Removable roof for a motor vehicle and method of making same

Removable roof, for a passenger car of the sports car type, between a windshield frame and a rollover bar system, which roof is made of a plastic material and comprises an exterior wall as well as an interior wall,

• wherein the exterior wall and the interior wall of the roof are made of a high-strength plastic material and form a rigid member connection, the exterior wall and the interior wall meeting only at edge zones of the roof,
• wherein in a longitudinal sectional view of the roof, at least the interior wall adjacent to a forward edge zone and adjacent to a rearward edge zone is provided with a first profiling and a second profiling respectively,
• wherein adjacent to the second profiling, a third profiling is provided, a shaping-in for receiving a manual lever of a roof locking device being provided between the second profiling and the third profiling,
• wherein in a cross-sectional view of the roof, fourth profilings are provided on lateral edge zones adjoining door window glass panes of doors of a vehicle body,
• wherein each fourth profiling has a U-shaped cross-section, which is open toward one of the door window glass panes and is constructed for receiving a sealing body for the door window glass pane,
• wherein two roof elements are formed with respective exterior and interior walls, said roof elements being fitted together in use in a longitudinal center plane of the passenger car,
• wherein the roof elements have a fifth profiling and a sixth profiling at respective edge zones facing the longitudinal center plane,
• wherein the sixth profiling has a U-shaped cross-section which is rotated by 90° with respect to the longitudinal centerplane and is open toward the fifth profiling, an interior leg thereof carrying a second sealing body, and
• wherein the second sealing body comprises a first sealing lip, a hose body and a second sealing lip, which sealing lips bound the hose body on longitudinal sides thereof.

A removable roof element for a passenger car, comprising:

• a plastic exterior wall having edge zones around its periphery,
• a plastic interior wall having edge zones around its periphery, said exterior wall and interior wall being spaced from one another except at the edge zones, and
• connecting means for connecting the exterior wall and interior wall together only at said edge zones,
• wherein the exterior wall and the interior wall extend at a mutual distance with respect to one another along a significant area delimited by inwardly expanded interior wall profilings, and
• wherein the interior wall includes a shaping-in used for receiving a manual lever of a roof locking device interacting between the roof and said rollover bar section.

A method of making a removable roof element for a passenger car, comprising:

• forming a plastic exterior wall with edge zones around its periphery,
• forming a plastic interior wall with edge zones around its periphery and including a shaping-in used for receiving a manual lever of a roof element locking device interacting between the roof element and a rollover bar section of the passenger car,
• placing the exterior wall and said interior wall with their respective edge zones facing one another and with remaining portions of the exterior wall and interior wall spaced from one another, and
• connecting the exterior and interior walls only at said edge zones so that the exterior wall and the interior wall extend at a mutual distance with respect to one another along a significant area delimited by inwardly expanded interior wall profilings.