Sunroof adjustment tutorial...
03-19-2003, 12:57 AM
#1
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Sunroof adjustment tutorial...
Folks have requested this, here it is:
> If you have a working rigging solution, maybe you could share your experience with the rest of the group.
Ok, here goes. I'm going to be as descriptive as possible, not assuming any prior knowledge...
Let's go at this with first understanding what is supposed to happen:
1. Turn the ignition to the first position (position 1). In this key position, and ONLY this key position, pressing the bottom of the sunroof switch should unlock the sunroof. This means that the arms will come down all the way and stop, freeing up the sunroof to come off.
2. With the key still in the first position, but now pressing the upper portion of the sunroof switch, the arms should move up and engage the sunroof and lock it in place.
Both 1 and 2 above should NOT require you to let up on the button. The micro switches should stop the arms at the proper time.
Now let's talk about the ignition key in position 2. (this is the click right before the starter engages, this is the same as when you're driving down the road)
3. With the key in position 2, pressing the bottom of the sunroof switch should make the sunroof raise. Once again it should automatically stop without you letting up on the switch.
4. With the key in position 2, and the sunroof raised, pressing the upper portion of the sunroof switch should make the sunroof move to the closed position. Once again it should automatically stop without you letting up on the switch. The sunroof should also be locked down tight enough so that if you try to 'press up' on it with your hand, it should not move.
Now that you know what it 'should' do, you'll have a goal to work for…
My instructions below will try to get you to adjust it WITHOUT having to gain access to the gear assemblies on the sunroof.
NOTE: If you're sunroof gears are stripped, or if one side of the sunroof is not level with the other side, then you'll need to straighten that out BEFORE you press on with this switch adjustment checklist. That procedure will be in a subsequent checklist…
5. Gain access to the motor. It's fairly easy to do. It's in the rear compartment, drivers side, behind the side carpet.
6. You'll need a 17mm socket wrench to manually turn the sunroof. There's a round access cover on the motor assembly. Remove it and you'll see the nut. SLOWLY turn the nut until you're satisfied that the sunroof is fully locked in place (you can't push up on it). Turning the nut counter-clockwise raises it.
7. Remove the three 10mm nuts that hold the motor assembly in place and move it so that you can see the rear of the assembly (don't remove the cable!)
Before we go any further, I need to describe what you SHOULD be seeing at this moment. Look at the side of the assembly with the nut you turned. You will see two micro-switches at the top of the assembly. Of course Porsche named them in reverse, the top switch is switch II, the bottom one is switch one. Switch one is the key switch that tends to goof up the most and cause problems. Here's the fun part, it's usually not because the switch is broke, it's usually because the mounting bracket has bent a little over the years causing the micro-switch not to make correctly. There is a third switch on the back of the assembly that hopefully, you won't have to deal with.
Now back to work…
8. With the sunroof carefully locked in place manually, look closely at the underside of the micro-switches. The little metal arm on switch 1 (bottom switch) should be close to the ceramic part of the switch. In other words, the switch should be actuated, or made.
9. Now look at switch 2, it's metal arm should be down (not actuated).
The goal is to have the sunroof locked in place, switch 1 made, and switch 2 not made. Once these switches are properly set, your sunroof will probably work correctly without you having to do anything else.
10. On the rear of the motor assembly, you'll see a white plastic cam attached to a cable. We need to make sure that the white actuating arm, or cam, is in it's proper place. Look at the area around the switch arms. See how the cam has an indentation so that switch 2's arm can be down, while the cam is forcing switch 1's arm up.
Spend some time here and make sure you see the cam and how it actuates the micro-switches. You can move the sunroof manually at this point to get a feel for whether the switches are engaging or not. You should be able to hear a faint 'click' when the switches are engaged. If you don't, don't sweat it, it's VERY faint. Don't forget to carefully position the sunroof to the fully locked position when you're done.
Back to the adjustment…
11. Looking at the micro-switches, look to see if they are evenly parallel to the plastic cam. If they're not, CAREFULLY bend the switch mounting bracket with a pair of needle nose pliers until they are evenly parallel. STOP!!
12. Once you've done this, ops check what you've done, you've probably already fixed the problem. Just put the motor assembly back in place with two bolts, finger tight, and then check to see if the sunroof works correctly.
13. If it doesn't, then try bending the mounting bracket a little so that switch 1 (bottom one) is a little closer to the cam than the other micro-switch. Then ops check it again.
14. If this still doesn't fix it, unscrew the micro-switches and move them left to right to get switch 1 to be engaged, and switch 2 not engaged. Then ops check it again.
15. If it's still not functioning correctly, you may have a bad switch. Find someone that has an ohm-meter and have them check to see if the switch is functioning correctly. If it is, there are two relays mounted on the motor assembly. Take them out carefully one at a time and gently tap them on the ground, then re-install them.
> If you have a working rigging solution, maybe you could share your experience with the rest of the group.
Ok, here goes. I'm going to be as descriptive as possible, not assuming any prior knowledge...
Let's go at this with first understanding what is supposed to happen:
1. Turn the ignition to the first position (position 1). In this key position, and ONLY this key position, pressing the bottom of the sunroof switch should unlock the sunroof. This means that the arms will come down all the way and stop, freeing up the sunroof to come off.
2. With the key still in the first position, but now pressing the upper portion of the sunroof switch, the arms should move up and engage the sunroof and lock it in place.
Both 1 and 2 above should NOT require you to let up on the button. The micro switches should stop the arms at the proper time.
Now let's talk about the ignition key in position 2. (this is the click right before the starter engages, this is the same as when you're driving down the road)
3. With the key in position 2, pressing the bottom of the sunroof switch should make the sunroof raise. Once again it should automatically stop without you letting up on the switch.
4. With the key in position 2, and the sunroof raised, pressing the upper portion of the sunroof switch should make the sunroof move to the closed position. Once again it should automatically stop without you letting up on the switch. The sunroof should also be locked down tight enough so that if you try to 'press up' on it with your hand, it should not move.
Now that you know what it 'should' do, you'll have a goal to work for…
My instructions below will try to get you to adjust it WITHOUT having to gain access to the gear assemblies on the sunroof.
NOTE: If you're sunroof gears are stripped, or if one side of the sunroof is not level with the other side, then you'll need to straighten that out BEFORE you press on with this switch adjustment checklist. That procedure will be in a subsequent checklist…
5. Gain access to the motor. It's fairly easy to do. It's in the rear compartment, drivers side, behind the side carpet.
6. You'll need a 17mm socket wrench to manually turn the sunroof. There's a round access cover on the motor assembly. Remove it and you'll see the nut. SLOWLY turn the nut until you're satisfied that the sunroof is fully locked in place (you can't push up on it). Turning the nut counter-clockwise raises it.
7. Remove the three 10mm nuts that hold the motor assembly in place and move it so that you can see the rear of the assembly (don't remove the cable!)
Before we go any further, I need to describe what you SHOULD be seeing at this moment. Look at the side of the assembly with the nut you turned. You will see two micro-switches at the top of the assembly. Of course Porsche named them in reverse, the top switch is switch II, the bottom one is switch one. Switch one is the key switch that tends to goof up the most and cause problems. Here's the fun part, it's usually not because the switch is broke, it's usually because the mounting bracket has bent a little over the years causing the micro-switch not to make correctly. There is a third switch on the back of the assembly that hopefully, you won't have to deal with.
Now back to work…
8. With the sunroof carefully locked in place manually, look closely at the underside of the micro-switches. The little metal arm on switch 1 (bottom switch) should be close to the ceramic part of the switch. In other words, the switch should be actuated, or made.
9. Now look at switch 2, it's metal arm should be down (not actuated).
The goal is to have the sunroof locked in place, switch 1 made, and switch 2 not made. Once these switches are properly set, your sunroof will probably work correctly without you having to do anything else.
10. On the rear of the motor assembly, you'll see a white plastic cam attached to a cable. We need to make sure that the white actuating arm, or cam, is in it's proper place. Look at the area around the switch arms. See how the cam has an indentation so that switch 2's arm can be down, while the cam is forcing switch 1's arm up.
Spend some time here and make sure you see the cam and how it actuates the micro-switches. You can move the sunroof manually at this point to get a feel for whether the switches are engaging or not. You should be able to hear a faint 'click' when the switches are engaged. If you don't, don't sweat it, it's VERY faint. Don't forget to carefully position the sunroof to the fully locked position when you're done.
Back to the adjustment…
11. Looking at the micro-switches, look to see if they are evenly parallel to the plastic cam. If they're not, CAREFULLY bend the switch mounting bracket with a pair of needle nose pliers until they are evenly parallel. STOP!!
12. Once you've done this, ops check what you've done, you've probably already fixed the problem. Just put the motor assembly back in place with two bolts, finger tight, and then check to see if the sunroof works correctly.
13. If it doesn't, then try bending the mounting bracket a little so that switch 1 (bottom one) is a little closer to the cam than the other micro-switch. Then ops check it again.
14. If this still doesn't fix it, unscrew the micro-switches and move them left to right to get switch 1 to be engaged, and switch 2 not engaged. Then ops check it again.
15. If it's still not functioning correctly, you may have a bad switch. Find someone that has an ohm-meter and have them check to see if the switch is functioning correctly. If it is, there are two relays mounted on the motor assembly. Take them out carefully one at a time and gently tap them on the ground, then re-install them.
04-27-2003, 09:36 PM
#3
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: South of the St-Lawrence river
Posts: 1,498
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
Thanks for the tutorial. Used your info. Indeed, my non-working sunroof was a simple case of microswitches not actuating. The following is a picture of the lower switch actuated after I fiddled with the plastic cam at the back of the motor assembly.
<img src="http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/Photos951040.jpg" alt=" - " />
Notice how the lower switch (black casing) touches the casing while the upper switch (white casing) does not touch the casing. That is the correct position to have to allow the closed sunroof to open properly.
The plastic cam position seems to be very critical to allow actuating of the microswitch. After a first repair, I thought that the sunroof ran fine. But then by retightening the motor assembly in place the plastic cam disengaged somehow and was unable to reactuate the switch. I repositionned it and it still would not move the sunroof. That's when I decided to unplug and reseat the sunroof relay and the sunroof fuse in the fuse box and also the relays on the motor assembly itself. That did the trick and now the sunroof operates correctly.
<img src="http://boards.rennlist.com/upload/Photos951040.jpg" alt=" - " />
Notice how the lower switch (black casing) touches the casing while the upper switch (white casing) does not touch the casing. That is the correct position to have to allow the closed sunroof to open properly.
The plastic cam position seems to be very critical to allow actuating of the microswitch. After a first repair, I thought that the sunroof ran fine. But then by retightening the motor assembly in place the plastic cam disengaged somehow and was unable to reactuate the switch. I repositionned it and it still would not move the sunroof. That's when I decided to unplug and reseat the sunroof relay and the sunroof fuse in the fuse box and also the relays on the motor assembly itself. That did the trick and now the sunroof operates correctly.
04-27-2003, 11:24 PM
#4
Racer
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Modesto, CA
Posts: 271
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Good write up....
I just started looking at my sunroof this weekend. It didn't work when I bought the car, but I never really worried about it.
I still don't understand exactly how it is "supposed" to work though. My roof has 2 manual latches in the back. You release the latch (1 each side), turn it 90 degree's, and then you can lift out the roof. When working properly, these latches are disengaged automatically?
Thanks,
Matt
I just started looking at my sunroof this weekend. It didn't work when I bought the car, but I never really worried about it.
I still don't understand exactly how it is "supposed" to work though. My roof has 2 manual latches in the back. You release the latch (1 each side), turn it 90 degree's, and then you can lift out the roof. When working properly, these latches are disengaged automatically?
Thanks,
Matt
04-29-2003, 07:40 AM
#7
coolhand, there's a fourth switch in front of the sunroof between the sun visors. The controls use this switch to determine whether the roof is installed. It's engaged by the tongue on the front center of the roof. If the switch opens, the lifting arms stop extending. Try pushing up on the tongue while trying to raise the roof. If it goes the rest of the way up, you'll have to shim it some way. I was able to remove a washer between the tongue and roof, reducing the clearance enough to keep the switch made and let mine go all the way up.
Trending Topics
04-29-2003, 09:44 PM
#9
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: South of the St-Lawrence river
Posts: 1,498
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Originally posted by coolhand:
<strong>how do you get to that switch, do you ahve to take off the panel?</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Coolhand,
Go to <a href="http://www.clarks-garage.com" target="_blank">Clarks Garage</a> click on Garage Shop Manual and look under Body-03 Sunroof operation. The last paragraph gives details on the fourth switch.
Hope this helps!
<strong>how do you get to that switch, do you ahve to take off the panel?</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Coolhand,
Go to <a href="http://www.clarks-garage.com" target="_blank">Clarks Garage</a> click on Garage Shop Manual and look under Body-03 Sunroof operation. The last paragraph gives details on the fourth switch.
Hope this helps!