Hello All,
Chilli Red '07 Cooper! Any of you fine R56 owners out there haveing issues with your sun roof? Our came open at a funny angle and locked up so we had to drop it off in the shop for about a week! just wanted to know if we were the only ones!

 

My sunroof got stuck shut. I had to get a whole new suroof cartridge to fix it. It rained multiple times while i was waiting for the part to get there and waiting for an appoitment. At least it was stuck shut.

 

Most of the problems with sunroofs have been wind noise and water leaks. Seems to be a part of the car design that needs attention. So problems with sunroofs are fairly common.

 

My sunroof won't operate in hot weather, it either stays open or closed. only sort of jiggling when I press the button. It will slide if I push it in the direction it's supposed to go and it behaves normally when cold.

My dealer tried to fix it once but no luck, and I don't think it's worth being carless for a week just to get something like this fixed (I was carless for a week trying to update software that still doesn't work). I will likely end up just living with it or buying a used Honda or some reliable car for days the Mini is in the shop.

 

When it's hot like today. The sunroof takes a few tries to either open or raise up. Once's the car's running, it usually works fine. Usually it's upward of 97degrees and in direct sun when it does this.

 

My sunroof went from not working in hot weather to not working at all, the dealer is ordering in a new cartridge and replacing the works.

 

Same problem here. It was 108 today, first time it wouldnt open. Got on the road, and it opened. I think driving out of the parking lot tweaked the frame a bit...sorta jiggling it.

Im adding this to the list of stuff the dealer needs to fix when I take it in...so far:
3-2 shift grinding
Sunroof
AC is a bit warm (I might be mistaken on this one...)

-nK

 

Greetings! This is my first official post on NAM:
I have a 2006 Mini Cooper S and the sun roof wouldn't close this past weekend after numerous attempts. All of the other electrical is fine in the car. I'm taking it to the dealer this week as I was told the repair was covered under the warranty. It sounds like there is either a short in the motor for the sun roof or perhaps a sensor that is not engaging or detecting the roof wanting to be closed? Not sure. I was NOT a happy owner as I do not have a garage so it's critical my sun roof open and close or at least stay shut especially with rain in the forecast on a semi-daily basis. I also have experienced my glove box becoming locked-up. Any other glitches I should be aware of or can prevent? Thanks!

 

Third time my car is in for a week! for the sunroof. They first aligned it when I told them it was not functioning properly (going up and down by itself, not closing etc. all of the same issues we are all having) Finally, it the left half of the front roof closed and the right did not. It then made a loud grinding noise. Anyway, they replaced the cartirdge yesterday and have put it out in the hot miami sun today to see if it continues with them same issues.

I'm so over the stupid sunroof. Next one will not have a sunroof.

 

hello! I believe mine needs an exorscism because when I close, it opens and the last time sounds like it has the devil in it! so I leave at the dealer and next stop will be at the church!

 

I too have the "won't open/close" sunroof issue, as do many of the other owners on SCMM. I have a 2007 Mini and yes, I have gone over the warrenty milage. ( I live in California and commute) I fail to see how a two year old sunroof is effected by milage. The roof was working fine, I garaged my car and left for two weeks on vacation. When I returned, the sunroof stuck the first time I tried to open it. I was able to close it and, figuring the rubber had expanded (heat) and some sort of protection sensor and prevented it from openning, I tried again and this time it made a terrible grinding noise. The roof is closed now and I am driving without this accessory that I actually wanted. I tried to open and close the roof manually, per the owner's manual, but the thing is stuck tight. I'm not prepared, nor do I feel I should have to pay almost $800.00 for Mini to check it out and then replace something that should still be working after just two years. If anyone has any suggestions (quit thinking that, I can read your mind and would suggest just the things you are thinking, ha ha ) on how I might remove the glass and look at the mechanism, I would really appreciate it.

 

I have the following problem with my R53 Mini Cooper S.

This is what happened:

Due to the hot blazing sun, I decided to put a small suction cup shade (as you know, the shade has a folding wire that goes all around it) on the sliding panel of my sunroof and all was great; however one day after arriving home and enabled my car alarm (all windows and sunroof automatically closed), the suction cup shade got loose while the panel was closing so it got trapped mainly on the left side of the sunroof causing it to not close properly any more. Actually, it doesn't even open anymore, it just moves half an inch up and down but that's it. I didn't hear any weird noises on the motor or gears skipping, in fact I didn't notice the sunroof problem until the next day when I climbed onto my car.

See photo:


I've been trying to make it budge carefully spraying WD40 onto the railings and hinges without success. I know there is a manual cranking mechanism but I need to remove the whole ceiling but I'm afraid the rain season is coming soon (actually we have raining forecast for tomorrow) so I don't think I'll make it to the weekend to perform such project.

Is there a trick to make it budge by carefully applying force?

I will appreciate any help you can provide so I can try at lunchtime today!

Cheers!!!

 

Sorry to bring up an old thread -- but I just experienced the same issue with my sunroof; it won't fully shut and remains tilted open just as in the pics above. Tried WD-40 and coaxing it to shut but no luck. Has anyone found a way to just get the roof to at least fully shut (don't care about it being able to open at this point)? Thanks in advance for any help!

 

Unfortunately for me, I had to replace the whole sunroof cartridge (I found it a local yunk yard for a measly $75 dlls, complete including motor!) and I replaced it myself (not an easy task).

The problem with this misalignment is that it's almost impossible to realign by pushing and pulling. It only makes things worse. You'll end up breaking too many plastic pieces making it rattle like crazy.

Sorry pal

 

did you try the emergency crank?

{see owner's manual}

 

I did try the crank, but it didn't budge... Well it actually moved a bit, but that's where I managed to break some more plastic pieces here and there.

 

Sorry to bump an old thread, I have a Countryman 2011 MY here in the UK with the panoramic sunroof.

The slide mechanism is absolutely fine, but tilting it up and down in the first place is a bit juddery.

I'm trying to pre-empt any potential issues, but just wondering on the best way to grease it. Previously I used a specialist dry PTFE lube spray, but I've seen others mention white lithium grease. Might sound daft but given it works fine on the slide mechanism, where exactly do I need to grease to ensure the tilt part is OK?

Thanks for any help

 

Same issue here.....did you find a solution?

 

I had same issue with sunroof not closing completely... I carefully cleaned all the tracks and sliding pieces of accumulated dirt and grime and lubed well with lithium... seemed to work AOK afterwards... however... I have not opened it in about two years (no reason to tempt fate)!!

 

Mine is pretty futsy in hot weather.
Often takes multiple tries to get it to close.
Just about closes then backs up open at the last microsecond.
The shop has worked on it twice and it’s some better
( meaning it hasn’t absolutely refused to close on
despite all attempts) since then, but I keep the
right size torx bit to get the cover off and the
allen crank tool handy in the car just in case
and don’t open it if it looks like rain soon.

 

 

Well... when I tried it recently... it was stuck when trying to open. I figure... lets try the easiest solution first.... I gently helped it open by hand to get it started and it opened fully without further help. Upon examination... there was significant amount of accumulated dirt and gunk on all the edges of the roof window and the surfaces that it mated to when closed. I used a lot of amour-all cleaning wipes to remove all the dirt on all surfaces to like new. When I retried the roof... if now opens and closes perfect like new. This was a simple 20 minute fix and should be the first order of business or even just plan to clean it every spring. Hope this helps someone else.