Anyone have any ideas how to repair or get a replacement part for the sliding mechanism on a manual sunroof? I was replacing the sunroof seal (that went ok), and must have twisted the assembly such that the fragile plastic in the mechanism broke when I was replacing it after installing new seal. I’m afraid I won’t e able to bind it well with any adhesive, so would like to understand better how it works and if there are parts available? Any help appreciated?
Help - Sunroof disaster!
- Thread starter BorgBmw
- Start date
I can't tell what I'm looking at.
Piece of plastic on the cables?
Here's a thread that may be helpful:
e9coupe.com
Piece of plastic on the cables?
Here's a thread that may be helpful:
Sunroof howto wanted
My 73 w/ electric sunroof doesn't slide. Unzipping headliner reveals that motor spins, as does worm gear out of it but center gear in the drive does not. Looks like the worm gear is stripped. So, I need to source a motor and drive assembly. But I suspect that is only the start of my issues...
e9coupe.com
Thanks! When I took the cable guide covers off, I realized it’s part of the cable assembly. I found the part on eBay. I also found a video where a VW beetle with a similar sunroof system replaced the cable. It looks straight forward, but I’m sure I’ll mess it up.
Hi. Try this for a stronger bond . Put a layer of super glue and than a layer of baking soda, pat it down and repeat three or for times. When dry scrape off excess.
It's hard to believe how strong it will bond.
Good Luck.
It's hard to believe how strong it will bond.
Good Luck.
I replaced cables on a Bav a while ago. I was able to use Volvo 240 cables I found on eBay. They were a bit shorter as I recall but metal tabs not plastic and worked fine. It’s a tricky process but very doable. Bmw2002faq.com will have some good information on the process.
Well, I used two part loctite glue on the plastic cable piece and got it back together. The sunroof is now closed. It worked a couple of times, but now won’t open again. I didn’t hear anything come loose or break, and don’t want to force it with the handle. I assume the driver’s side cable broke again, but least it’s closed.
Any other reasons that one might think of why it won’t open. I thought I did a pretty decent job of ensuring the roof was level, but it’s hard to tell, as my job of installing the new seal is not quite even.
I have a new cable piece on the way, but I think that when it arrives I might take it to a professional. Just in case I give it another try, any idea how I might slide it open again now that it’s closed.
Any other reasons that one might think of why it won’t open. I thought I did a pretty decent job of ensuring the roof was level, but it’s hard to tell, as my job of installing the new seal is not quite even.
I have a new cable piece on the way, but I think that when it arrives I might take it to a professional. Just in case I give it another try, any idea how I might slide it open again now that it’s closed.
There are activators that help adhesion to some plastics. It has to do with the polar attraction of the molecules that make up the plastic. Some plastics are very difficult to bond to.
I believe the baking soda trick does add significant strength to Cyanoacrylate glue, but I don't know if it affects the bond strength to plastics.
jmackro
Well-Known Member
Forget trying to glue 50-year old plastic that is used structurally. Even if your bond holds, the plastic is just going to fracture elsewhere, or the cable on the other side will break.
The Volvo cables, with metal ends are the way to go. As I recall, they are longer, not shorter than the e9 cables. But either way, they are a superior solution.
The Volvo cables, with metal ends are the way to go. As I recall, they are longer, not shorter than the e9 cables. But either way, they are a superior solution.
BMW hasn't learned anything about the futility of using plastic in applications involving force. The running 'dogs' for the rear window of our X3 both failed because they couldn't take the stress of very rare usage. I won't even touch on the idea of using plastic in the cooling system.