Folks, I pulled and removed my sunroof because it was running slow and needs a helping hand when cold. In warm temps it worked fine. This indicates a cable and/or slide problem. I wanted to inspect parts that are 30 years old to see what was worn out. I've removed the motor, transmission and the roof from the car which I've order and am waiting on replacement parts. I noticed something which I didn't like and maybe I caught it in time, but does this rust indicate I need to remove and repair the sunroof pan ?

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I am surprised that your post did not include "my legs and feet get rained on".
Is the floor wet? If not I expect it will be soon enough. You can test the drains after cleaning them out with weedeater line by pouring (slowly) water into them.

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I could not own any MB without the help from you...fellow forum members.


83 300td 207,XXX

Nope ytmtnman, don't have wet feet yet! That's what I'm trying to avoid. I've noticed a leak from the sun visor area when a hard rain hits, but attributed that to a bad windshield seal which I'm getting replaced in about a week.
Is this heavy rust on the passenger side caused by a bad felt seal and/or clogged sun roof drains or both ?

Greg

the rust is heaviest right there in that corner where the drain is, so that might indicate a clogged drain in that area

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1981 NA 300D 310k miles

Drains!

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I suspect that this rust is not new! I've owned the car for about 2 years and it does not see road salt. I use my truck when bad weather comes around. I know that it lived in NY and PA for a good portion of its life. Usually I clean the drains with weed-eater line once a year and pour hot-water down the drains to make sure they are clear.
So, should I just wire bush this area, clean it up and paint ?

Yes, as long as the pan is still sound. The area that is rusting is probably 2-3 times what is visible. So you are going to want to remove a fair bit of paint to be certain that you nip this in the bud.

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'79 240D

I think you will find that changing your window seal will not fix your leak. I would put my bet on the leak coming from a rusted out sunroof drain nipple. There are drains on both the passenger and driver side. The drain has a nipple that connects to a plastic hose up near the visor. If that nipple is corroded you can get water here:



Again, you can pour some water in the sunroof drain pan to test. Don't use much, cuz it most likely is going to pour right into your car.

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83 300td 207,XXX

I just did this repair myself. I rebuilt a sunroof to put in my 1981. You can get the 1/8 inch thick seal that goes between the body and roof on the front of the roof at the dealer fairly cheap. I took a dremel with a wire brush attachment to mine and removed all rust. I then taped over the chrome slides and POR-15'd the water trays and drains and then chasis coat blacked over top after it was properly cured. All new rubber and brush seals, you get the drill. The only problem I have found is there is a thick foam rubber seal that goes around the back of the sunroof pan. IT seems to be waxed or grease din some way for waterproofing I guess. for the life of me I can find no mercedes part# for this thing. My dealer even comes up empty. EPC shows a single thin seal that goes all the way around but of the 3 pans I have pulled they where always 2 seals. With this roof that back seals was in pristine condition so I just was careful not to tear it rip it, etc. If you fix it though I'd bet it will last another 30 years though!

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1978 Mercedes 240D
1981 Mercedes 240D
1982 Mercedes 240D

The usual culprit for a slow roof is the grease used inside the cable tube has collected gunk over the years and simply worn out.

Clean the tube and use the proper lube when reinstalling.

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83 SD

84 CD

toomany MBZ, I agree with you on the slow roof being the cable. I'm going pull the cable out today, clean the cable and tube out with solvent and re-install. Second, as ytmtnman and NC-diesel pointed out, I'm going to remove the wind deflector and inspect the front of the roof pan. Clean with a dremel wire brush tool, poke for loose metal, inspect the drain nipples and if everything looks sound coat with POR15. I'll keep this thread up to date with what I find.

I'm not sure but I think that the nipple can only be seen from the interior of the car.

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83 300td 207,XXX

Got an update. I started to remove the wind-deflector rails to asses the damage and found a whole bunch of rust. It appears that I got to this in time for upon tapping the metal with a screw driver, it all still sounds solid and has not completely rusted all the way through. I observed that the felt pads on either side of the sun roof were coming apart and the remaining felt pulled off easily. Look like this will get replaced also.
I have an order already for POR15. This should arrive within the next few days and will be applied.
Ok, how do I remove the front visor/rear view mirror pad to check the condition of the drain nipples ?

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You are in for some fun! I have done this, but been a while and three quarters asleep so can't remember if I did a write-up...

The mirror pops off, the visors have several fasteners including two by the mirror that are covered, the mirror lights have to be disconnected, the center light has to come off, a couple fasteners on the sides, and the aluminum sunroof trim has to come off. Should have about a dozen or a dozen and a half fasteners. The panel is a tight fit at the windshield, but still be gentle. Hope this helps.

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1971 Volkswagen Sunroof Squareback with F.I. - in need of full restoration.

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