mazdaverx7

i have an early build 85 944 and i've run into an issue with the sunroof that i haven't been able to tack. its beginning to leak water on the rear seat on the driver's side. enough to form a puddle if its rains hard. i suspect a clogged drain tube or faulty seal.

if i depress the switch to open the sunroof nothing happens. no noise from the motor, no relay click, nothing. if i depress the switch to close the roof i can hear the motor spinning but the sunroof does not move. the sunroof is currently closed which is for the best.

i know that the micro switches will fail and that i will need to test those. i did look at the motor and the track assembly in the hatch area and it looks to be intact with nothing visibly broken. i did not see the tool that the owners manual lists to close the sunroof in case of a vehicle power failure.

and finally, is there a way to open the sunroof manually?

mazdaverx7

any thoughts?

alfadoc

Everything you need to know
http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...44_sunroof.htm

mazdaverx7

^^excellent link, thank you! i want to raise and remove the roof to inspect the seals and repaint the sucker today!

mazdaverx7

well i was able to open it manually and now it won't close, lol. i tried to thread the manual operation bolt and nut counter clockwise and it just unthreaded. this is going to be fun..

JimV8

The issues with sunroofs are IMHO universal. The roofs are operated by flexible rack and pinion gears, all of which are nylon. Over time grundge and other crap gathers in the grease and one or the other side gets out of alignment. I've pulled and repaired a couple of them and suggest pulling it all apart and cleaning and re-lubing lightly with lithium grease. The switches are generally OK and they tell the motors when to start/stop. The location of the switches is really important though so if you remove them mark the location otherwise it's time consuming to get it all to work right. None of it's rocket science, but patience helps.

mazdaverx7

yeah, its pretty grungy in there. i did manage to manually open and remove my sunroof. i was able to paint it. paint didn't turn out that well but at least its somewhat close.