Re[2]: Power roof is dead ... Anybody has a can opener ?

[Peter_C_Schulz@ccmail.ed.ray.com]

Jason Douglas wrote : Re: Power roof is dead ... Anybody has a can opener ? 

Are there any FAQs or instructions on regular sunroof maintenance?  

I'm the third owner of a '90 Coupe Q and don't know whether the previous owners 
performed any sunroof maintenance.

Any help would be appreciated.


Thanks
Peter Schulz
1990 Coupe Q

J_T_Douglas%mwcorp1@MWMGATE1.mitre.org  Wed, Sep 7, 1994    10:27:33 AM Normal

Sorry this reply is late, but I am still catching up on mail after vacation...
There are two important failure "modes" of the power sunroof that (I think) 
haven't been mentioned in this thread -- of course my sunroof suffers from one 
of these maladies ....
If the motor operates and one hears a clicking sound (more like the sound of a 
ratchet, actually), then there are two possibilities.  
1. The cables are worn.  The cables are spiral wound and are engaged by a gear.  
The gear pulls the cables.  I've heard that the gear can slip on very worn 
cables.
2. A more likely scenario, I think.  The frame of the sunroof mechanism (the 
part that doesn't move) screws into the body of the car.  It consists mainly of 
cable guides.  At the very center of the front edge (i.e. edge closest to front 
of car) is the spot where the drive gear engages the cables.  The cable guides 
are side by side with the drive in between them.  There is an alloy 
reinforcement piece that maintains the correct distance between the guides.  If 
the sunroof has been made to operate when not properly lubricated (or maybe 
with broken parts?) this alloy reinforcement can crack (mine is!) and the 
distance between the guides increases ever so slightly, enough that the cables 
slip.  I suppose there might be some chance of a jury-rigged solution, but the 
only obvious way to fix it is to replace the cable guide assembly.  That means 
$$$ or a used mechanism.  
If you have never worked on a sunroof before you will definitely need Bentley, 
especially for the adjustments when you put it back together.
MORAL - Like the rest of the Audi, sunroofs require maintenance now or $$$ 
later.  Keep the tracks (visible when the lid is fully retracted into the roof) 
cleaned and lubricated.
Jason
86 5000S