Roof not lowering evenly

[Properjob]

St Agnes with unexpected sunshine

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Disaster has struck!.... just when I went to close the roof to head off to a surfing lesson..... now waiting for VW assist to come .... it won’t come down - the drivers side goes much slower and seems to jam... and yet when I leave it for 10mins it looks like this... not looking like a good rest of the week... 4 in one bed in an ocean isn’t a great prospect!

 

[Alan]

View attachment 33635
Disaster has struck!.... just when I went to close the roof to head off to a surfing lesson..... now waiting for VW assist to come .... it won’t come down - the drivers side goes much slower and seems to jam... and yet when I leave it for 10mins it looks like this... not looking like a good rest of the week... 4 in one bed in an ocean isn’t a great prospect!

That’s a sad picture
I hope you get it sorted soon

 

[Iron Van]

View attachment 33635
Disaster has struck!.... just when I went to close the roof to head off to a surfing lesson..... now waiting for VW assist to come .... it won’t come down - the drivers side goes much slower and seems to jam... and yet when I leave it for 10mins it looks like this... not looking like a good rest of the week... 4 in one bed in an ocean isn’t a great prospect!

What happens when you put it back up?

 

[Properjob]

What happens when you put it back up?

It goes back up ok ish but after 5 mins it slumps again like the picture. If i close it the drivers side goes really slowly and the passenger one races off risking twisting it. The AA guy came and had no knowledge of it so helped me sort out the manual closing which I’ve played with a few times now. The problem that gives is that, because the sides come down at different speeds, then the drivers side won’t go completely flat and seems to foul against something .. so I’ve managed to sort that by putting a sponge ball In the passenger side front to stop it fully closing until the drivers side has caught up then pulled the ball out! ... unconventional but seems to have done the job!.. now lashed down with the tie down kit, nicely demoed in Hotel California’s video.... So where to sleep... and how to get VW to sort quickly... hmmm

 

[Iron Van]

It goes back up ok ish but after 5 mins it slumps again like the picture. If i close it the drivers side goes really slowly and the passenger one races off risking twisting it. The AA guy came and had no knowledge of it so helped me sort out the manual closing which I’ve played with a few times now. The problem that gives is that, because the sides come down at different speeds, then the drivers side won’t go completely flat and seems to foul against something .. so I’ve managed to sort that by putting a sponge ball In the passenger side front to stop it fully closing until the drivers side has caught up then pulled the ball out! ... unconventional but seems to have done the job!.. now lashed down with the tie down kit, nicely demoed in Hotel California’s video.... So where to sleep... and how to get VW to sort quickly... hmmm

Good luck!

 

[motacyclist]

View attachment 33635
Disaster has struck!.... just when I went to close the roof to head off to a surfing lesson..... now waiting for VW assist to come .... it won’t come down - the drivers side goes much slower and seems to jam... and yet when I leave it for 10mins it looks like this... not looking like a good rest of the week... 4 in one bed in an ocean isn’t a great prospect!

Have you got a telescopic walking stick you could prop it up with. Better still, one each side?

 

[mic_b]

I had the same issue. I had VW assist out who managed to get the roof down using the emergency closure method and something similar to your way of getting it to close fully. It was then taken to JCT VW in Sheffield to be looked at but has worked perfectly since then so they say they can’t do anything. We’re off to France for 3 weeks for the summer and I’m worried it may fail again. Please keep the thread updated as it may help diagnose my roof problem.

Thanks Michael

 

[Hotel California]

Heat/sun does have influence on the system when roof's open in very hot weather.

 

[Properjob]

So this is all very strange and frustrating..... lashed it down with the Velcro straps and went out this afternoon. Them came back and thought why not give it one more go...... so I did.. and it didn’t
droop at all... so we’ve left it up, replaced all the bedding and felt a bit guilty sticking the kids back up there so we’ve swapped for tonight... we shall see! Keep you posted (unless of course we get crushed in the night!) ps thanks for moving this to a better forum)


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[Jason wallace]

That could be a pic of our moz who has had the same issue yesterday and on the same side.

Sadly ours has not corrected itself.

 

[Properjob]

So looks like we’re the same as @mic_b ... we survived the night and it came down fine today and back up again fine this evening.. and during this time SMG Tonbridge got straight back to us to try and help and book it in, but concluded that we should keep and eye on it for a couple of days... I never like intermittent problems cos I know it’s going to strike again when we’re abroad in the summer!

It is good to have got fully used to the manual close method and emergency straps though and also to see that VW have improved the access a tiny bit since earlier versions where people have had to stab through the foam or even cut a chunk of it away (there was a precaution hole in the foam directly above the flat head screw)

So fingers crossed that it lasts, and thanks for all comments.

 

[motacyclist]

Maybe there is air in the system on one side? As the air element cools off it would contract more than the liquid element causing it to sag on on the affected side. If the temperature stays more constant it would be affected less.

Must admit I think I would prefer a manual roof.

 

[Properjob]

Maybe there is air in the system on one side? As the air element cools off it would contract more than the liquid element causing it to sag on on the affected side. If the temperature stays more constant it would be affected less.

Must admit I think I would prefer a manual roof.

Totally agree about manual option!

 

[Mike F]

So looks like we’re the same as @mic_b ... we survived the night and it came down fine today and back up again fine this evening.. and during this time SMG Tonbridge got straight back to us to try and help and book it in, but concluded that we should keep and eye on it for a couple of days... I never like intermittent problems cos I know it’s going to strike again when we’re abroad in the summer!

It is good to have got fully used to the manual close method and emergency straps though and also to see that VW have improved the access a tiny bit since earlier versions where people have had to stab through the foam or even cut a chunk of it away (there was a precaution hole in the foam directly above the flat head screw)

So fingers crossed that it lasts, and thanks for all comments.

I have just made our second trip in our new 6.1 Ocean and have had exactly the same problem - horrific as we were in a very isolated part of the NW Highlands! We eventually got the roof down by pressing the close/open in very small steps; slept downstairs; cut the holiday short and drove home! It’s now booked in for VW Lancashire to look at next week.
Did you ever find the cause of your problem Properjob and has it ever reoccurred?

 

[Mike F]

I had the same issue. I had VW assist out who managed to get the roof down using the emergency closure method and something similar to your way of getting it to close fully. It was then taken to JCT VW in Sheffield to be looked at but has worked perfectly since then so they say they can’t do anything. We’re off to France for 3 weeks for the summer and I’m worried it may fail again. Please keep the thread updated as it may help diagnose my roof problem.

Thanks Michael

I have just had the same problem with our new 6.1 Ocean! Has the problem reoccured and if so, what was the solution?
Thanks Mike

 

[Properjob]

I have just made our second trip in our new 6.1 Ocean and have had exactly the same problem - horrific as we were in a very isolated part of the NW Highlands! We eventually got the roof down by pressing the close/open in very small steps; slept downstairs; cut the holiday short and drove home! It’s now booked in for VW Lancashire to look at next week.
Did you ever find the cause of your problem Properjob and has it ever reoccurred?

Sorry to hear of your troubles and that you had to cut your trip short ... really really annoying! Ours did seem to sort it out for itself ( although I’m probably going to regret writing that!) we had the original problem when the AA came to help ( although they thought they were coming to fix a sun roof!) SMG could replicate the problem and nor could we for weeks... then it happened again on the opposite side though. We did similar to you to get it down then left it for a few hours and tried later and it’s been fine for the past couple of years since. I’m guessing it’s something to do with air in the oil needing bleeding or something. I hope yours sorts itself too or that the dealer manage to spot something conclusive. Good luck!

 

[andyinluton]

I have just had the same problem with our new 6.1 Ocean! Has the problem reoccured and if so, what was the solution?
Thanks Mike

I posted on the other thread that ours is lowering unevenly and dropping on one side. Last night ( 9th in a row that we’ve had it happening) after putting up the roof it sags on the passenger side. After about an hour the roof lights go out, another hour there’s a buzz and the roof corrects itself. The lights then work for another hour. When it comes to putting the roof down, basically it will only come down just after it has corrected itself. Any other time it won’t lower or raise.
When this happens just disconnect the earth lead from the starter battery fo a minute. When reconnected the roof will work but you will have loads of error messages re park assist etc. Drive over 15mph turn off and restart engine & the messages will disappear. It’s a pain but we were not going to let it stop us enjoying a rare week of excellent weather in Scotland.

I’ll see what the dealer says on Monday.

 

[Mike F]

I posted on the other thread that ours is lowering unevenly and dropping on one side. Last night ( 9th in a row that we’ve had it happening) after putting up the roof it sags on the passenger side. After about an hour the roof lights go out, another hour there’s a buzz and the roof corrects itself. The lights then work for another hour. When it comes to putting the roof down, basically it will only come down just after it has corrected itself. Any other time it won’t lower or raise.
When this happens just disconnect the earth lead from the starter battery fo a minute. When reconnected the roof will work but you will have loads of error messages re park assist etc. Drive over 15mph turn off and restart engine & the messages will disappear. It’s a pain but we were not going to let it stop us enjoying a rare week of excellent weather in Scotland.

I’ll see what the dealer says on Monday.

Thanks Andy. That sounds a right pain to perform every night! I hope you enjoyed the rest of your Scotland holiday nonetheles.

 

[Mike F]

Sorry to hear of your troubles and that you had to cut your trip short ... really really annoying! Ours did seem to sort it out for itself ( although I’m probably going to regret writing that!) we had the original problem when the AA came to help ( although they thought they were coming to fix a sun roof!) SMG could replicate the problem and nor could we for weeks... then it happened again on the opposite side though. We did similar to you to get it down then left it for a few hours and tried later and it’s been fine for the past couple of years since. I’m guessing it’s something to do with air in the oil needing bleeding or something. I hope yours sorts itself too or that the dealer manage to spot something conclusive. Good luck!

Many thanks Properjob. Hopefully the dealer will sort it out or it won’t re-occur! I hope my post hasn’t jinxed yours!

 

[AndyFromTheBrac]

We’ve also had this problem intermittently over the past 4 or 5 years. It’s started to persist now though and I recently took it into Carrs Exeter who basically said there’s something wrong we don’t know what, but will replace everything (!) and it will cost almost £3k to remedy. Manual roof then!

I have found that lowering the roof about halfway and then moving the roof back up means it comes down at an acceptable angle. The drivers side doesn’t engage properly but again moving up a few inches then back down sorts it all out.

I am expecting this to fail at some point so thought I’d get to grips with the manual closing method. However I can’t see the release screw as I appear to have another panel behind the control panel (which the instruction manual doesn’t show). Has anyone come across this or am I doing something wrong? The control panel was a bit of a pig to remove too.

The light yellow part appears to be some kind of soft cushioning/insulation but is fixed.


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[Properjob]

We’ve also had this problem intermittently over e past 4 years. It’s started to persist now though and I recently took it into Carrs Exeter who basically said there’s something wrong we don’t know what, but will replace everything (!) and it will cost almost £3k to remedy. Manual roof then!

I have found that lowering the roof about halfway and then moving the roof back up means it comes down at an acceptable angle. The drivers side doesn’t engage properly but again moving up a few inches then back down sorts it all out.

I am expecting this to fail at some point so thought I’d get to grips with the manual closing method. However I can’t see the release screw as I appear to have another panel behind the control panel (which the instruction manual doesn’t show). Has anyone come across this or am I doing something wrong? The control panel was a bit of a pig to remove too.

The light yellow part appears to be some kind of soft cushioning/insulation but is fixed.


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The screw is behind that piece of foam. You’ll need to cut a hole in it. I’ll have a look for a photo to show you

 

[WelshGas]

We’ve also had this problem intermittently over e past 4 years. It’s started to persist now though and I recently took it into Carrs Exeter who basically said there’s something wrong we don’t know what, but will replace everything (!) and it will cost almost £3k to remedy. Manual roof then!

I have found that lowering the roof about halfway and then moving the roof back up means it comes down at an acceptable angle. The drivers side doesn’t engage properly but again moving up a few inches then back down sorts it all out.

I am expecting this to fail at some point so thought I’d get to grips with the manual closing method. However I can’t see the release screw as I appear to have another panel behind the control panel (which the instruction manual doesn’t show). Has anyone come across this or am I doing something wrong? The control panel was a bit of a pig to remove too.

The light yellow part appears to be some kind of soft cushioning/insulation but is fixed.

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Cut away the yellow foam on the R upper quadrant to expose the Screw.

 

[Properjob]

The screw is behind that piece of foam. You’ll need to cut a hole in it. I’ll have a look for a photo to show you

Thread 'Emergency roof closure'
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/emergency-roof-closure.20195/ here are some good pics from @Dylan

 

[AndyFromTheBrac]

Wow thanks for that tip guys. Insane!

I was hoping it was something like that but as the manual made no reference to it didn’t want to go hacking away before checking. I also didn’t see that post so will go read it!

I think I’ll also get a hydraulics co to check things over as from reading the forums there seems to be very little confidence in dealers for anything roof related!


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[WelshGas]

Wow thanks for that tip guys. Insane!

I was hoping it was something like that but as the manual made no reference to it didn’t want to go hacking away before checking. I also didn’t see that post so will go read it!

I think I’ll also get a hydraulics co to check things over as from reading the forums there seems to be very little confidence in dealers for anything roof related!


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The easiest diagnostic test is;
If one side is lowering faster or sagging then swap the L & R Ram Hydraulic pipes over at the pump end. They are next to each other.
If the sagging stays on same side - Ram faulty.
If the sagging swaps sides - Pump at fault, but check Hydraulic fluid level before blaming pump.