Anybody have any pictures or specific procedure as to exactly where I should be applying Liquid Wrench to the soft top? 7,600 miles and almost 7 months later and I haven't done a thing to lubricate the top. About to apply Liquid Wrench to all the hinges I can find, but how do I know if I am missing anything? How about the roof mechanism hiding in the compartments when the roof is up and I lift up the rear arms to raise the rear of the top?

 

I recently took my R57 to the dealer to have them do a full lubrication and realignment of my top...$50-$60 tops to have this done.

 

Is that liquid wrench a dry lube? If not, get the dry lube. Otherwise where you spray will collect dust and gum up the whole works. Just hit all the scissor joints you can and it will be fine. Got a 100K on our R52 with no problems.

 

+1 on all the scissor joints and sliders, Do this on the R52 every year , have 245K+ on mine R52. Put the top back about half way through and hit those pivot points.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/show...diagId=54_0405

 

Is it necessary to lube the cable or anything in contact with the cable? I always heard the cables were the weak link.. How do we prolong the cable's life?

 

Its the crimp connection on the cables/front slider section that separates, the cables can bind from not sliding cleanly and then after time the crimp connection can loosen. They tend to collect dirt and the sliding section can get dirty and gum up. I grease the sliders once a year. Then I have popped off the motor(above the front seats center) and the trim and reached the cables themselves. I then lube the whole top. I have 272K now and been through one set of cables. They top still operates fine. Over 272K i have used by top very often. This was a problem of the early R52 2005-2008. I have not heard much of issue with the R57 with the cables themselves.

 

Damn dude, 272,000 miles? That is amazing.

 

Thanks, yes i drive it daily here.

 

Any recommendations on what to use to lubricate the top other than liquid wrench?

 

you want a lube that dries completely so it doesn't attract dirt. Mini dealership uses this stuff

 

ESCTuning - when you say you "grease the sliders once a year" do you mean the rails where the carriages slide for the sunroof portion of the convertible top? Do you clean them first (if so, how - tools and cleaning agents) or do you just wipe them down? What "grease" do you use to regrease? BMW/Mini sunroof lubricant? How do you "grease" them - in other words, how do you place the grease in the rails? Many thanks for any help.

 

Yes, you can tell were the old dirty grease was from the old locations when you take the plastics off. Main rails on each side right above the windows.

The hinge joint that pivot i hit with liquid spray. Those are all the pivot points when you open the top and put it down.

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...83192157321kt/ Grease