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How to fix a stuck sunroof

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Old May 8, 2008, 12:48 PM
  #46  
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I'm starting to wonder that myself. Or maybe using some rubber lube?? /shrug
Old May 8, 2008, 08:59 PM
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I bring wonderful news from the world of gozer. I took the headliner out, and it was raining all those wonderful screws. I got the motor lined up, put in the bolts, and bam, the sunroof moves. It took it a few min of going back and forth for the computer to learn the rotations for closing the roof, but just keep at it, it will figure it out.
Old Aug 7, 2008, 11:39 AM
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Thanks a lot for the helpful write up. My sunroof got stuck open last night, and when I took it apart one of those bolts fell out and the one was still in the middle. Took the motor off, hit the switch to open it all the way, pushed the sunroof all the way back, put it back together, and it works like new.

It is possible to do it without actually taking the headliner out, you just push it back and work 'over' it. The whole process too me about 45 minutes.
Old Aug 7, 2008, 11:50 AM
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I wanted to point out that before I sold my ralliart, I did in fact find out the rubber was sticking too the roof. Perhaps from waxing? Perhaps cause it was drying out. Either way, make sure to clean the edge of your roof and make sure your rubber isn't sticking.
Old Aug 16, 2008, 02:17 PM
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Thank you for the info.
Fixed my sunroof today with your write up. Took about an hour
Old Aug 18, 2008, 02:39 PM
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Question The whole sliding two inches thing...

Yeah, I've been having the same problem involving the sunroof switch. I mean, how are you supposed to let it learn? Is there any special sequence to it? Or do you just all-out, "back-and-forth" it until it starts working?

I even took a video of it because I was about to start my own thread if I couldn't find anything on this...

http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=DSCF1131.flv
Old Oct 23, 2008, 09:35 AM
  #52  
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Mine stopped working today. It'll go backward, but not forward (Actually heard something let go while I was opening). Now the question is to fix this, is it better with the sunroof as far forward as possible, as far back, or does it not matter?

Guess I know how I'll be spending part of my day off.

Thanks in advance.
Old Oct 25, 2008, 07:59 AM
  #53  
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Cajun, outstanding instructions! Migs647, great extra tips. My motor was missing two of the three screws (One rolled out of the headliner and I never found the other), and the third was loose.

I agree with the Cajun, those visor clips were a real beeeotch.

Step 4 is key, make sure the motor is in the “full back” position and the sunroof, too. Mine jumped a few teeth and would not close all the way until I dropped the motor (reconnected the battery) and hit the sunroof open button (I did not use the alligator clip step – Didn’t seem to need to). Motor turned for about 3 seconds and stopped (i.e. What he said about programmed revolutions). I made sure the whole thing was working again before I put the headliner in (Which you really don’t need to take all the way out of the car) and disconnected the battery again for reassembly.

Two other bits of advice . . . Wish I had a few of the extra white grommets that hold the pillars to the frame. I think I broke or lost two of them. It would have been nice to have pre-purchased some spares. Also, get yourself some locktite for those motor screws, you really don’t want to have to do this again.

All-in-all, took about 2.5 hours.
Old Nov 9, 2008, 06:45 PM
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Mini Cooper Sunroof Motor Repair

Originally Posted by Cajun Power
OK, my sunroof went back like 3 inches and wouldn't go forward. So, I kept trying to move it back and then go forward and when it would try to go forward I could hear the gears jumping. Needless to say it got stuck all the way back.

I was going to bite the bullet and take it to the dealership (not covered anymore - mileage).

I decided to give it a shot and see if I could fix it. It was WAY easier than I thought. Ready:

1. Remove the roof mounted accessories (always disconnect the battery before anything)

a. O-**** handles (3) - pop the rubber boot up on the outside edges and then #2 Phillips removes the screws.

b. Clips by back window (3) - I pulled the headliner down and got my fingers on top and then just applied even pressure and POP off they came. Do one at a time. Take your time on these.

c. Molding around sunroof opening - grab it and pull toward middle of opening. No big tricks here

d. Sun visors (2) - leave clipped in place. Remove screws #2 Phillips (2-each) then un-clip and you have to rotate them down. Swivel and pull gently. You'll get it. They have two small fingers forward and two friction clips on the side. Imagine the visor hanging down vertically. Now, pull down and push toward windshield.

e. Visor clips (2) - you need two slotted screw drivers 1/4" or 3/8" worked for me. These are a pain . Push a screwdriver from each side in the notches. You have to push the both at the same time. Then the clip will pop out and just drop down.

f. Dome light - use a 1/4" - 3/8" slotted screwdriver to remove the clear cover. Then use a 10mm socket to remover the bolts (2) on the sides. Un-clip the connector. Push little hook-tab and pull off.

g. THIS MUST HAPPEN AFTER THE DOME LIGHT! ! ! Sunroof switch trim - with the dome light removed you can look up on the hole and see the grey trim and where it clip on behind the headliner. Use a 1/4" slotted or smaller screwdriver and pop the grey hook clip off and the trim piece will just pop off.


2. Pull back the pillar covers and where they clip in there are white grommets in the headliner. Remove those so they don't get lost.

Now, if I can remember back 1 hour well your headliner should be ready to remove.

3. Lay the driver seat all the way back and with the back door open, get in on all four corner and **gently** flex the headliner to get it our from behind the pillar covers. Then tilt and slide it out the back driver door.



NOW- on to the sunroof track/motor----My car only had one screw (pic to follow) holding the motor in place?!?! It was the most critical one but there are three places for screws. Why save weight there??? My headliner has never been removed so that is how it came from the factory.

4. Drop the motor and now you can get the teeth back in line. I tried to push the sunroof closed and then mount the motor. BUT, I found that the roof didn't seal too good.

**Note** the motor has programmed revolutions. You have to make sure that it is in the position that you want it when you install it. I hooked up the connector and used a double alligator clip for a ground. Then connected the batter and used the switch (still connected and mounted on the roof) to make sure I was in the right sequence.


What worked best for me was to open the roof, all the way back, not tilted up. Then I pushed with light pressure towards back on both sides of the sunroof (glass) by the track. This makes sure that the sunroof is straight and all the way open. Then with my motor in the "fully open" rotation sequence. I reinstalled and added the two missing screws to prevent this from happening again.


Screws - M5- 0.8 pitch- 25mm in length. I use hex head put if you can get Phillips they would be easier to use. It is a bit tricky to get hex up there and get them to bite.


5. Now do everything in reverse to put the headliner / accessories back in.

I searched and no one said anything about sunroof trouble. So, I hope this helps out he next guy with trouble.


Mini Cooper Sunroof Motor Repair




THE PROBLEM
During the design process of our "ZippeeShade" which have designed exclusively for the Mini Cooper, I encountered a slight problem on my test vehicle, a 2003 Mini Cooper S. The problem I was facing was what seemed to be some kind of short circuit. The sunroof was working fine until one day without warning it opened half way and when I tried to close it, nothing happened, it would not close. When I depressed the switch to close the sunroof, all you can hear was a clicking noise from the relay. I located the fuse to see if it was blown, and to my surprise it wasn’t. Now I was confused and even worse I was concerned that I would have to drive around with the sunroof stuck half way open. Luckily I went on Google to do some research and found tips on closing the sunroof manually. At the rear of your car there should be a Mini Cooper Tool Bag, which will contain an Allen wrench hand crank used to connect directly to the sunroof motor to manually close your sunroof. You can access your sunroof motor by removing the clock from the headliner and you will see the Allen wrench screw used to manually open and close the sunroof.

Next, I attempted to shop around for someone to fix my sunroof, and unfortunately I could not find any independent service center that had experience in repairing Mini Coopers. You would think that living in Las Vegas we would have more repair technicians to choose from other than the Mini Dealership, but I was wrong. I called the Mini Cooper dealership and the service advisor told me it could range from approximately $500-$800 to troubleshoot and possibly more to repair it depending on what they found to be the cause of the problem.

Feeling a little defeated by my Mini, I decided to build up enough courage to fix the sunroof myself. Hopefully this blog will find its way to other loyal Mini Cooper owners that could benefit from my experience and save themselves a small fortune.

THE SOLUTION

After many hours of troubleshooting I found the cause of my sunroof failure. It was due to a short circuit in the diode, located inside the motor housing. This diode was causing the motor to short out, rendering the motor inoperable. The fix was very simple, all I did was open the motor and use a pair of wire cutters to snip the diode wire disconnecting it and instantly the motor worked again. This was actually a really easy fix. Here are my step by step instructions along with photographs of what I had documented.

TOOLS NEEDED
- Digital Volt Ohm Meter
- #25 Torx Star Driver
- Flathead & Phillips Screwdrivers
- Pair of Pliers
- Wire Cutters
- Teflon White Lithium Grease or Some kind of Lubricant like WD40

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STEP 1: Remove the following plastic trim rings on both front and back sunroof, by pulling on the trim ring inward towards the center of the sunroof. This trim ring is held in place by pressure clips. Be sure to disconnect any wires attached to the trim ring located on the front sunroof, after you have removed it from the headliner.

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STEP 2: Remove both sun visors from the headliner. Start by removing the clip for the sun visor by using a thin small flathead screwdriver to pry open the plastic cover in order to access the Phillips head screw. Use a flathead screwdriver to do the same for the round plugs located on the sun visor hinge. Once you have unscrewed the sun visor, unclip the wiring harness.

(Click Here Continued)
Old Nov 11, 2008, 12:55 PM
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This is awesome. Thank you!
Old Nov 27, 2008, 12:26 PM
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How long does it take for the computer to re learn the whole rotation thing?
Old Nov 27, 2008, 03:07 PM
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I just dont this and it fixed my sunroof, great write up, But now it only moves 1-2 inches and stops. Hope that it works itself out.
Old Dec 3, 2008, 06:13 PM
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My sunroof re learned its tracks the 2nd day.
Old Dec 5, 2008, 12:50 PM
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Excellent tutorial !

I just spent the last 2 hours following these instructions, and now I have a sunroof that works !! It hasn't worked all summer and I just never seemed to find the time as, I wasn't sure how long it would take. The toughest part for me was getting the 3 back clips out. Unfortunately one cracked, after that I gently eased the other 2 out with a screw driver. Both screws were floating around in the headliner, so I applied threadlock to all 3 and put them back where they belong. I sliced my knuckle on the sunroof runner, watch out for them coz they are really sharp. Won't stop bleeding... But my sunroof works !!!
Now I just have to fix my flickering headlight, anyone know of where to get the control module. Cheapest I could find was close to $500.... OUCH...
Great Thread, very helpful,
Thanks
Old Dec 19, 2008, 01:44 AM
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I remember laughing at this writeup a few years ago when i ran across it. I will be using it tomorrow. Hopefully, I remember to take pics, cause I have a feeling that a few more of us will be running into this problem.


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