I'm a green-horn SMB owner. I was pushing the PH top up from the the middle of the roof (not pushing from the area with the handles), and I heard what sounded like a snap. I looked on top of the van and didn't see any cracks in the fiberglass roof, or saggs. Do you think I damaged a stringer inside the top, or something else ? Can I live with this as long as I keep the snow loads off? Thanks!
Any noise the actual top would make is a more creaky stressed fiberglasss sound than a snap. The very thin plywood/masonite stuff they use could certainly crack, and it's spaced off a little, so if you pushed in a place where it had space to bend..
But was it loud? Could it be hardware? I'd check both side springs/chains/blocks etc, as well as the bolts in the X's. I can't imagine they would break without you knowing it (the top would slump).. but it's possible a bolt cracked and still stayed wedged in enough to hold the top.
If you don't have any physical evidence on the inside or out and the top still lifts and lowers evenly then you are probably fine. Of course it's impossible to tell if maybe you cracked the wood inside the top but I doubt it would weaken the top honestly. Sportsmobile tops are prone to occasional noises, but it's usually the spring/lift mechanism settling or evening itself.
The bolts in the in the lifting mechanism have been known to break..quite a few instances of that here on the forum....as rally mentioned perhaps one broke but is still somewhat in place.
It's probably wise to peel back the upholstery and have a look.....should be obvious.
Jiminy
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