A few years ago, I inherited a 1989 Cadillac DeVille from my
grandfather. It had been sitting out in the open for about four years,
undriven, before I got to it. Regardless of that, it runs pretty good
and gets me where I need to go, but the vinyl top is completely
destroyed. It really can't even be considered vinyl anymore, it's more
of a sickly-gray fuzz. This ugly appearance wasn't even really a
problem to me, I'm not entering any car shows here, but in the last few
months, the roof has started leaking inside. When I first got the car,
I could see watermarks on the passenger side where it looked like it
had leaked previously, but never saw any actual water coming in. Now
it's leaking fairly heavily on the driver's side.

In the past, I kind of kicked around the idea of replacing the vinyl,
but it is really impossible for me financially, so I'm now considering
removing the old "vinyl," repairing the rust that is there and then
repainting it (which would be more cost effective for me, as my brother
is well-acquainted with such things, and could provide cheap labor and
assistance).

So I guess my question is, has anyone done this? Is there anything I
should know? Any problems or complications you had, or better
suggestions?? Should I just sell the old girl and get a Yugo?? Any
input is greatly appreciated.