[s-cars] REALLY stuck sunroof

[Fred Munro]

Paul;

Robert posted today that he solved his sunroof problem - he installed a new
battery. The low voltage from the old dying battery was apparently causing
the sunroof problem.

Go figure - you've got to love Audi electrics!

I've attached his post for your edification.

Fred Munro
'94 S4

Hey guys,

Thanks very much for all your helpful suggestions.
I finally took the misbehaving sunroof to a local shop, and after trying
numerous approaches, we finally found the root cause - a failing
battery!  Apparently, the roof positioner is very sensitive and wants to
see just the right voltage levels.

I'm still not sure why the roof was totally stuck, but we just unbolted
the motor and moved it out by hand.  After the motor was reinstalled,
and the battery was replaced, its working great.

Thanks again,
Robert Welch
Golden, CO


-----Original Message-----
From: s-car-list-admin at audifans.com
[mailto:s-car-list-admin at audifans.com]On Behalf Of Paul Heneghan
Sent: February 15, 2003 9:48 PM
To: S-Car-List; RWelch at TechnologyCrafters.com
Subject: [s-cars] REALLY stuck sunroof


Hello Robert.

What a coincidence - I'm in the same position.  It also happened during cold
weather with an iffy battery.

If your roof is still stuck open, try the following:

Undo the screw holding the middle visor in position (not sure if this is
absolutely necessary, but it's what I did).  Lever the front of the sunroof
mechanism hatch down - there are spring clips on both sides near the front.
The hatch should then slide forward (towards the window) slightly and then
can be dropped down.  There is a cranked Allen key attached to the back of
the hatch.  Remove it and insert it into the mechanism in the obvious place.
You have to push fairly hard, because it is connected to the motor at the
moment, so will be impossible to rotate.  Pushing hard causes it to recess
by a few millimetres and decouples it from the motor allowing you to turn
it.

In my case, I pushed as hard as I dared, and it wouldn't budge, so I undid
the three bolts holding the motor/gearbox/mech to the roof, and then it
freed itself.

If I find out more about what the cause of this phantom opening is, I'll let
you know.  However, I'm tempted to leave my sunroof disconnected until the
weather becomes more clement.

Paul

>My sunroof is stuck in the fully open position.  I've tried to crank it
>closed and it won't budge.  I've replaced the rotary switch and the
>problem persists.  I can hear the motor clicking as if it's trying to
>operate the mechanism.
>
>Any suggestions on how to free up the mechanism, or otherwise fix the
>problem would be appreciated.
>
>FYI- the problem started when the battery had run low, and I had to jump
>the battery.  As soon as I started the car, the sunroof opened on its
>own.  I tried to close it several times, and it partially closed and
>then re-opened.  Finally, it stopped moving at all.

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