I have read many of the posts about problems with sunroofs closing including https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=138758

Mine has exactly the same problem, but after several months of ignoring it I decided I would try today to lube the rails, basically slathering the sunroof with grease (I used marine grade grease instead of lithium). The greasing made it much quieter but I am getting a very loud snapping sound or popping/cracking when the controller arms come up to the sunroof frame.

As I looked, I can see there is some misalignment and the right sunroof arm is just catching on the sunroof frame before snapping into place and eventually pulling the rear of the sunroof down. So I found the source of the problem, but how does one realign a sunroof? It is such a slight misalignment that all it will take is a tweak.

I have no idea how a sunroof would be working fine one day and then be tweaked that 1 or 2 mm the next. Oh well.

Would it be appropriate to grab the sunroof and tweak it by hand?

 

Same problem here.

Anyone? Bump? Anyone?

 

Where are you greasing the rails? Because unless you're lubing behind the rails, it's not doing much good. I'll post the DIY later (it's bookmarked at home).

 

Xymox, it'd be much appreciated if you could find the DIY! Ta!

 

Whoops! Nearly forgot. Here you go..

1. http://www.motoringfile.com/2003/04/...llikeabanshee/
2. https://www.northamericanmotoring.co....php?p=1863401

BTW, I used a small allen wrench to apply a liberal amount of lube.

 

Except that it is the arm that is mis-aligned. It does not squeek.

you can see the arm reach up to catch the mating part on the glass and it is off by 2mm and then it slips as pressure is applied and WHAM hits against glass.

It is very scarry. Mostly I just don't open it all the way to avoid the problem until I fix it.

A preemptive, NO, I am not taking it to the dealer, 1.5 hours away, warranty gone, and they don't use enough lube for my tight a$$.

 

Well the lubing definitely helped, even though I didn't think it would. There is still some misalignment, and fishey72, I would double check that the arm is actually hitting the glass... I found mine was catching, enough pressure builds and then WHAM it slips into place making an awful racket. Really scary, which explains why I didn't use the sunroof for over a year (based on my posting dates in another thread!)

Anyway, the lubing helped a ton, now the sound it just a minor clunk. I was hoping to figure out the alignment issue, and it seems I am not alone (we're in this together!) in either having the problem or having difficulty finding a real solution on the Web.

 

If the MINI is anything like BMW cars the snapping popping sounds are because something has broken and will soon stick the roof panel in a partly open position.
Hopefully someone on here or the other forums have actually worked on this problem and found a solution ... other than making the dealer rich.
Many BMW car owners have found out about the roof curse and have paid $1500-$2000 to fix the problem. Out of five BMW 5 Series I've owned three of them had major sunroof failures. Flimsy plastic parts to save weight don't help much.

 

Yep. The vertical "lifters" are indeed, plastic.

 

Yea...the day I purchased my 3-series new the moonroof broke. The shades are always snapping the clips. I had the moonroof replaced about 3 years ago from shattering on the freeway and ever since then....on HARD rain days...my crap leaks. Luckily I dont have an interior... And it rattles like crazy in the front left corner....I should have a tech look at it. Its good to have friends in such places..

 

Does not seem like a greasing issue. I added some with a small allen wrench, no change. The arm that meats the glass hits in the middle of the arm attached to the glass until enough down pressure is applied and bam, slips off and hits the glass or makes a very loud sound like hitting the glass.

I will try and get a picture.