Fremar

New to the forum, this problem is kicking my butt. So all of a sudden, the vario roof stops at the last step where the trunk lid lowers from its vertical position. pump is running and it you go back and get it a pull, it finishs out, but slowly. This happens in both directions. Also when I activate the "easy pack" it moves very slow and I have to help it. One more thing, I can no longer raise the roll bar, again, hear the pump running but not moving. Fluid level good in tank, no obvious signs of leaks and all the other steps in raising and lowering the roof work fine and at the proper speed.

MikeJ65

While you could have pump or valve problems, I would start with the roll bar cylinder. If you have internal leakage in this cylinder, it will limit the flow and pressure available to the other cylinders. It is the only double acting cylinder that would have pressure during roof operation, roll bar operation, and load assist, so it could affect all three areas where you are having trouble. I would remove line 60 and plug it at the port on the pump. Drop the end of line 60 in a container to catch any bypass and activate the load assist. Line 100 to the rod side of the roll bar pump is pressured anytime the pump is running. If you have an internal leak in the roll bar cylinder, the leakage will flow back on line 60.

Fremar

thanks for the response, i will give that a try. been trying to find a diagram that shows what line numbers go to what cylinder.

Fremar

ok, I removed 60, plugged the manifold hole and put 60 into a container. went to open the roof, trunk lifted up, roof to wind shield locks came off and roll bar came up, (which has never happened before). fluid was squirting out of line 60. So I assume that means that the roll bar cylinder is bad. now the problem is, it won't finish out from that point or go back. I hooked all back to original and still won't finish the sequence. is it maybe because the roll bar did not make the upend position fully and has stopped the sequence?

MikeJ65

None of this makes sense. Line 60 is the piston side of the roll bar cylinder, the roll bar shouldn't raise with this line removed. Check the number on the line vs. the number on the port for lines 60 and 100.

Fremar

i checked and they are in the correct ports. i did manage to release the pressure at the pump and got the trunk to close and used an allen wrench to lock it and the roof to the windshield. I then was able to use the manual controls to bring the roll bar down. timed out 3 times, but got it down. can not get the roof to start now, i beleive is to the fact that the flaps did not fully retract. those are electric, but the only way to retract them manually is if you have a STAR computer or a pigtail for the connector that powers them and apply power externally. I have neither, any ideas?

ml320x5

With neither, you can still do it but with more work.

Take the trunk top lid panel off. Remove 3 bolts holding the flap drive motor with the cable ends minus the flaps. Hook up a external 12V to retract. Reverse installation to vehicle.

MikeJ65

You can also bypass the limit switches by using a clip like a clothespin to hold the little plungers down on the closed position switches. Also check on the Foxwell to see if that is what is inhibiting your roof from opening.

MikeJ65

Back to the original problem, I was confused by the roll bar raising when you did the leakage test on the roll bar cylinder, but this is what I think is happening: You have a bad piston seal on the roll bar cylinder, this was verified by flow from line 60 when you did the test. The reason that the roll bar came up was inadequate pressure in line 100, which holds the bar down against the spring on the left side which is trying to raise it. Removing line 60 reduced back pressure and allowed more flow past the roll bar piston seal. The roof was also trying to open, which took flow away from line 100 and pressure dropped to the point that the spring was able to deploy the roll bar.

A bad piston seal would also make it difficult to both raise and lower the roll bar, to build pressure in the load assist cylinders, and would slow down roof operation wherever higher pressures are needed. You still might have other issues, but I would start by replacing the roll bar cylinder.

Fremar

thanks, thats what i did, was used a clothes pin to hold the flaps, I was able to get the roof to the up position. Made the mistake of trying to open it again. stop mid cycle and wouldn't go either way. Had to close it all in manual again. now it won't do anything, says visit workshop. At least it is drivable. going out of town for a week, when I get back I'll look at replacing the roll bar cylinder, thanks agian.