E93 Convertible top physically stuck...

[persian54]

Originally Posted by mgx

makes me not want to track now

It's covered under warranty

the lube has made the issue non-existant now... but I'm still taking it in anyways. might as well

[miatawnt2b]

I've had my new (to me) 09 E93 for a week. Today I get in and have the same issue. Google is your friend, so this was the first hit that came up. I stepped back outside with a can of spray lubricant and gave a few shots to the passenger latch mechanism. smooth as silk. The car is CPO, but I have better things to do than take it to the dealer.

Thanks for the tip guys!
-J

[mamadub]

Thankfully, this has not happened to me yet! At least I now know what to do if it does!

[persian54]

It happened to me again and I took it back in

They said if it happens a third time, they'll change the latches

Apparently I operate my top too much and it dries the lubricant up.... hard not to when it's mid 70s sunny weather !

[mkoesel]

Old thread, but glad it was revived.

My car had this issue recently too. It was the passenger side, just like the OP. It started out with just a minor sticking that would cause the top to catapult up a little bit once the motors overcame whatever was causing it to get caught. It is a bit unnerving.

My first thoughts were that it was either the latch not releasing or somehow the rubber seal was getting too tacky and sticking. I checked those and found nothing out of the ordinary. So I was stumped. I ignored it for a couple months, but then it got so bad that it began to fail to retract at all unless I was there to push or pull up on the roof panel myself to free it as it retracted. Not acceptable obviously.

I decided to examine things closer and after a few minutes I found the culprit. There are two metal cone-shaped pins - locator pins let's call them - that force the roof to center itself correctly over the top of the windshield when it is closed. These pins fit into - big surprise - cone shaped recesses. It is a simple but effective way to keep the top from closing all askew or whatever. Pretty much all convertibles have something similar. Now, the thing is, these are metalic pins as I said, and the recesses too are metalic. This means you have metal on metal and wherever that is the case, you can get wear - very bad wear sometimes. And that is exactly what happened in my case. The pin on the passenger side has a pretty deep groove warn in it where it met the recess. The recess had developed a significant burr where the metal was being warped by the pin. And the combination of the groove and the burr was what caused the jam issue.

So how did I fix it? Well, I sort of cheated. I removed the pins and swapped them. So I put the left one on the right and vice versa. They are easy to remove - just use a deep well socket. This fixed the issue - well, 95%, it still sticks a little bit at times. What I really need to do is lube those up better (keeping them lubed may have prevented the issue to begin with), and ideally replace the one that is warn. The recesses could probably be replaced too, but that is not likely worth it. Instead, just file down any areas that look like they are deformed.

Hope this helps others with the issue.

[mamadub]

Originally Posted by persian54

It happened to me again and I took it back in

They said if it happens a third time, they'll change the latches

Apparently I operate my top too much and it dries the lubricant up.... hard not to when it's mid 70s sunny weather !

I rarely drive mine with the top closed. Obviously, it gets really hot here in AZ in the summer, but I will put the top down in heat up to 105. Anything hotter than that is just too hot. I'm just surprised that this is even a problem!

Originally Posted by mkoesel

Old thread, but glad it was revived.

My car had this issue recently too. It was the passenger side, just like the OP. It started out with just a minor sticking that would cause the top to catapult up a little bit once the motors overcame whatever was causing it to get caught. It is a bit unnerving.

My first thoughts were that it was either the latch not releasing or somehow the rubber seal was getting too tacky and sticking. I checked those and found nothing out of the ordinary. So I was stumped. I ignored it for a couple months, but then it got so bad that it began to fail to retract at all unless I was there to push or pull up on the roof panel myself to free it as it retracted. Not acceptable obviously.

I decided to examine things closer and after a few minutes I found the culprit. There are two metal cone-shaped pins - locator pins let's call them - that force the roof to center itself correctly over the top of the windshield when it is closed. These pins fit into - big surprise - cone shaped recesses. It is a simple but effective way to keep the top from closing all askew or whatever. Pretty much all convertibles have something similar. Now, the thing is, these are metalic pins as I said, and the recesses too are metalic. This means you have metal on metal and wherever that is the case, you can get wear - very bad wear sometimes. And that is exactly what happened in my case. The pin on the passenger side has a pretty deep groove warn in it where it met the recess. The recess had developed a significant burr where the metal was being warped by the pin. And the combination of the groove and the burr was what caused the jam issue.

So how did I fix it? Well, I sort of cheated. I removed the pins and swapped them. So I put the left one on the right and vice versa. They are easy to remove - just use a deep well socket. This fixed the issue - well, 95%, it still sticks a little bit at times. What I really need to do is lube those up better (keeping them lubed may have prevented the issue to begin with), and ideally replace the one that is warn. The recesses could probably be replaced too, but that is not likely worth it. Instead, just file down any areas that look like they are deformed.

Hope this helps others with the issue.

Thanks for this post. I have to bring mine in for an oil change and I'm going to have them show me exactly where, and what to use, to lube the top to hopefully prevent this from happening to mine!

[miatawnt2b]

Originally Posted by mamadub

I rarely drive mine with the top closed. Obviously, it gets really hot here in AZ in the summer, but I will put the top down in heat up to 105. Anything hotter than that is just too hot. I'm just surprised that this is even a problem!

105* might be a little much for me. I'm in the Tucson/Phoenix area (depending on the day) I always feel guilty driving with the top down and A/C blasting.

[mamadub]

Originally Posted by miatawnt2b

105* might be a little much for me. I'm in the Tucson/Phoenix area (depending on the day) I always feel guilty driving with the top down and A/C blasting.

Last summer I tried 113 degrees and almost killed myself! I blast the air with the top down all the time. I also drive with the top down at 40 degrees with the heat blasting. Yep, I love my vert. Where is your home base?

[OerdingE93]

this has been happening to me lately....i guess it's time to whip out the wd40

[miatawnt2b]

Originally Posted by mamadub

Last summer I tried 113 degrees and almost killed myself! I blast the air with the top down all the time. I also drive with the top down at 40 degrees with the heat blasting. Yep, I love my vert. Where is your home base?

I live in NW Tucson (oro valley) but currently commute to Phoenix daily. Bought the E93 last week in Scottsdale... Traded in the old E36 convertible.

-J

[M3KW]

I also had this issue, it turns out that it was due to the pins in the front not being lubed up. A tech used 'BMW Brand' lube on the front and back pins and that solved the issue completely.

[persian54]

Ironically my driver side is getting stuck... not as bad as the passenger one was before... but I can tell it will

anyone experience it on the driver side too?

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by persian54

Ironically my driver side is getting stuck... not as bad as the passenger one was before... but I can tell it will

anyone experience it on the driver side too?

Inspect the pin on the drivers side and see if it has a groove warn in it. Also make sure it has some lubricant applied.

[persian54]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

Inspect the pin on the drivers side and see if it has a groove warn in it. Also make sure it has some lubricant applied.

yeah I'm 90% sure it needs lube.

If I read correctly, most seem to only be having issues with the passenger side

Is there a bulletin out regarding this? I don't say this because I cannot apply lubricant myself.. I say this for the average owner who wouldn't be on these forums...

[fuddman]

Originally Posted by OerdingE93

this has been happening to me lately....i guess it's time to whip out the wd40

WD-40 is not good lubricant. It's more of a cleaner.
I recommend silicone grease or something similar.

[Oreokid24]

Originally Posted by Doctor J

Are you parked on a flat surface? My top wouldn't close once because I wasn't. As soon as I moved the car -- the top closed no problem

+1 for me too.

[glockperfect]

Originally Posted by fuddman

WD-40 is not good lubricant. It's more of a cleaner.
I recommend silicone grease or something similar.

Agree. I cringed a bit when I read through and saw everyone using wd-40, especially for a metal-to-metal. Go with the silicone.

[OerdingE93]

Originally Posted by glockperfect

Agree. I cringed a bit when I read through and saw everyone using wd-40, especially for a metal-to-metal. Go with the silicone.

thanks for looking out, sounds like that would work better and last longer

[M4Now!]

Mine did exactly that, the dealer adjusted and fixed it. Has been flawless since then, and it gets opened about every other day.

Cheers

[persian54]

so am I the only one who recently had trouble with the driver side?? (my issue was originally just the passenger side)

[don0tt0uch]

Wondering if anyone can help? I cannot get the roof to pop back out. It's stuck on the passenger side and the driver's side is locked but did not latch on. Then it gave me a message "Hardtop!" and I can't even hear the motor run. I still see power on the button and don't know what steps to take next. I simply want it to unlatch so i can close the top and roll my windows up. Love this car but the titty attacks are too much.

[Mvy]

Here is how to keep the top running well and all the lubrication points.

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=609222