[Laloggia]

Had this problem occur over the weekend...thank god I saw this before it happened. Roof would open great, but it would not close. Motor would grind like gears slipping. Cracked her open when I got home and noticed that the left motor was dropping just enough to make the gears not catch to close the roof. Took out the hex screw and added a thick washer to put the motor back in place....works great now. Thanks benzworld.

 

[wishforit]

03 W211 E500 pano fix, great post!!

2003 W211 E500 my pano was doing the famous click machine gun noise the lock washer fixed mine, opens and close with ease.............. great post

 

[hdawg]

My problem has become a little more complicated. Washers worked on the sunshade but the previous owner had tried opening and closing the sunroof unsuccessfully so much that the teeth on the motor were ground down. This somehow caused my roof to misalign and has chewed up the gasket around the roof. She's going to the shop tomorrow. I am done with this project. Be careful going too far into this system. It is more complicated than you might think. I could strangle the person who designed it.

 

[peachtreeautosales]

Genius!

Hey guys!

Ran into this problem last night where I was closing my panoramic roof and it suddenly stopped moving forward and started making this awful grinding, clacking sound! I tried playing with it a bit to get the thing to close properly and get the shade closed, and actually got the thing stuck tilted slightly up. I was pretty upset.

After looking at the forum last night, I inspected the problem and came upon a quick, cheap, and permanent fix to the problem. My roof works perfectly again!

What kills me is wondering if I took it to the dealer and paid $80 for an estimate, would they come back telling me I had a $4000 job ahead of me. I've owned this car for about 3 years and have found that the worst thing about it are the crooks that pass for Mercedes specialists. I avoid them like the plague!

I've got photos with directions on Flickr: C230 Panoramic Roof Problem - a set on Flickr

Sorry, I don't know how to post photos on here. Hope this helps!

Mike

Mike, this repair is pure genius!! I'm a car dealer and I've always shied away from the C Class when it had roof problems. Just on the off chance someone had come across this problem, I tried the forum! I will admit, I had my doubts that it could be fixed so simply. I follow your info and in 10 minutes it was working as good as new! I just know if I had taken it to the dealer he would have laid me out. You are the man! Thanks so much for your post! -Jim

 

[bcinoc]

Mike,

Thank you so much for saving me 1300! which I was quoted for 2 new motors and labor charge...I did as you said, and sunroof is back in working order. All it cost me was 1.18 for the washers.

Also, congrats on the Bucks winning the NCAA title:grin

 

[rudeney]

There you go! Another great win for Benzworld members!

 

[ryan83]

Red B, thank you so much for your advice, you were right about everything!

Rodney, thank you for the helpful digram!

To sum, All I could do was open, but not close the roof -unless having someone push the close button from the inside while I pushed the roof from the outside. I bought the original MB grease to lubricate as a last fight, but when closing after greasing (still with force), only one side went all the way down -one corner was still full tilt! I tried opening the roof again but it got stuck. So I went back and forth, opening and closing, while using force to try to re-align and keep both sides equally forward/back until I noticed that there were some broken plastic pieces in the tracks. I likely shredded the cassette assembly that was probably damaged by my past forceful closes. I eventually got the thing closed, but one corner is to-this-day about 5mm up (closed but not sealed -frustrating wind noise at higher speeds).
I should have known better... thinking back I don't know what I was ever thinking forcefully trying to close a sunroof.

Summary/Lessons learned:
1. Prevention: keep your pano roof lubricated
2. If problem occurs (early on; still opens and closes but just starting to make grinding sound every now and then): throw a washer under the motor and lubricate.
3. If problem persists: a. leave it alone, b. take it to a mechanic you trust (make sure no force is used), c. NEVER USE FORCE especially on a brittle little Benz.


Thanks again,

Ryan


***I apologize for responding so late!***

 

[tomtrl]

I'm new here, but already learning a lot. I just acquired an '04 C230 Coupe with 18k miles. The MB dealer was going to send it to auction because the roof "didn't work". Other than that, the car is pristine, so I offered to buy it knowing that this was a problem. At first, I was scared to even touch the button, but after reading here, I decided to stick a washer in and give it a try. It opened all the way back with no problem. Expect for the little arms that popped up in the track. I've decided that these are the linkage arms that push the wind deflector up when the roof goes back. I've located the replacement arms, but can't find anywhere that describes how to change them. Has anyone had to do this? The roof has no problem closing, I just have to hold both of those arms down and close it past that point.

Thanks in advance!!

 

[tmafuna]

someone please send me pic on where to place the washer

 

[tomtrl]

someone please send me pic on where to place the washer

If you go to the original post on page 1 of the thread, there is a link to pictures in detail on how to do this.

 

[tmafuna]

THankx..

 

[Nico Nicolas]

What if when we push the button to open the roof/sunblinds nothing happening? I mean no sound, nothing. I changed the fuse and still no power. Any idea?

 

[Sevyp]

Mercedes 2003 c320 Sunroof DIY Fix

Works!!!! Ryan, thank you!!!! The last time I was at my M Benz repair shop in Atlanta Ga. I was told to watch out for sunroof issues with my 2003 C320 coupe, "for it is a costly repair." Of course with an intro like that I had to ask, how much? "$2500-3000, very expensive, so I would just not use it". Skip forward a few months and it was a beautiful fall day and I just had to open the sunroof. It opened no problem, but when I went to close it, it jammed up, about 4" open and made an awful grinding noise. With the help oh google I found this post, followed the directions and it now works fine. It took 20 min to fix using the pics on flicker.
A FEW CLARIFICATION POINTS: it is not a 1/4" tall or even a 1/4" lock washer. I bought 1/4" (the size of the bolt it fits on) and the diameter was too small. I used some larger ones that I hand on hand and added them to both bolts. The Torx bit that you need is a TORX T25.
Thank you for your help and for the $2500 savings.

 

[capt1122]

Does anyone know if this fix will work on a 2009 E350 Pano Sunroof as well?

 

[C230 Sport Coup]

Just did the sunroof fix.
Had exactly as described in 1st post.
1 washer didn't do so I added a 2nd and cinched it down pretty tight.
No more grinding on 3 passes so far.

Just thought I'd mention, when you are done replacing the washers, be sure to clean and lube your sunroof.
303 Protectant helps keep the rubber seals from sticking from the glass, and then be sure to clean and lube to reduce friction and stress on the motor, and the rest of the moving parts. See attached.

Regarding W211 pano, Wabasto makes the sunroofs, you won't know till you look, but it's likely very similar.

Also included how to get the overhead control module out of the way.

 

[ccantu22]

Tried it and it worked.

I finally got the pano closed with some help of some extra muscle from outside push and using the manual crank. I had resigned to never opening it again until I found this post. I knew when I dropped the light enclosure and the rubber washer was deteriorated that this post was the right diagnosis. That said, I did have my reservations about opening it up.

As the drive mechanism is only accessible through a very narrow slot along the track I did not clean the drive. However I did dab some silicone on it and another teflon based goop for the rubber seals. Opened and closed several times with no issue and no noise. All for the cost of a washer from the garage scrap pile. I wasn't sure how tight to secure it. I didn't want to overdo it. The original washers are rubber and plastic so I can't imagine it is excessively tight as one post mentioned doing. Right now it is just snug and I'll see if over time I don't need to give it a more aggressive turn on the T-25.

Anyone know what the "regular maintenance" on the pano entails? I can continue to lube it up every few months, but does it really need to be "taken in" to a pro for some kind of alignment check, etc. that will keep it at optimal performance. I'd like to keep using it with confidence rather than using it in fear.

I did find some rubber pieces from the rear guide arm. It seems to be there to help the movement but mine is deteriorated. It is located on the top of the arm where it attaches to the glass and glides along the groove when opening and closing the roof. I dabbed a little extra silicone on that but wonder if any kind of replacement part for that? Should I be concerned? Others seen this too?

In sum:
1.) Tension or tightness on bolt?
2.) Maintenance steps on pano roof.
3.) Rear rubber grommet.

In thanks:
Great post. Saved many people tons of money and time and aggravation!

 

[aSteele]

C230 2005 kompressor with pano roof issue

help! I have a mercedes C-230 2005 with the pano roof...before winter, i had the same thing happen..opened the top, no problem, went to close it...and the back end stayed popped open, and that awful grinding noise. Found your post, and began the search for the washers, and rubber grommets as well as the bolts all of which i purchased thru a mercedes dealership...nothing worked..we found that the red cog had a crack in it as the spindle and the gears looked pretty worn..after much trial and tribulation, located one in states, and had that shipped..brought to my guy yesterday..and we were hopeful now it would work..well it opened fine..but on the close..she began making that awful grinding noise again...but she did manage to close..the shade will not close as all we can hear is the grinding...so don't dare opening again..yes, we did lube the track...did anyone else have this experience after following all the fixes posted on this thread..i realize some go back awhile.. but hoping i can get some response! pls and tx...stuck in pei...

 

[aSteele]

hey mike..are you the person who originally posted this thread, and did the you tube video? take a look at my situation, and if you can, please advise..HELP~this is a mind bender! I've tried everything..btw motor is perfect..no issues! help! I have a mercedes C-230 2005 with the pano roof...before winter, i had the same thing happen..opened the top, no problem, went to close it...and the back end stayed popped open, and that awful grinding noise. Found your post, and began the search for the washers, and rubber grommets as well as the bolts all of which i purchased thru a mercedes dealership...nothing worked..we found that the red cog had a crack in it as the spindle and the gears looked pretty worn..after much trial and tribulation, located one in states on ebay, and had that shipped..brought to my guy yesterday..and we were hopeful now it would work..well it opened fine..but on the close..she began making that awful grinding noise again...but she did manage to close..the shade will not close as all we can hear is the grinding...so don't dare opening again..yes, we did lube the track...did anyone else have this experience after following all the fixes posted on this thread..i realize some go back awhile.. but hoping i can get some response! pls and tx...stuck wo my pano in pei...

 

[Nicki0115]

-I have exactly the same problem with my 2005 w203.The sunshade wouldnt close after the glass roof.After closing the glass roof,the sunshade would not close but the glass roof motor makes machine gun sound.After cutting power to the roof,the sunshade would close and open and the glass roof would open with no issues but then the shade wont close.I tried swapping the roof motor with shade motor but it did not work.I replaced the rubber washers and tightened the the bolts but no luck.can anyone help

 

[aSteele]

exactly..i swapped the cog, put in new rubber grommets, but did not add the extra metal washers that some on this thread have done...i am wondering if i try adding the extra washers if that would help? we did get the window open twice, it started making the machine gun grinding noise on the close..the shade wouldn't open or close..now it's just doing the noise and won't open...like i said.i've replaced the red cog, the rubber grommets and even the bolts which i purchased from the dealer...i'm exhausting all knowledge how to fix!