Sunroof Repair Comp

8/13/2019 Sunroof Repair Comp

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View of thecomponents of theBMW E39 sunrooflift mechanism: Rear lif t plate Front stop Rear pivot Front lift pivot

(good and bad) Wind deflector

clip

Lift arm Front glass

pivot

Lift arm slider

All sunroof glassremoval is donefrom inside the car.Once the glass islifted and turned it is

lowered back intothe car forrotection. Then

Press the sunroofbutton to the ventposition and wait forthe mechanism tostop moving. Thesunroof should beable to be lifted by

hand to the ventposition. Block theroof in this position(or use the top ofyour head) whileundoing the rubberbellows and screws.The bellows pushesinto grooves in theside of the track andthe side of the glassrail. Slide inward bygrasping at the rearends close to theinserted edge toprevent tearing thebellows.

BMW E39 sunroof lif t mechanism repair for sunroo f that will not open to vent pos ition - ExAlfa

View of rear lift plate and two sunroof bolt holes. Sunroof is in vent position here and rubber bellows has beenremoved.


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View of front pivotand sunroof bolt.

Pin in sunroof pivotengages hole insunroof bottom rail.

View of rear lift plateafter removal ofsunroof.

Plate pivots on a pinheld in place with asingle screw on topof the plate.

Pin engages armthat actuates thedrain tray.

The sunroof is liftedto vent positionwhen the lift armslider is movedforward

Lift arm pivot, thepart that breaks, is

clipped to theleading end of the liftarm.


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View of front pivotand wind deflectorarm.

The pin in the frontglass pivot engagesa hole in the track onthe bottom side of

the sunroof glass.Side deflection ofthe pivot arm willallow removal of thepin from the sunroof.

View of winddeflector arm andfront stop.

The wind deflectorarm is held to thedeflector with a splitbushing thatexpands when

pressed through thehole in the end ofthe deflector.Squeeze the halvesof the split bushingtogether using pliersand push thebushing through thedeflector hole.Remove the bushingfrom the pin on theend of the deflectorarm. Easily lost, put

the bushing in acontainer.


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Slide the front glasspivot fully forwarduntil the winddeflector actuatingpin stops furthermovement.

Push the wind

deflector arm awayfrom the front glasspivot and then slidethe front glass pivotforward whileguiding the leadingend of the frontglass pivot towardsthe sunroofcenterline (see nextpicture).

View of the frontglass pivot with theleading edgepushed towards thesunroof centerline.

Note the notch in thefront glass pivotstrack rail. This notch

allows the front pivotto slide out of thetrack otherwise thefront glass pivotwould only slidestraight ahead andwhack the winddeflector.

With the front glasspivot removed slidethe remnant of thebroken front lift pivot

out of the track andtoss it.


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View of lift plate. Toremove lift plateremove the singlescrew on top.

The pivot pinpassing through thelift arm is what

retains the lift armonto the rear lift armslider. Until the pivotpin is pulled out thelift arm cannot beremoved and thebroken front lift pivotcannot be replaced.

Note that the pivotpin slides throughthe lift arm and thenthrough a bushingbefore going throughthe rear lift plate.The pivot pin thencontinues into therear drip tray

actuation arm.

Grasp the pivot pinat the flat end thatthe screw goes intoand pull inward toremove.


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Because the front liftpivot is broken thelift arm can now beslid forward and offthe lift arm slider.The slider is left inthis position (sunroofvent)

The white plasticbushing may havebroken from age. Ifthis has happenedremove the bushingfrom thereplacement kit andreplace the brokenone. Typically therear slider is notreplaced because itis fixed to the

actuating cable.

View of the newfront lift pivotinstalled onto the liftarm. Note that thepivot cannot besnapped in from anyposition. Carefulrotation of the armaround the pivot will

find the positionwhere the front liftpivot easily slipsonto the lift arm.That rotationalposition is similar toas shown in thisphoto.

Before sliding thefront lift pivot into thetrack apply a littlelubricating lithium

grease to the trackrails using a swab.


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View of the front liftpivot sliding backinto the lubricatedtrack. Before slidingtoo far lower the liftarm and slide therear end over thewhite plastic bushing

of the rear lift armslider. Then slide thearm along the rearslider bushing andthe front lift pivot willfollow down thetrack.

Slide the pivot pinback through therear end of the liftarm. Before fullyinserting the pinlocate the rear liftplate tab over theend of the opening

and then engage thepin into the draintray arm.


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View of pin engagingthe rear lift plate taband drain tray arm.

Replace the frontglass pivot to thetrack by inserting asshown, using thenotch in the pivot railto allow inserting ina twisted position.

As the rails of thefront glass pivot

engage the track theleading end of thefront glass pivot willbarely clear theraised winddeflector.


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As the front glasspivot wind deflectorarm (sticking out theside of the frontpivot) hits the winddeflector arm pushthe arm down andsideways to allow

the front glass pivotto slid into the track.

Verify smoothmovement of thefront glass pivot,rear slider, and frontlift pivot.

Replace the frontstop and tighten the

screw.


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Replace the winddeflector pin bushingover the winddeflector arm pinand press the pinwith bushing throughthe hole in the winddeflector. The

bushing will snapopen once it is fullyinserted through thehole.

Slide the front glasspivot forward inpreparation forsunroof glassreinstallation.

Repeat for theopposite side, if

necessary.Congratulateyourself.

BMW E39 sunroof lift pivot replacement. Sunroof wont lift? Flops up and down over bumps? This is likely thecause of the issue. Test by pressing the sunroof button to the vent position. If the glass can be lifted by hand tothe desired lift position both pivots are broken. If one side lifts but the sunroof will not close fully then one side isbroken the side that clicks when pressing up on the glass when in the closed position. Replacement takesabout two hours for both sides. Unfortunately the only way to acquire the needed dollar part is to buy the wholelift mechanism kit for about $70. Pop a frosty beverage and put on some tunes.ExAlfa

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Sunroof Repair Comp