Z4 E89 - Roof Motor Replacement - Help!

T

THawk

Member
 London
Hi Guys!

I am new to the forum - just bought a 2009 Z4 E89. The folding roof does not work as it was submerged in water - and is now completely red in rust. I've already taken off all the inserts in the boot and located the motor.

I'm hoping that replacing this Motor will resolve the roof issue. I am located in London, and need someone not too far who can carry out this job. I know users like DietCokeMan previously did motor replacements for E85's but I can't seem to contact him.

If you are someone with knowledge on the roof motor, I'd appreciate any advice regarding the functionality of the roof.
(I am currently in conversation with Bowser134, hopefully he can help.) Otherwise please direct me to any users who can carry out the job!

IMG_8523.jpg
IMG_8524.jpg

Many Thanks,

THawkk
 
Well if that’s not an advisory to all e89 owners to keep an eye on that area I don’t know what is 😱

As you have managed to get this far with it I’m surprised you don’t swap it out yourself? The pump will quite happily lift up and sit on top of the battery and you could just swap the pipes and connections over to a replacement one at a time.

Might be worth checking inside the polystyrene box in the right hand side as this is where the roof control module is as well as others as you might have water in there too.

Stuart
 
Do you know what the cause of the water ingress was, might be worth mentioning just so other owners can check there's
 
Stuartt said:
As you have managed to get this far with it I’m surprised you don’t swap it out yourself? The pump will quite happily lift up and sit on top of the battery and you could just swap the pipes and connections over to a replacement one at a time.
Click to expand...

Hi Stuart,
I did think about doing it myself, but if I'm honest it looks so delicate I don't really want to risk taking the wiring off. Also, I can't seem to find any guides or illustrations of how the Motor actually works (eg. which wires go where). If there's anyone out there who knows where I can find a disassembly guide, that would be great!. The remainder of the wiring looks in tact, however I'm still investigating.

markplant said:
Do you know what the cause of the water ingress was.
Click to expand...

Apparently the previous owner left the car outdoors for a couple years and water just seeped through the seal. Once it got to the motor, it didn't evaporate at all. Water just sat there for months. So bad quality seals from BMW and even worse insulation - along with a neglectful owner!

Any direction towards threads/users dealing with this would be appreciated (:
 
Just found this if any good to you ?

https://www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/e89-z4-sdrive35i-roa/repair-manuals/54-slide-tilt-sunroof-soft-top/54-37-folding-roof/8J4WdHEG


Stuart
 
This is a link to the whole manual

https://www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/e89-z4-sdrive35i-roa/

Stuart
 
ihadablackdog said:
Is this down by the battery?

I just need to look for water/rust?
Click to expand...

Yes, lift the boot floor / battery cover and you should see the battery and a foam casing around the roof pump, push your hand down the right hand end of the pump foam all the way down it should be bone dry. If there are any signs of water or the foam feels damp then remove the bar across the battery and pump, lift the pump out of the foam carrier and put it on top of the battery, take the foam completely out and dry it out completely ( can take a couple of days) dry out the area completely, place the pump back in the hole on a towel to cushion it until the foam is dry then refit it all back together and keep an eye on it going toward.

Stuart
 
THawk said:
Stuartt said:
Just found this if any good to you ?
Click to expand...

You are a star! :thumbsup:
I'll check it out and update you all on my progress! Cheers

THawk
Click to expand...

Looking at your pictures in the first post again it looks to me as though the pump has been changed before due to the Red and Brown cables have YELLOW crimp butt connectors on them suggesting they have been cut and joined.

Stuart
 
Stuartt said:
Looking at your pictures in the first post again it looks to me as though the pump has been changed before due to the Red and Brown cables have YELLOW crimp butt connectors on them suggesting they have been cut and joined.
Click to expand...

Hi Stuart,

Now that you’ve pointed it out, it does seem to have been changed. I investigated further, and all the wires seem to be cable tied together etc.. not sure BMW would leave it like this (seems unprofessional)

I’m worried now, because if someone else has tried to fit a new motor and failed to get it working.. then maybe me changing my motor won’t solve all my issues! I guess the motor change is only the first hurdle.. :|
 

Looking at your pictures in the first post again it looks to me as though the pump has been changed before due to the Red and Brown cables have YELLOW crimp butt connectors on them suggesting they have been cut and joined.

Stuart
[/quote]

Hi Stuart,

Now that you’ve pointed it out, it does seem to have been changed. I investigated further, and all the wires seem to be cable tied together etc.. not sure BMW would leave it like this (seems unprofessional)

I’m worried now, because if someone else has tried to fit a new motor and failed to get it working.. then maybe me changing my motor won’t solve all my issues! I guess the motor change is only the first hurdle.. :|
[/quote]

Hi, maybe changing the motor did get it working again but the water ingress issue wasn’t fixed, flooding the motor and stopping it again? :?
Rob
 
Looking at those pics it's not the motor wires that have been butted but the connectors to the salmon coloured relays.
Someone has replaced the connector block.
It was strange that my car roof failure required two new relays, but the one's i removed worked ok on the bench.
Therefore there might have been something wrong with the connector block that pushing in the new relays fixed.
Looks like someone there has tried to replace that.
Perhaps that was badly corroded.
Check wiring to the relays.
 

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ihadablackdog said:
Is this down by the battery?

I just need to look for water/rust?
Click to expand...

This is what it should look like:
 

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flybobbie said:
Therefore there might have been something wrong with the connector block that pushing in the new relays fixed.
Looks like someone there has tried to replace that.
Perhaps that was badly corroded.
Check wiring to the relays.
Click to expand...

Thanks FlyBobbie, I'll check this out. I'm going to replace the motor and pump as my first step. While I wait for that, I'll check out wiring and clean out the old one! :hattip:
 
Hi All,

Update!

Took me a couple weeks to locate a new/refurbed motor. Whilst I waited, I took off the old motor and cleaned out all the wiring connections.

IMG_8916.jpg

I attached the new Motor to the car, made sure all the connections were in the right place...

Moment of truth, closed the boot and pressed the roof down button. The windows went down, I could hear the motor whizzing in the boot - which means the motor works but..

BOOM, NEW PROBLEM

Error on the dashboard showing a red roof fault and no movement at all. The motor just whizzes in the boot and the roof doesn't budge.
But the big issue now.. The windows don't go back up, and the boot doesn't open at all!!

So I'm stuck again, this time I'm sure the motor is working, but I can't access the boot to check. I think the issue might be in the micro switches spread across the roof.

Does anyone know how I can close the windows and open the boot manually? I've had to put a car cover on with the windows still open - Disaster.
 
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