Parts for this job
This guide is for the VW EuroVan Camper built by Winnebago (EVC), long wheelbase, 1995 to 2003. It walks through replacing the pop-top canvas (the tent) with the roof left on the van.
How this guide was made. It is compiled from public write-ups by owners who did the job (links at the end) and from our customers' own experience. We have not yet filmed this swap ourselves. Where a point is not confirmed by any source or by our workshop, it says so.
At a glance
- Time: reports range from about 2½ hours to 8 hours with the roof on the van. One owner wrote "2.45 hours" and said others reported 5+. A video installer said "about 3 to 4 hours". Two of our customers: about 5½ hours, and 6 to 8 hours over 3 work sessions with no prior experience. Plan for an afternoon, maybe two, and a helper.
- The roof stays on the van. One owner who does these says taking the roof off is "100X harder" than fitting the canvas with the roof on.
- Do not skip: wash the van, label every bracket, mark the centre of the front and the rear of the new canvas.
Check you have the right canvas: this one is for the long-wheelbase Winnebago EuroVan camper. It does not fit the short-wheelbase Weekender or California. Not sure? Send us a photo of your roof.
What you need
- A fully charged drill. Owners say there are a lot of screws.
- A bucket or tray for the screws, a marker, masking tape for labels
- A ladder and a helper
- A small punch, for making pilot holes through the new canvas
- A washer, to hold the canvas centre while you tack it
- Silicone, for the roof rack channels, the rubber stoppers and the canvas edges. Owners do not name a brand. (not yet confirmed by our workshop)
- Mineral spirits for old silicone: one viewer of a video wrote that scraping took 5 hours and mineral spirits took the rest off in about 20 minutes (a single comment). (not yet confirmed by our workshop)
- Your phone, to photograph each step
Before you start
- Check the new canvas. Unfold it and make sure it is the right way round, not upside down or inside out. One owner says his was clearly marked top and bottom. (not yet confirmed by our workshop) Compare it with the old canvas: size, windows, zips. If something is wrong, contact us before you start.
- Wash the van. The new canvas gets pulled over the van and hangs down the sides.
- Dry day, roof up (our advice). Work with the roof raised and a helper on the ladder. Some owners remove the beds and the front bed board to reach the rear bracket.
- Replace worn parts now (our advice). If the roof seal or the gas struts are worn or leaking, change them while the canvas is off.
Step 1: Photograph and label
Photograph the whole roof, every bracket and every screw group. Put a piece of masking tape on each grey aluminium bracket (front, rear, left, right, top, bottom) as you remove it, with a mark on the outside edge so you can still see it after the new canvas is on.
Step 2: Take the old canvas off
Remove the screws holding the aluminium brackets and the old canvas. Work from the sides toward the front and the rear so the brackets are not stressed as the weight drops.
One owner's order: top front, top rear, then the two bottom brackets last. Another owner, doing only the tent: a rubber gasket holds the lower part of the tent in (remove it) and an aluminium rail holds the upper part (unscrew it); the old tent then loops off over the top.
The old canvas is siliconed to the roof. Tug it loose, pull it back toward the rear and lift it off, with the ladder.
Step 3: Clean the channels
- Remove the front luggage rack, as one owner did. (not yet confirmed by our workshop)
- Clean the roof rack channels.
- Re-silicone the black rubber stoppers at the front and rear. They keep water out of the van.
- Remove old sealant from the edges (see mineral spirits above).
- Check the frame, seal and struts for cracks (our advice).
Step 4: Mark the new canvas
Find the centre of the front panel and mark it at the very top with a small marker mark. Do the same on the rear panel. Keep the rope that is sewn into the top and bottom of the canvas where it is: it stops the fabric tearing when the screws go in.
Step 5: Fit the new canvas
This is the order one owner used for his first Winnebago swap.
- Tack the top centre. Find the centre top bracket screw in the roof behind the "super safety latch". Tack the canvas centre there (use a washer if needed). Do not install the brackets yet.
- Rear upper bracket first. Fit the rear part of the rear upper bracket first. It is awkward, but easier early. Removing the beds and the front bed board gives room.
- Line up the rope. Pinch the canvas to the roof with one hand and pull the rope toward the bracket with the other. The rope should sit against the bracket the same way it did on the old canvas.
- Finish the rear upper bracket, then the rear lower bracket. Keep it tight side to side but leave some slack up and down. Stay at the rear for now.
- Front. Remove the tack screw. Line the canvas up on the bracket using the existing hole in the canvas.
- Front upper bracket. Start with the middle screw, then work left and right, keeping the canvas tight across.
- Front lower bracket the same way.
- Pilot holes. Finding the old holes through the new canvas is hard. A small punch makes a pilot hole.
- Sides. With both front brackets started, work screw by screw down each side from the top, keeping the canvas tight side to side until the front and rear are finished.
- Rear sides. Work from the end of the top rear brackets back toward the rear lift brackets. The canvas will bunch a little near the lift brackets: tack it and line the rope up against the bracket for each screw. Repeat along the bottom until every screw is in.
- Corners. One owner: "Corners can be a pain." Do them one screw at a time. You may need to loosen a few rear bracket screws to get the corners over the brackets.
If a screw bottoms out before the bracket is tight, the self-tapping screw is running out of thread. One owner enlarged the bracket holes with a drill. The screws then spun freely and bit fully, and the job went faster.
Step 6: Seal
Re-silicone the canvas at the front and rear edges. One owner said the sides "don't matter too much". Keep sealant off the canvas fabric (advice from a different forum thread about roof-rack leaks).
Step 7: Check before the first trip
- Check every screw, seam and zip. The front window has a double zipper as standard, so you can reach the luggage rack from inside.
- Lower and raise the roof once or twice and check the canvas folds evenly and nothing is trapped (our advice).
- If the canvas looks a little twisted (one owner had about an inch), check the gas struts and the ground and wind conditions first. He blamed weak struts, a slope and wind.
- Let it dry completely before you close the roof for storage, to avoid mould.
Common questions
Do I take the roof off?
No. One owner who does these says taking it off is "100X harder" than fitting the canvas with the roof on. Another owner took the top off to fit new canvas, using a pulley in the garage rafters and a car to lift it, and said the top is heavy.
Why do some people take 5 hours or more?
The owner who took about 2½ hours said he could not see why others reported 5+. The corners and the rear bracket are the parts owners call awkward. One of our customers, fitting a canvas for the first time, took 6 to 8 hours over 3 work sessions and said an extra pair of hands would have been great.
Can a shop do it?
Yes. Ask a camper or VW workshop that knows the Winnebago roof.
How do I look after the new canvas?
Brush off dirt and wash it with mild soap and water. No harsh chemicals. Check the seams and zips now and then.
Sources
Public write-ups we used, all read on 24 October 2026:
- TheSamba EuroVan forum, "EVC tent replacement" (2018 to 2023)
- TheSamba EuroVan forum, "Eurovan(2002) Pop Top repair/replacement" (2017 to 2019)
- YouTube, "How to install a new camper top canvas on a VW Eurovan" (DJ's Workshop, 2025) and "HOW TO: DIY Campervan Pop Top Canvas Replacement // VW Eurovan" (Hujaca Roams, 2018). We used the descriptions and comments only.
Need the canvas? EuroVan Winnebago (EVC) LWB pop-top canvas. Made to order in Latvia, 14 colours. Duties included for the USA and Canada.
Other vans: Weekender, California and Westfalia install guide.
