1995 MKIII VW Golf Jetta Sunroof problem

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neveraging@gmail.com - 24 Sep 2006 03:10 GMT

Hi,
It seems the sunroof is a common problem in the MK3-MKIII VWs. I'm a
novice when it comes to DYI repairs, but I've got various tools and
manuals and such. But here's the problem:
The roof will move up and down almost fine, but when I want it to slide
back and forth it will move about half an inch and groan to a stop. It
sounds almos tlike there's something lodged in there that the motor
struggles against and loses. I can repeatedly push the button and it
will eventually open and close.
I've taken off the glass and can't see anything obviously broken or
worn or bent (the motor still cannot drive the frame smoothely, so it's
not like it is too weak to move the heavy glass).
I imagine this has something to do with these infamous cables (which I
don't know how I get access to b/c I can't see them) or the motor
Any insight would be appreciated!
thanks,
-George

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Mark Randol - 24 Sep 2006 15:15 GMT

> The roof will move up and down almost fine, but when I want it to slide
> back and forth it will move about half an inch and groan to a stop. It
> sounds almos tlike there's something lodged in there that the motor
> struggles against and loses. I can repeatedly push the button and it
> will eventually open and close.

There's a pair of 'hooks' that are supposed to get pushed down when the
slider mechanism starts to slide back. When it's forward, they get
'supported' against the track by a rubber 'o-ring'. It flattens over
time, and the hooks pivot up a bit more than they should, jamming the
mechanism. On mine, the 'hooks' are bright plated (chrome or gold,
don't remember which). On the replacement parts, they're unplated.

The fix is to replace the o-ring. No, you'll not find 'em from the
dealer. I've heard of them being replaced with anything from a found
one at Pep Boys to winding up a rubber band lots of times around the
'ring' to beef it up a bit.

Hard to explain without a photo. If you send me an email (edit out the
obvious stuff), I'll try to send you one with the thing circled. Or if
you'd prefer not to, maybe I'll add it to my rather small tech page.

Mark
'95 Jetta GLS

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neveraging@gmail.com - 24 Sep 2006 16:52 GMT

Thanks Mark,
I tried sending an email to ...@austin.rr.com and it got bounced back.
Basically, my wife is out of town with my digicam, but assuming I can't
figure this out by her return, I'd like to send you said pics. But do
you have a different e-mail I could send to?
thanks,
-George

> > The roof will move up and down almost fine, but when I want it to slide
> > back and forth it will move about half an inch and groan to a stop. It
[quoted text clipped - 20 lines]
> Mark
> '95 Jetta GLS

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Tom's VR6 - 24 Sep 2006 21:48 GMT

In rec.autos.makers.vw.watercooled, Mark Randol wrote:

>There's a pair of 'hooks' that are supposed to get pushed down when the
>slider mechanism starts to slide back. When it's forward, they get
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>obvious stuff), I'll try to send you one with the thing circled. Or if
>you'd prefer not to, maybe I'll add it to my rather .

Oooh oooh... that posting to your "small tech page" would be good
for me too!

Reply to this Message

Mark Randol - 24 Sep 2006 23:45 GMT

> Oooh oooh... that posting to your "small tech page" would be good
> for me too!

Just checked. No room. RR limits to 5MB :( This is AFTER I shrunk
most everything to get it to fit from the old page I had.

I really gotta get a less lame web host.

Mark
'95 Jetta GLS

Reply to this Message

Tom's VR6 - 25 Sep 2006 00:10 GMT

In rec.autos.makers.vw.watercooled, Mark Randol wrote:

>> Oooh oooh... that posting to your "small tech page" would be good
>> for me too!
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>
>I really gotta get a less lame web host.

If your software supports breaking things up, perhaps you could post
to alt.binaries.misc. Post the subject and date here.

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