Power sunroof problems....

[cordeiro@adi.com (Alan Cordeiro)]

Hi  Evangelos,

I had a similar problem with my sunroof, ( 86 5000 CSTQ ), and can 
offer some advice.

If you have a Bentley manual that deals with 84 through 88 Audi 5000s
the section on sunroofs shows the different slider pieces ( Audi calls
these tilt brackets ) on the first page of the section. The culprit piece 
is an alloy casting that holds the rear hinge of the sunroof and serves 
two functions.

1. When the sunroof slides back and forth this piece slides along with it
   in the main tracks in the car roof.
2. When the rear section of the sunroof pops up ( and the little inside
   window opens up ) for ventilation, the rear section of the sunroof
   slides within this small casting. The motor pulls the castings forwards
   and the rear hinges of the sunroof are forced upwards. There is one of
   these pieces on each side, and they are mirror images of each other.

Audi recommended that older sunroofs be upgraded if they were pre March
or April 1987 and they had a kit with a special part number 443-898-999
that the dealer should install if the sunroof was being serviced for any problem.

If any side casting is broken, you will have difficulty getting the sunroof
to pop open, or perhaps, once it is open, it will have trouble fitting back
in place. The sunroof will also need help when you slide it open and closed
because when one of the castings is broken, the alignment of the sunroof
is upset, and it will not slide smoothly.

The new casting has a shallower angle in the cam area, and is substantially
thicker at the weak point. I do recall that the hinge pivot piece that
attaches to the sunroof has a different shape as well, and will also have
to be replaced with the castings.

The sunroof opens very easily. Just pop the rear section up. The liner on
the moving part of the sunroof will come loose if you pull on it towards
the back of the car. However you will probably not need to do this step
until you are ready to repair it, since in this position the slider
castings will be visible from outside the car. If I recall correctly they
are about fifteen cm. long, three cm. high and about 6 - 8 mm thick. They
tend to break at the top almost at the rear end.

****************   NOTE ::

A Bentley manual is VERY HELPFUL if you are going to be working on the
sunroof, as it has a fair amount of pictures and illustrations. It is
not too difficult a repair job for anyone with a do-it-yourself car
repair background. If you do not have one, buy one (  ~$120
 if you shop around ).
( This is one of the occasions that Bentley is ACTUALLY helpful )
 

I replaced the guts, including the cables, sliders, tracks ... from
a complete set of innards from a 1988 5000?? purchased from SHOKAN.
Hav'nt had trouble in over a year.

My 5000CS has only one oil filter. I strongly recommend using 
synthetic oil,  ( Mobil one, Castrol Syntec ... )and changing the 
filter and oil every four or five thousand miles.

Good luck,
 
Alan Cordeiro