning of the eyelets is very simple, and it does then mean you will then have a perfectly fitting hood or tonneau, with no stretching, ripples or wrinkles......