My 1987 300D Turbo (W124, OM603) had its sunroof completely rebuilt last year by the local dealer. It got all of the upgraded parts (over $700 in parts even with the MBCA 15% discount) and the dealer (who owed me a favor) didn't charge for the labor.

I rarely slide open the sunroof but often use the pop-up feature to vent heat out of the passenger compartment. Yesterday I tried to slide open the sunroof but it moved only an inch or two and jammed. No expensive noises, just stopped moving. I was able to slide it closed; the pop-up feature still works. Today it will still slide open only a couple of inches so I haven't forced the issue.

I suspect that enough dust has been sucked into the mechanism (especially driving with the pop-up open) to turn the special MB grease into grinding compound and stop the sliding mechanism. I am considering opening the sunroof as far as it will go and squirting something like WD-40 onto the rails to see if I can free it up. Once I have it open all the way I can remove the rail covers and do a thorough cleaning and re-greasing with the special MB grease, which I have.

Before I do anything I thought I'd better ask here: should I take a chance or should I go to the dealer and let them fix it, even though it will cost me $$$? I don't want to risk all of those expensive new parts.

Jeremy

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970