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      10-03-2012, 05:34 PM   #1
WAMz4
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Roof slams down hard. Any adjustments I can make?

My roof started slamming down when it gets within 5 or so inches of the windshield. It used to close smooth all the way into the latches, now it gets within a few inches, then SLAM's home. I'm afraid its going to get worse and crack the windshield or bend something. I don't know if its the motor or some strut in the folding roof itself. Has anyone seen this before? Would it be covered by warranty?
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      10-03-2012, 05:53 PM   #2
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Unless you removed your power top assembly to replace the motor recently, and perhaps inadvertently misaligned it upon reinstallation,i would say it's just an adjustment made necessary after a period of normal use. just my guess!!

I dunno if I would trust that to an Indy shop. I would want someone who really knows what he is doing to make that kind of adjustment.
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      10-03-2012, 06:41 PM   #3
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It's not the motor. The motor is just an electro-hydraulic unit that just pumps hydraulic fluid.

The simplest is that the top is binding somewhere close to the end of it's travel and releases quickly. Try lubricating all the joints.

As for a mechanical failure....

It could be the Gas Pressurized springs, no. 13
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...12&hg=54&fg=10

or one of the tensioning ropes, no. 5 or 7
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...11&hg=54&fg=10
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      10-03-2012, 08:09 PM   #4
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There is a BMW bulletin on this...go to the stealership and get the ten dollar part...it's a strap that installs in the forward facing plastic compartment in the the softtop.
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      10-03-2012, 11:34 PM   #5
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Mine's done that since I bought it used nearly 2 years ago.
I thought it was supposed to do that, but I reach up and ease it down by hand.
I don't like things to slam.
Looks like they made a change in the TENSION ROPE 07/2007.

If anyone figures out the details, and applicable years, please post.
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      10-03-2012, 11:56 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by que4523 View Post
There is a BMW bulletin on this...go to the stealership and get the ten dollar part...it's a strap that installs in the forward facing plastic compartment in the the softtop.
Any more details?
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      10-04-2012, 12:38 AM   #7
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Thanks forum. Good info. Ill be checking out that tension rope issue at the stealer next oil change.
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      10-09-2012, 01:35 PM   #8
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Can anyone shed any more light on this issue? I have the same five inch drop, never realized it was something I could fix.

Last edited by jdoublehcubed; 10-11-2012 at 12:22 PM..
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      10-09-2012, 01:51 PM   #9
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There are elastic straips called bow straps that loose their elasticity over time (at least on Z3s and most probably on all convertable tops). There is no adjustment but they need to be replaced. This is just a predicatble wear item when one has a ragtop. Your Z4 is over eight years old so the bow straps probably have little or no elasticity left in them. These straps, I learned, play a big role in both preventing the top from closing too quickly and in helping the top open.

I discovered it is good practice to replace these straps whenever the top canvas is replaced. Not all trim shops will tell you this and reinstall the old worn straps. I learned about this three years ago when I took my Z3 with a top that operated perfectly to a local trim shop to have the worn canvas replaced. I got the car back with good canvass but a top that no longer worked properly. It slammed shut and needed a manual push to break the "knuckle" when opening. The much stiffer new canvas just overwhelmed the no longer elastic bow straps. It would have been relatively cheap to replace them when the top was replaced but I did not know about them at the time.
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      10-09-2012, 03:16 PM   #10
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Is it part 17 tension rope? Or 15 tension belt?

http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?...10&hg=54&fg=10

Has anyone replaced it? Mine slams a bit, also thought it was normal.
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      10-10-2012, 11:34 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beta View Post
Is it part 17 tension rope? Or 15 tension belt?

http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?...10&hg=54&fg=10
I started looking into this, too, and came up with 2 related questions on 17:
How can one tell if you have Folding top or EH Folding top?
Part 17 shows a change as of 07/2007:
Up to 07/2007:
Left: 54347123027 Right: 54347123028
After 07/2007:
Left: 54347079587 Right: 54347079588
(I had to use BMW of South Atlanta to get this straight. Their diagrams are more accurate and up to date then RealOEM, but harder to navigate.)

I wonder if the post 2007 part will fit on a 2006?
Maybe it's been improved, and is backward compatible?
ECS says the old parts are superseded by the new, so I think the answer is Yes.

Last edited by StickMon; 10-10-2012 at 11:40 PM..
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      10-11-2012, 12:05 AM   #12
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Subscribing. Is this hard to replace on your own?
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      10-11-2012, 12:17 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TCZ4 View Post
Subscribing. Is this hard to replace on your own?
Fiddna find out. After about an hour of research on RealOEM and BMW of South Atlanta, I'm about to pull the trigger on this set:

Left Tension Belt 54317043909
Right Tension Belt 54317043910
Tension Belt Mounting Parts 54347119643
Left Tension Rope 54347079587
Right Tension Rope 54347079588
Tension Rope Mounting Parts 54347119628
Fastening Kit 61 (aka 66) 54347110761
Fastening Kit 62 (aka 22) 54347110762
Front Fastening Set 54317127044

If anybody has been in there before, maybe you can suggest other things to replace while at it, or other spare hardware to get.
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      10-11-2012, 08:00 AM   #14
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Yes, very interested to hear answers to this post.
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      10-11-2012, 11:10 AM   #15
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Subscribed as well. Please keep us in the loop on progress. Mine isn't "bad" yet, but I suspect it is going to get worse.
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      10-11-2012, 12:22 PM   #16
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Ditto. I have the same "problem." Though I never knew it was a problem before.
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      10-11-2012, 11:55 PM   #17
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I'm glad for once that I'm not the only one that thought it was supposed to do that.
Like "I thought the vanos was supposed to make that noise." No, 3 of your bolts are sheared off.
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      10-12-2012, 12:18 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by StickMon View Post
How can one tell if you have Folding top or EH Folding top?
The 'EH' I would imagine stands for the Electrical-Hydraulic (power) top. Notice that item 16 on the EH top is for an emergency release tool.
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      10-12-2012, 12:24 AM   #19
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Ohhhhh. I knew the EH was Electro-Hydraulic, but I didn't realize the non-EH was completely manual.
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      10-13-2012, 05:33 AM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by StickMon View Post
Ohhhhh. I knew the EH was Electro-Hydraulic, but I didn't realize the non-EH was completely manual.
Same problem here. I thought it was nromal although it seemed weird.
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      10-13-2012, 12:03 PM   #21
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I think the hard drop is also from fabric shrinkage, with age of the canvas, UV exposure, etc.
I had this effect on an e36 vert.
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      03-23-2013, 01:45 PM   #22
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Bump. We really need a resolution for this thread, which is the important "ten dollar part" that needs to get replaced, did anyone do it already, etc. etc.
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