Fixed my broken sunroof this weekend. And I mean ALL weekend. It is a TON of work but I'm so glad I pulled it off.
I modified my website with updated the text and images from my previous TSB document. The TSB had some omissions so I added comments and pictures to the original document.
You can see it at http://www.fuzzycats.com/j30_diy.htm
The document is called "Sunroof Repair Procedure" or go directly to it http://www.fuzzycats.com/docs/sunroof_repair.pdf
Carlos
Mother of all J30 repairs!!
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carlos_knology
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carlos_knology
- Posts: 438
- Joined: Thu Jul 25, 2002 2:11 pm
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Thanks for the good comments. It's really not that hard once you know the pitfalls (the tricks). It took me FOREVER to do it. Took me about 4 hours just to get the headliner out.
Total job was probably in the neighborhood of about 17 hours. About 4 of those hours were wasted trying to figure out stuff that wasn't in the TSB or the service manual.
That's why I decided to do my own writeup. The hardest thing to figure out was how to remove the sunroof lid from the sunroof rail assembly.
Carlos
Total job was probably in the neighborhood of about 17 hours. About 4 of those hours were wasted trying to figure out stuff that wasn't in the TSB or the service manual.
That's why I decided to do my own writeup. The hardest thing to figure out was how to remove the sunroof lid from the sunroof rail assembly.
Carlos
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carlos_knology
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Mayhem_J30
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carlos_knology
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I found that my sunroof lid needs some more adjusting. I did an extensive water hose test and lo and behold, water started to come into the car.
I opened the sunroof lid and noticed that the water was getting inside the car from around the sunroof motor shaft.
The problem was that the car was pitched nose first (driveway slope). Well, with the door out of adjustment and my overzealous water test (garden hose full blast right at the sunroof). More water was getting onto the rain rails than could exit. Since the car was sloped forward, all the water was trying to exit out of the two front drain holes and it was too much.
Well, the water backed up out of the main rain rail and into the inner rail with the sunroof motor and cables. The water started to drip around the sunroof motor shaft and onto the sunroof controls. Any water that backs into the inner rail is supposed to drain out of the back holes by design but since the car was pitched forward, it couldn't go anywhere.
Under normal circumstances this wouldn't happen. I'd think it unlikely that with the sunroof lid properly adjusted, even under heavy rain, I can't imagine enough water getting past the sunroof lid in such quantity to make the water back up into that inner rail to make this happen. Like I said, I got a little crazy with the water hose.
In any case, I want to pull out the sunroof motor and seal around it to keep that from happening (just in case). I'll take pictures of it and post to the website.
Carlos
I opened the sunroof lid and noticed that the water was getting inside the car from around the sunroof motor shaft.
The problem was that the car was pitched nose first (driveway slope). Well, with the door out of adjustment and my overzealous water test (garden hose full blast right at the sunroof). More water was getting onto the rain rails than could exit. Since the car was sloped forward, all the water was trying to exit out of the two front drain holes and it was too much.
Well, the water backed up out of the main rain rail and into the inner rail with the sunroof motor and cables. The water started to drip around the sunroof motor shaft and onto the sunroof controls. Any water that backs into the inner rail is supposed to drain out of the back holes by design but since the car was pitched forward, it couldn't go anywhere.
Under normal circumstances this wouldn't happen. I'd think it unlikely that with the sunroof lid properly adjusted, even under heavy rain, I can't imagine enough water getting past the sunroof lid in such quantity to make the water back up into that inner rail to make this happen. Like I said, I got a little crazy with the water hose.
In any case, I want to pull out the sunroof motor and seal around it to keep that from happening (just in case). I'll take pictures of it and post to the website.
Carlos
I'm very impressed with your illustrated procedure, and the good service you are providing to anyone faced with this task.
My J30 sunroof still works but sticks. In cold weather it works fine, but as soon as the roof warms up, it will only open about 1/4 or less before jamming. I have been hoping that some carefully applied WD40 might reach the point where it seems to bind. Clearances must be so tight that temperature affects them.
Any thoughts on this to avoid what seems like the monumental job you took on?
My J30 sunroof still works but sticks. In cold weather it works fine, but as soon as the roof warms up, it will only open about 1/4 or less before jamming. I have been hoping that some carefully applied WD40 might reach the point where it seems to bind. Clearances must be so tight that temperature affects them.
Any thoughts on this to avoid what seems like the monumental job you took on?
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carlos_knology
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Peter, thanks for the compliments.... about preventive maintenance. If your roof is already "sticking", you may not be able to do much for it - that's how mine started. Unfortunately, the part in question just fails over time. The replacement part is designed slightly different.
On my car, what ended up failing was the part that connects the cable to the metal bracket attached to the actual sunroof door. The cable just popped off the bracket.
I would avoid using WD-40 because it may actually dilute the grease that's there. Just grease the rail and you should be good to go. I use lithium grease on mine.
Also, grease the inside of the rail (the inside of the rail is where the cables run). Open the sunroof door and look at the opening from above, you'll see the outer rail (where water drains out of the rail) and an inner rail (about an inch wide). The sides of this inner rail are where your cables run.
Good luck. If it fails, you can definitely fix it. The procedure looks very intimidating but it's not really that bad once you know all the steps involved. It's just time-consuming. The actual sunroof repair is really easy.
Carlos
On my car, what ended up failing was the part that connects the cable to the metal bracket attached to the actual sunroof door. The cable just popped off the bracket.
I would avoid using WD-40 because it may actually dilute the grease that's there. Just grease the rail and you should be good to go. I use lithium grease on mine.
Also, grease the inside of the rail (the inside of the rail is where the cables run). Open the sunroof door and look at the opening from above, you'll see the outer rail (where water drains out of the rail) and an inner rail (about an inch wide). The sides of this inner rail are where your cables run.
Good luck. If it fails, you can definitely fix it. The procedure looks very intimidating but it's not really that bad once you know all the steps involved. It's just time-consuming. The actual sunroof repair is really easy.
Carlos
The hardest part was getting the lid off. This is the first step. I saved it for last because I had no idea how to accomplish this. I had the whole device on the garage floor and could see no way in. I swore at it a dozen times before I figured how to get the inner part of the roof to slide away from the outer part of the lid. Two long screwdrivers to get the catches to unhook while the lid is in the vent position. slide it back a little, close the roof, slide it a little more, then open the vent and slide it back the rest of the way. Then the bolts can be accessed and the lid removed.
Removing the headliner and the rest of the stuff was painful. Make sure that everything is tight and the drains work before putting back the headliner.
Be careful when removing the covers by the front windshield. They are fragile and I broke one.
Removing the headliner and the rest of the stuff was painful. Make sure that everything is tight and the drains work before putting back the headliner.
Be careful when removing the covers by the front windshield. They are fragile and I broke one.
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carlos_knology
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blackJ30T wrote:The hardest part was getting the lid off. This is the first step. I saved it for last because I had no idea how to accomplish this. I had the whole device on the garage floor and could see no way in. I swore at it a dozen times before I figured how to get the inner part of the roof to slide away from the outer part of the lid.
BlackJ30T, that's exactly what hapened to me. I could not figure out for the life of me. It literally took me a couple hours of messing with it until I figured it out.
Now, I can do it in my sleep.
Carlos