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Apologies for bumping an old thread, but my R230 has this problem, and for some reason I cannot see the tutorial in this thread (second post is blank). I have registered and logged in but still the same, can anyone advise please?
Hi. Thank you for he original post as it helped immensely, however I found that the adjustment worked fine.
I took the whole flap movement thing apart to check for the defective part, but all looked Ok. The bars that are suggested to be replaced both look slightly curved, but this also looks intentional to me.
This helped me understand how the flaps work though and what was needed.
My roof would not go down. Really easy to see if the resolution will work if you have the same problem.
Open the boot. If either of the flaps have play in them, if you push them against the boot lid, and hear the microswitch click; then yes, this is your problem. If the roof is half open and stops, lightly (do not force) move the flap into the open position and if you hear the microswich again, then yes you have this problem.
The adjuster is the two nuts you can see in the pictures on what looks like the piston that moves the flaps. (yellow arrow on my plagiarised pic) Note that when you try to adjust this, the plastic tube that holds the worm drive will also move, and this makes a big difference to the relative position on the flap. (more on that later)
When I first reassembled I ensured I had the full range of adjustment to make the flap tight against the boot. This worked well but ultimately was a mistake. I could now get the flap tight against the boot and the roof started to move, however the flaps would not now fully extend.
The next time I made sure I resembled with the black nut half way between the two possible extremes.
Roof still fully up : - Put mechanism back together if you took it apart. It is not essential to take the flap off as previously suggested, and it is a pain and will require you to adjust for perfect positioning if you do. (see last comment)
I recommend before you order bits or take mechanism apart:
Loosen off the lock nut above the black nut (yellow arrow points at black nut).
Adjust the black adjustment nut (see picture) until the flap was closes against the boot, but not tight.... just until you hear the micro switch click, and light pressure on flap does not result in the microswitch unmaking.
Note - Less silver thread on view to you results in the flap moving towards the boot position.
Retighten the silver lock nut against the black nut.
The boot should now open fully. If you have the problem where the roof is stopping half way, test the free movement on the flaps where it stops, knowing that this time, the flap is meant to be fully extended and making a different micro switch. It is possible to make adjustments at this point too, but be aware...making it too tight in the fully open position makes it too loose in the fully closed position.
I put my roof through the full cycle a couple of times, and found that although I left the flap a bit flappy against the boot lid when roof is up, it was now tight. It is clear that when making adjustment, that the outside of the ram swivels a bit (there is nothing to stop this) and that movement in itself is the same as moving the black adjustment nut. Unfortunately the only thing that really stops this movement is the natural tension on the cable so it would be difficult to predict when making your adjustment. In my case it worked in my favor when I left the flap a little loose.
Should this adjustment fail again I'll repost (the failure) and try the new bits. All mine looked perfect and no visible wear.
If anyone does take the leather bit off the flap.... don't put it back on again until you have your roof down. The plastic flap will need some adjustment with the two torc bolts for positioning before you click the leather cover to the flap back on....or you'll be taking it apart again to get the flap back off!
Parts from Pelican @ $53. The SL was due for oil/filter change so I had my independent mechanic install them this morning @ $100. Top works perfectly! Well worth it since I have no bloody knuckles, yelled no curse words and read the newspaper in exactly the amount of time it took for him to install.
Dealer told me estimate ~ $900
Thank you for your great advise... it worked but installation needs two people( holding and adjustment ) .....Now its working great... I order recommended parts from eBay cost me $57
great job guys i save lots of money
If your Vario roof stops working one day, it could be that the trunk flap is not sitting tight against the trunk lid. Sensors monitor the positions of these flaps, and these sensors might not be tripped by a flap that is sagging too low. I never had problems with my roof not working, but after reading through various posts of others that had, i decided to check out the condition of my flaps. To my surprise my passenger flap was sagging quite a bit (my drivers side was fine). I then discovered that Mercedes released an updated part to resolve this issue. The new part is heavily reinforced and will resist bending much better than the original part.
Also, don't bother with the adjusting screws as they don't work very well for adjusting the tension of the flap. I ordered the new supporting parts from parts.com. The came as a pair, so i decided to install both sides. This way i will never have to worry about my top being stuck because of a silly cheap part.
Here are some pics and instructions for changing the parts.
The right side took 20 min. , and the left side took 10 min. because i new what i was doing after learning from the right. Basic tools are all that's needed, and very little skill.
My problem is a little different but still flap related. I had to manually close the roof and in doing so manually operated the flaps by applying voltage to the pins in the wiring harness connector located just below the pump. The flaps move fine in the open direction or position they would be in with the top down, This maybe related to gravity assisting with this move as the trunk lid is not in its normal position for the roof to close. When reversing polarity to close flaps the motor is not strong enough to lift flaps back into position without a little help. My question is should the motor be strong enough to operate the flaps regardless of position of trunk lid?
Thank you for the wonderful post. I found it to be a one person job if you perform the procedure by opening the top and stop the opening as soon as the trunk is up and the flaps close against the trunk lid liner. Other helpful items: The switch harness connector pulls straight out without any other maneuver. To make the new flap sit tight against the liner, loosen the lock nut, slip the new part into place, then rotate the new part until the gear inlay has no play, then place the flaps over the new gear part keeping it in the opposed position and tighten down the 2 Torx 30 screws.
The motor wasn't bad the test leads I made up that had an old switch for a 12 volt fan was dropping to much voltage across the switch. Before I discovered that I pulled the motor off the drive assembly and ran it directly off of a battery with no switch, had a ton of torque. Put the motor back on wired it with no switch and it worked fine. Now the car is all put back together, top lock cylinder the original problem, repaired, trunk close assist working good, flaps good wife happy. Thank you MBWORLD
Help - 06 sl500 - I hit the top open while moving 5 mph and it started to open - trunk started to raise 8inchs then stopped.. I tried to close it.. it moved an inch.. I pulled over put it in park and tried to open/close but it seems stuck with the trunk at 3inches open . the console switch produces the noise of a motor working in the trunk but nothing is moving, (on the up or down) pull of switch. Flaps are good... any ideas???
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Went to get the reinforced plates. Flaps, a little saggy, and roof operation are fine, but why wait for trouble to start happening. I’m really surprised at the weight of these parts, they’ll outlive the rest of the car for sure.
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Forgot to mention this: with the flap mechanism dismounted from the trunk lid and cable, I was very surprised about their HEAVY travel. Not too far from being stuck, that bad. Lubrication on the obvious spots quickly took care of that. Point in case: TLC! Some lubricant in there might help your system staying healthy.
Follow the thread, buy the parts (amaz….)
then watch a few YouTube video’s. Need 14mm 16mm thin or spanner open end wrenches and a 30 torx. Should save enough to spend the weekend at the beach 😄
If I can do it so can you. Works great. 2003 SL 500.
Top stuck in close position. Does not open nor close
I am new to this forum and don’t seem to find new post.
So I am putting it here. I need some help as The top is truly stuck in amclose position that is not fully closed, so the windows, don’t close;- the back windows are almost lo, I can not open the trunk with a key nor in any way. I have searched for over 24 hours but unsuccessful to find a solution. Most peopl’s questions hover around 1) open and not able to close, or 2] closed and not being able to open or 3) switche is just stuck.
Please help what to do
Stuck in this position is often low fluid, but it could be an number of issues. Do you hear the pump running?
You can get a helper or two to try pushing down on the lid while you press the switch to close. If that doesn't work, open the trunk using the mechanical key, turn the pump bypass CCW to bypass the pump, push the front of the trunk down and use a 6mm allen key to turn the frame locks on each side of the trunk.
Once closed, check the fluid level of the pump. If it is low, you have a leak and need to locate and repair that. The most common leaks are the front latch, the frame locks, and the trunk lift cylinder. If you have oil in the bottom of the trunk, you need to remove the lining to find the leak. The front latch cylinder will leak onto the headliner and usually drip out at the weather stripping above the doors.
Hi Mike thank you for responding. I finally Got the trunk open. I hear the motor running. I have the engine running , Checked the voltage on the battery it is ok (has a brand new battery) now what you suggested
I checked if there are any leakage none whatsoever. Now how do I check the oil for the hydraulic pump where is it located ( by the spare tire?….?…)
Yes, just to the left of the spare tire, you have to pull out a piece of foam to see it. Should have two arrows on the plastic pump reservoir. Fluid level should be between the arrows. If it is low, you have (or had) a leak.
Mike and all:
Eureka I found it !!!!
ok so I went and looked at the trunk first in order to open and check inside the trunk and see why this system is hung at tail end before full
closure.
The metallic key, finally, and after much work, I unjammed it and saw that nothing nothing was basically jamming the roof It is that last 5 inches.
went right away to the front hinges to see if there are any remnants of the oil!!!!
nothing.
went back to trunk: lifted where the spare tire is and found the pump left of the tire. The pump is new so extremely clean. I wanted to see what you were telling me and there it was. The pump was almost empty way below the mark.
my understanding is that this is how full the oil should be????
i got some hydraulic oil for such and inserted it after i took the top screw with a Turkey Basting Needle!!!
1,2,3, automatically the roof top closed by itself .
Not wanting to push my luck, I made sure that all windows are tight and they were.
So the mechanism is working correctly.
I opened the roof top and correctly it did.
took the car for a ride.
came back home and wanted to check the oil. It was just above the mark!
my last question how much do we fill that container a) above the mark how many inches?
b) is the mark where oil should be.
thank you for the support.
The prior owner has put an AMG tailpipe which gives it this throaty sound.
cheers to all
06-15-2017, 06:32 AM
Trunk Flap
Top stuck
