1994 325i convertible roof problem

[mrd1234]

Hi all

I have a problem with my car's roof. I had been operating it without any problems and then one day it simply did not work.

The symptoms:
I push the switch to cause the roof to open and nothing happens at all (and yes, I have undone the manual part of the roof and opened it sufficiently wide, just like usual). There is no attempt to do anything - no whiring sounds, no lowering of the windows etc. I have taken the car to a mechanic who claims to have tried everything (checked the mirco switches, roof controller unit etc) and can find nothing wrong. He has given up! I am wondering if anyone here has any ideas that I could suggest to the mechanic to check since there is clearly something wrong and he, with his experience, is at his wits end.

thanks for your help

[jeffreyb4me]

try 'Reinitializing' your EM top.........procedure is :
Manually open [push up] the front bow as usual.

Pull the emergency release handle all the way forward [it's under the L/S of the rear seat]

While slightly pulling on the front bow [to release tension] pull open [up] the rear bow to verticle.

Open the top storage lid fully and stow the soft top.

Close the storage lid. With a helper pushing down on the R/F corner of the storage lid, CAREFULLY open the trunk. [there's an interlock between the trunk latch and the storage lid so they can't be opened at once. pushing on that corner of the lid closes the micro-switch and allows thetrunk latch to function.]

Before going further, push the release ALL THE WAY BACK to it's 'rest' position.

Now, with the trunk open, pull the cover panel away on the L/S of the trunk to access the drives.
engage the soft top drive 1st by pushing back up 'til it's reengaged in the drive. [ the soft top drive is forward in the left corner below the top storage area]
Now reengage the storage lid motor [ L/S of the trunk behind the wheelhouse close to the taillamp ],
by pulling it towards the center of the car 'til it 'clicks' into place.

CLOSE THE TRUNK ! ! Complerely [it MUST latch]

FOLLOW THE NEXT STEPS IN ORDER ! ! !

Sit in the car,
1) HOLD the soft top switch in the OPEN position [ reward, stowing, just like you wanted to put the top down ]
2) WHILE HOLDING the switch in OPEN, turn the IGNITION switch to position #1 [ acc./radio only on ] { posotion #2 is Ignition/engine on }.
3) OK, holding button, turned key to position #1, HOLD the soft top buttton about 10 sec's or until the storage lid closes completely [you'll see it 'power itself' closed fully then stop]
4) IF all went well, start the engine and operate your top as usual to test the functions then go ENJOY THE SUN !..........................................jb.

[jobyleary]

jeffreyb4me...... My girlfriend has a 99 323 convertible the top got hooked on the garage cieling while putting it up. it is now stuck in the 3/4 up position. and nothing works
help??

[jeffreyb4me]

How in the h.........whoops, ummm, ok. '99 323ic that I'm assuming is still an E36. Also assuming it jammed with the srorage cover open. This may take both of you. pull up on the L/F corner of the rear seat bottom, you'll find the release handle there [bright orange strap on the end].....with one of you pulling the handle towards the drivers seat
the other of you will need to hold and or move back and forth slightly the storage lid and the top mechanism at the same time [to release tension from the drive releases]......you hear a 'click/clunk'
when they release and , hopefully you'll be able to either stow or fully close the top. IF the drives don't release this way, well, it gets more involved
[proceedure/micro switches] I'll check your posts in the AM to see if you still need any help.............jb.

[jobyleary]

HI Jeff

Thanks for the reply. I will probably post again late on Friday. The deal is... My girlfriend lives in Atlanta, and I am in DC today. I am going down for the weekend, so I will see her/the car late on Fri. Between your post to me and your previous post I may be able to reset the thing.

More details. I actually don't know which series her car is. (Shame on me) And, she tells me the top cover is latched closed (bummer) But I gather there is a relase in the trunk.

More details than you need to know: She actually got really mad at me because (for expediance sake) I said she got the top "stuck on the ceiling of the garage," instead of: "it got hooked on the emegency relase leaver of the automatic gargage door openner." She thought that saying ceiling made her look dumb. She is actually really smart. And, like our cars, she is German (gray marketed German, not original US).

So, anyway.... I really appreciate experts like yourself giving a hand like this. Thanks Tons!!!!!

Joby

[jobyleary]

OK.... short answer: DONE! Thanks!

Couple points:

All this happened because the top got "hooked" on the cord (release) that hangs from the garage door. It is actually the second time it has happened. Last time girlfriend took the car to United BMW, and they did not know how to re-initialize the top. So they replaced the top motor (warentee, lucky for her). Then still had to keep it until they figured out how to re-initialize. So... You are better than the local dealer and we appreciate it.

It did not go totally smooth. The latches to the stowage cover were not in sync. one worked the other not, then seemed to reverse, then moving one by hand a lil, loud click, then in sync. It took me a lil while to understand that the entire motor assemblies are on swing away mounts, and I needed to re-engage them (swing the whole assy) not just push on the latch a lil.

But all in all. It worked fine. And girlfriend is back on the road.

Thanks for doing this for every one.... How to I go about buying you a beer??? FedEx it?

Joby

[jeffreyb4me]

hey Joby, your thanks and a happy girlfriend are good enough for me...................................jeffb.

[jobyleary]

Jeff,

You have my thanks, and as for a happy girlfriend, well.... she is content, but I think true happiness may require a diamond.

So anyway, once the top was reset. Girlfriend pulled the car out of the garge and back in. Two hours later I went to start it and it would not start. Starter cranks the engine fine, but just no decent fire. There was a lil fire, not a totally dead crank, but not even enough fire to get the engine to "buck."

I might have "tapped" the accelerator during starting , so I figured flooded. I gave it 5 hours, still nothing. Gave it another hour and was able to "coax" it in to a rough start then ran it hard, and she seems fine.

Also, girlfriend says that it occasionally idles rough at stop lights. Soooo... I am thinking: O2 sensor? Dirty Injectors? Any ideas? Is this a common E36 323is problem?

The car is just about out of warentee and I want to make sure she gets the correct thing fixed before the gravy train ends. Any suggestions?

Thanks Joby

[jeffreyb4me]

Hey Joby, #1, you did nothing wrong if you 'tapped'
the accelerator pedal! During cranking, the DME's main concern is 'starting' the engine, fuel and ignition maps are mostly chosen by engine temp., the throttle might only add a little more air to the equations BUT WILL NOT FLOOD THE ENGINE. In fact on numerous earlier M50 enigines prone to intermittant no=starts [due to DME/EPROM failures], holding the throttle wide open is the only way to get them started until the customer decides it's gotten enoying enough to replace the computer.

You mentioned the warranty's going away soon.......
GET IT TO THE DEALER NOW ! ! ! ! !

First complaint is exactly as you posted it. It wouldn't start for hours and when it finally did it ran rough. Give them that exact information and let tham go with it. DO NOT ACCEPT THE CAR BACK
UNTIL THEY SAY THEY'VE FOUND THE PROBLEM OR REPLACED A COMPONENT TO FIX THE PROBLEM.
If it persists you'll have so ground to base a 'Goodwill' follow-up or 'Policy' repair as their first attempt failed to correct the problem.

Second, mention the 'occasional' problem with the soft-top.....'sometimes it stops working'....and let them go with that.

Thirdly[?] [is that a word?], anything else you've noticed about the car your [she's] concerned with.

Fourthly [that's now a word], forget to mention your concerns about the warrantys' soon experation
you just want it repaired so you[she] don't[won't] wind up stuck somewhere cold on a dark and dreary night........see where this gets you.......my
best to you and yours................................jeff.
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