Can't get it up manually...but Number5 did!

W

wonkydonkey

Senior member
 Somerset
Evening all. Decided to relocate my roof motor today. Happily I had the motor in my hands within 40 minutes (without removing the roof), but the wires weren't long enough to bring the motor into the boot. The motor has already been replaced in the car's past and it was nice and dry, but the short wires and a seemingly snagged hydraulic hose worried me. Decision: remove the roof to investigate.

I followed Shipkiller's guide...all nice and easy apart from the front hoop clip on the passenger side. It will not budge and the roof is now stuck in the "down" position.

The bypass was working well (both engaging and disengaging) before I disconnected the battery, and the roof DROPPED easily, but I cannot raise it manually to allow me to get a better purchase on this persistent hoop clip. Are they normally super heavy to raise manually?
 
They shouldnt be heavy to lift if the hydraulic bypass has engaged.

If the motor is now in the boot, then disconnect each hydraulic line from the pump and then try moving the roof manually. (use a mug or similar to hang the disconnected lines in and catch the fluid)
That way you'll know if its the hydraulic pressure your working against or another physical obstruction.

PS. The standard lines should be long enough for the motor to drop into the boot corner. Maybe you've still got a cable tie holding one back ?
 
This topic heading made me chuckle - love the bracketed clarification that its the roof you're on about :D
 
Thanks for the reply [ref]Number5[/ref]. Unfortunately the motor never made it right out into the boot because of the short wire and hose lengths. This of course means the motor is out of reach and trapped in by the roof. It also means that my hoop is unbolted and inaccessible and I'm not sure how good an idea it would be to operate the roof electrically like this.
 
Number5 said:
Where in Somerset are you ?
Is the car driveable or garaged at the mo ?
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I'm down near Burnham on Sea. The car is garaged and undriveable in its current condition unfortunately. I'll have to try powering it up a bit tomorrow I think, then see if the hoop will unclip. I've got three of the hoop retaining screws back in to prevent it lifting during roof operation.
 
If the roof has been off previously there's every chance they've wrapped the cable around the ram, making it too short to drag into the boot. Seen it many times, just unbolt the ram and lift the corner of the roof out to unwind it.

Mike
 
Ducklakeview said:
If the roof has been off previously there's every chance they've wrapped the cable around the ram, making it too short to drag into the boot. Seen it many times, just unbolt the team and lift the corner of the roof out to unwind it.

Mike
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I think that's what has happened. I was going to leave the roof in place until I realised the wiring and hoses hadn't been routed nicely by the previous worker. I'm struggling to lift the corner of the roof where the motor is, due to the hoop being stuck. I removed seven hoop screws but it's behaving as though it's somehow still fixed. Not being able to raise the roof is making things difficult.
 
You don't need to remove any of the hoop bolts in order to lift the corner out, even with the roof fully retracted, which is the best position for it to be in when doing it.

Mike
 
Ducklakeview said:
You don't need to remove any of the hoop bolts in order to lift the corner out, even with the roof fully retracted, which is the best position for it to be in when doing it.

Mike
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I see what you're saying Mike. I'll have a look with fresh eyes tomorrow and see if I can sort out the routing of the wires and hoses with everything as it is. Thanks for the replies.
 
Im not far away and I'll pop down to you if you like but I may struggle to do anything for a week or so, unless I can squeeze it in this sunday.
Drop me a PM with your contact details if so and we'll see what we can sort.
 
Ducklakeview said:
You don't need to remove any of the hoop bolts in order to lift the corner out, even with the roof fully retracted, which is the best position for it to be in when doing it.
Mike
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Really Mike ?
Surely you wont get the flexibility to lift the strut out with the hoop still bolted in ? I can't see that that is possible myself for fear of over twisting it ?
 
Number5 said:
Ducklakeview said:
You don't need to remove any of the hoop bolts in order to lift the corner out, even with the roof fully retracted, which is the best position for it to be in when doing it.
Mike
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Really Mike ?
Surely you wont get the flexibility to lift the strut out with the hoop still bolted in ? I can't see that that is possible myself for fear of over twisting it ?
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Done it plenty of times, trick is to raise roof about 6"and it comes out easily. Remember there isn't actually a bolt in the hoop at the door ends.

Mike
 
Ducklakeview said:
Number5 said:
Ducklakeview said:
You don't need to remove any of the hoop bolts in order to lift the corner out, even with the roof fully retracted, which is the best position for it to be in when doing it.
Mike
Click to expand...
Really Mike ?
Surely you wont get the flexibility to lift the strut out with the hoop still bolted in ? I can't see that that is possible myself for fear of over twisting it ?
Click to expand...

Done it plenty of times, trick is to raise roof about 6"and it comes out easily. Remember there isn't actually a bolt in the hoop at the door ends.

Mike
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OK, I'll take your word on that, but I've always unbolted back to the centre + 1 which gives then plenty of movement. It is always the corner bolt that gives the most trouble to get back in though.
 
Update

I freed the wiring (too much had been pulled through to the cabin side, leaving it short on the motor cavity side) and bolted the roof back into the two pillars. The aim was to raise the roof so I could pull the motor through to the boot.

Pressing the raise/lower buttons causes the latch to engage and disengage but no action from the main motor. When I press the "raise" button, the latch makes a noise but then the button light flashes red.

Parcel shelf is in with switch engaged. Is there another switch somewhere that I'm missing?

The three roof fuses are all okay.
 
Update 5th June

Massive thanks to Alan ([ref]Number5[/ref]) for coming round this evening to resolve my roof issue. It turned out to be no fewer than three or four issues all going on at the same time but the operation is now speedy and consistent and I am very happy. Motor now sitting out of trouble in the boot and I will now be back on the road...once I paint my bumper! :driving:

To list the issues (to help others in the future, possibly) :

1. Oil level was low.
2. Bypass was seized in the pump body (freed up with WD40).
3. Air in the system needed bleeding out via roof operation and undoing the fill plug. It was actually foaming the fluid up in the reservoir.
4. Swapped the two pairs of hoses (and power cables) as the pump is a bit weak in one direction.
5. One of the motor's power cables had fallen off (tired female spade connector) which is why I could no longer operate the roof halfway through dismantling it.
 
wonkydonkey said:
Massive thanks to Alan ([ref]Number5[/ref]) for coming round this evening to resolve my roof issue.
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No worries James, I was glad to be of assistance. :)

buzyg said:
Result. :thumbsup:
And great to know Alan can still get it up too. :lol:
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..And as for you Buzy, we dont all suffer with your problems :?
 
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