Hello all,
Could somebody help me in providing a step-by-step guide as to how to disengage and then reengage the motors on an electric hood on a cabriolet?
I had a working electric hood yesterday, but then lifted the lever on the right hand side motor in the boot when I was trying something out. This had the effect of disconnecting the motor (it drops down out of its base). I reconnected the motor back into place but it is not engaged properly now. Howevr I can hear the motor moving when I press the button to lower or raise the hood. I've read somewhere that if this motor is disconnected, there is a process that needs to be followed to re-engage or realign both the hood motors before the hood will work again. But details on how to do that are very sketchy (well to me at least - I've tried following these instructions but I can't seem to disengage the motors as they have described).
The link is here: http://www.e30ic.com/powertop.htm
I would be exceedingly grateful to anyone who can provide their expertise to help me fix this problem.
Cheers
Ben
Guide to re-engaging / realigning electric hood motor
Moderator: martauto
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robmpulse
- E30 Zone Newbie
- Posts: 190
- Joined: Sun Apr 23, 2006 11:00 pm
- Location: Florida, USA
- Contact:
I am at work right now. I have a page that tells you EVERYTHING there is to know about the electric top, including synchronization...
lemme see if I can get my girl to ftp me the folder so I can look from work.....
lemme see if I can get my girl to ftp me the folder so I can look from work.....
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robmpulse
- E30 Zone Newbie
- Posts: 190
- Joined: Sun Apr 23, 2006 11:00 pm
- Location: Florida, USA
- Contact:
after searching for almost an hour........ I just realized that it is a PDF that I have. Might even be the same one mentioned above. It's very detailed and a complete how to.....DaveD wrote:if you send me an address i will send you the pdf i have as well
Problem is, it's on a pc that is currently down due to network issues at the house. If the one above does not help, I can boot up and save to disk to upload to you...... just lemme know......
Thanks lads.
Rob, I've PM'ed DaveD for the PDF. Once I get it, I'll let you know what's in it - if it's different to yours then i'll email you a copy. Just PM me your email address if you want it.
DaveD - many thanks in advance for your help mate. Look forward to reading all about it !
Cheers
Ben
Rob, I've PM'ed DaveD for the PDF. Once I get it, I'll let you know what's in it - if it's different to yours then i'll email you a copy. Just PM me your email address if you want it.
DaveD - many thanks in advance for your help mate. Look forward to reading all about it !
Cheers
Ben
Hi guys,
Rob - the PDF that Dave sent me has 20 pages and has chapters such as Components, Operation, Electrical Control, IPO, Manual Operation, Defined Position, Microswitch Adjustment. Is this the same as yours - if not, PM me your address and I'll send you a copy.
Dave - I've managed to get the hood working again, thanks to a combination of your instructions and the instructions on the webpage http://www.e30ic.com/powertop.htm. I think the reason for the lid motor not disengaging was because I had either not pulled the lever hard enough to the left for fear of breaking something, or because I hadn't pushed the hood switch to the fully closed position. Either way, it's working now so thanks.
The only problem now is that there is a bit of a gap remaining between the lid cover and the car body (when the lid cover should really be shut tight and flush against the body) - see photo below:
I understand that it's possible to readjust the height of each side of the lid by manually turning a bolt that is located inside the lid cover, one on each side. Do you know how this works? I've tried loosening and tightening these bolts, but it doesn't seem to help much, although I'm not sure exactly how to turn these to get the desired effect.
In the PDF manual, there's talk about adjusting the microswitches, but (a) I don't have the special equipment to do this, and (b) i'm not sure whether microswitch adjustments are for solving this particular problem?
Anyway, that's where I am right now - at least the hood is now functional again. As always, any thoughts would be welcome.
Cheers
Ben
Rob - the PDF that Dave sent me has 20 pages and has chapters such as Components, Operation, Electrical Control, IPO, Manual Operation, Defined Position, Microswitch Adjustment. Is this the same as yours - if not, PM me your address and I'll send you a copy.
Dave - I've managed to get the hood working again, thanks to a combination of your instructions and the instructions on the webpage http://www.e30ic.com/powertop.htm. I think the reason for the lid motor not disengaging was because I had either not pulled the lever hard enough to the left for fear of breaking something, or because I hadn't pushed the hood switch to the fully closed position. Either way, it's working now so thanks.
The only problem now is that there is a bit of a gap remaining between the lid cover and the car body (when the lid cover should really be shut tight and flush against the body) - see photo below:
I understand that it's possible to readjust the height of each side of the lid by manually turning a bolt that is located inside the lid cover, one on each side. Do you know how this works? I've tried loosening and tightening these bolts, but it doesn't seem to help much, although I'm not sure exactly how to turn these to get the desired effect.
In the PDF manual, there's talk about adjusting the microswitches, but (a) I don't have the special equipment to do this, and (b) i'm not sure whether microswitch adjustments are for solving this particular problem?
Anyway, that's where I am right now - at least the hood is now functional again. As always, any thoughts would be welcome.
Cheers
Ben
congratulations!! 
the 2 bowden cables you show need to be adjusted as they pull the hooks in the corners which finally tighten the cover down...it could be they have stretched but have a go...i bought 2 new ones and they cost about £16
the 2 bowden cables you show need to be adjusted as they pull the hooks in the corners which finally tighten the cover down...it could be they have stretched but have a go...i bought 2 new ones and they cost about £16
Just to follow up (for fidge's sake)...
I tried adjusting the 2 bowden cable nuts on each side so that they were as far apart as possible (but don't go too far - you'll know if you've overadjusted because the screw will come out of the socket. If so, just tighten back a few notches in the opposite direction).
It did make the gap a little smaller, but it's still not 100% flush. It's possible I might need new cables. Or i might just be doing this wrong. Either way I'm taking my car to a BMW hood specialist in about 2 weeks time who will hopefully show me the way. I'll post up my findings in due course.
Cheers
Ben
I tried adjusting the 2 bowden cable nuts on each side so that they were as far apart as possible (but don't go too far - you'll know if you've overadjusted because the screw will come out of the socket. If so, just tighten back a few notches in the opposite direction).
It did make the gap a little smaller, but it's still not 100% flush. It's possible I might need new cables. Or i might just be doing this wrong. Either way I'm taking my car to a BMW hood specialist in about 2 weeks time who will hopefully show me the way. I'll post up my findings in due course.
Cheers
Ben