Technical Skydome fault

[jollypanda]

At the end of summer, my skydome started making a bad grinding noise when I pushed the button to close it. It closed that time but won't open again (I just get the noise).

I'd like to get the thing fixed properly if economical but am also curious about maybe getting away with a manual workaround.

Haynes mentions a manual roof winder. I don't have one (there's a gap in the spare-wheel toolkit) and can't find one online. I don't even know what it looks like

I wonder actually whether I caused the failure by fitting roof rails and roof bars to the car perhaps adding some unhelpful tension to the roof's innards. If it's a choice between roof bars or sunroof, I'll fix the roof and get a Doblo...

Any advice very much welcomed! I'm no mechanic.

(Happy new year!)

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Our Dynamic Eco has this roof. We've had the car for about 10 months now. Shortly after we got her I started to open the roof one day and Mrs Jock told me to close it immediately! She likes the glass roof and being able to slide the sun shields back and forwards but has never opened the roof as she doesn't like the wind and direct sunlight! Actually I have no particular wish to open it either so, after reading a few entries on the forum about people having problems with these roofs, we've decided we're just going to leave it closed!

 

[varesecrazy]

HI.

I BELIEVE @weesmurf had one IIRC.

I my previous cars the handle was in the trim around the rearview mirror.

Does the handbook not cover this?

Charlie

 

[DaveMcT]

Lack of use could leave the siding tracks dirty. Check the fuse, open it if possible and clean the slides. Check carefully for anything un-towards on the mechanism - switch catches etc.

 

[Wee Smurf]

HI.

I BELIEVE @weesmurf had one IIRC.

I my previous cars the handle was in the trim around the rearview mirror.

Does the handbook not cover this?

Charlie

Indeed I do. I'll check for the tool later if I remember. I'm not home right now and the boot is full of the kids' rubbish!

 

[Wee Smurf]

Please see pics of the skydome tool. It really is just a hex key which measures 2mm flat side to flat side. Mine has always lived in my car jack holder in my spare wheel in the boot.

 

[Wee Smurf]

On the plus side, I lifted much of the kids junk out so my boot is much emptier now!

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Please see pics of the skydome tool. It really is just a hex key which measures 2mm flat side to flat side. Mine has always lived in my car jack holder in my spare wheel in the boot.

Always wondered what it looked like! Becky doesn't have one but looking in the hole in the roof I can see it's a hex so thought an allen key would do the job if necessary. As we don't intend to ever open it hopefully I'll never need to find out.

 

[jollypanda]

Thanks to all who replied and for the photos of the mythical device. I'd been waiting for email notification of a reply, so was surprised to see replies when I googled the fault again and this thread was the first result

It never occurred to me to check the manual for this info, and in any case, my manual was/is not to hand.

My car's a few miles away, so I can't immediately do anything about the new information, but, yeah, thanks for all the comments; very helpful I'll re-investigate sometime this week.

 

[jollypanda]

I have not been able to find the manual roof winding tool. I hoped to find it in the roof under the plastic thing that houses the roof open/close button, but there's nothing in there that looks like it might hold a tool.

Giving up, I took the car to a garage and was told that the repair could cost upwards of £1500, so I decided against that.

I decided to get rid of the car. Then the weather got hot, and pressing the air-blower the "wrong way", I discovered that it sweet, ice-cold air-conditioning. I don't think it's ever been used.

 

[Wee Smurf]

On mine, the winding tool was stored in the spare wheel tool kit. It clicked into a little slot. Can't take any more pics though as I sold my Panda a couple of months ago.

 

[DaveMcT]

Post 8 says the tool is just an allen key (hex key). It's unlikely to be anything unusual so try a few until you find one that fits.

 

[Eddiethemartian]

I had a similar issue - it turned out that the motor had worked loose and the gears weren't meshing properly. I had to pull down the headlining slightly - the motor is above the plastic plug - and get an allan or torx key in there to tighten the bolts that hold the motor to the roof. Simple.

After doing anything like that it's necessary to recalibrate the roof - if I remember rightly it's a case of closing it and keeping the switch held down for a few seconds.

If this is the case then the manual winder won't help at this point - it just turns the motor shaft directly.

 

[Panda500]

I think I (initially) have exactly the same fault as Jollypanda posted on jan 2nd. A kind of grinding clicking noise when trying to open te roof. I do have the 'tool' (which is nothing else than an allen key with two bends, for easier turning it around) but this is quite hard to turn around and I did not want to use to much force onto it. I could open (lift) the roof rear edge a little and closing did work with the switch. But re-opening not: again the grinding noise...
But to get acces to the mentioned mounting screws, I'm afraid I will have to open it...
Is there a seperate fuse for the opening direction of the motor and for the closing direction? Closing gives some reaction in the motor but opening nothing anymore...
I must say I have quite often used the roof and was quite surprised it did continu to work so well during all these years, since 2008! By the construction of the rubber seal, the whole mechanic system is fully protected from weather influences when te roof is closed. It still looked nice and clean and well greased. Until last week, all of a sudden it doesn't work any more...

 

[The Panda Nut]

Sorry to hear you have this problem. It sounds like a broken gear somewhere. First thing see if you can check the motor. I believe it uses a sort of toothed cable to wind it open like a rack and pinion. Its vital to make sure sun roof mechanisms are kept clean and lubricated. Few of us do this. You do but good to remind others.
Can you get the glass out? I dont know if this is possible. You may well be able to get the motor out for inspection. This is one job I wouls seek specialist gelp with! If the glass can be lifted out you will bebetter placed to investigate.

 

[Panda500]

Sorry to hear you have this problem. It sounds like a broken gear somewhere. First thing see if you can check the motor. I believe it uses a sort of toothed cable to wind it open like a rack and pinion. Its vital to make sure sun roof mechanisms are kept clean and lubricated. Few of us do this. You do but good to remind others.
Can you get the glass out? I dont know if this is possible. You may well be able to get the motor out for inspection. This is one job I wouls seek specialist gelp with! If the glass can be lifted out you will bebetter placed to investigate.

Well, that's my problem. I think, to take a look or action, the roof must be open. And now it's closed and even with the tool, hard to open apparantly.
I will give it a new try later on this week, if no rain is expected...

 

[Panda500]

Well, that's my problem. I think, to take a look or action, the roof must be open. And now it's closed and even with the tool, hard to open apparantly.
I will give it a new try later on this week, if no rain is expected...

Finally nice weather... and time to spend. And... problem solved!
First of all, the motor is accessable from the inside of the car! So my main concern is solved by that, because the glass panel was closed and impossible to open, even with the hexagonal emergency-crank-key. This only resulted in a cracking noise as if a chain is jumping over its teeth.
So I took a chance to partly open the interior roof ceiling, quite easy just by removing the the hard rubber 'door-seal-like' surroundings, front and rear, and... found the electro motor completely accessable but loose, one screw completely fallen out, the other half out!
Screws re-inserted and tightened, and now I could (partly) open the roof with the allen- key, and re-closing worked with the switch. But re-opening not (yet). I read something about 'resetting' the logic of the system by keeping the closing switch pressed and holding it for 10 (or 30?) seconds. I gave it a try-out and... everything OK now!

 

[Panda500]

I had a similar issue - it turned out that the motor had worked loose and the gears weren't meshing properly. I had to pull down the headlining slightly - the motor is above the plastic plug - and get an allan or torx key in there to tighten the bolts that hold the motor to the roof. Simple.

After doing anything like that it's necessary to recalibrate the roof - if I remember rightly it's a case of closing it and keeping the switch held down for a few seconds.

If this is the case then the manual winder won't help at this point - it just turns the motor shaft directly.

Shame on me. Apparantly I initially missed your post of june 27th, 2019 (!) and had to find out myself yesterday... Exactly the same story! Opening the ceiling, thightening the screws and recalibrating by holding the switch a few seconds in 'close'-position solved the problem. Yesterday I added some pictures. Thanks and sorry!