Pluriel roof issue

Quarantine = More time to work on Blue-Plu!

I figured out quite a few things today:

- I won't be needing new roof cables... Yash!

- Good grease really does help a lot. I went ahead and oiled up all of the tracks and interslides with this graphite oil spray, and it made a world of a difference!

- The entire roof travel on the top part of the car works flawlessly. There is, however, a bit of hesitation when the roof has to go over the window. And when putting it back up, it won't move off the window at all, unless someone is pushing it along with the motor. No machine gun noises, just doesn't wanna budge - something somewhere is holding resistance, and I need to find out what it is. Once it clears the window it works perfectly once again.

- The right side top hatch lock/latch/microswitch started acting up for a brief moment for some reason... It wouldn't lock and/or activate the switch, at first I thought it was an issue with a spring, oiled it as well, nothing changed. I managed to close the hatch manually, then it started working again. Not sure if it was a random thing or if I'll have to get it replaced.

- Either the left side actuator for the roof cassette needs to be changed, or some electrical issue is going on. I've known about this issue for quite a while now, but I'm not sure how to approach fixing it. Is it difficult to do? Does the cassette need to come off? Should I just take it to the dealership and let 'em short it out once I've dealt with everything else?

First thing on the list is to figure out what is holding resistance when the roof moves over the rear window. Could it be the new fabric? Also, should I oil up the cables and gear? It seems to me like Citroen designed it as a closed, no-lubrication system, adding grease or oil could decrease the friction between the cables and cog and make 'em slip - But maybe I'm wrong? Any other ideas?

I'll do some more work on it tomorrow and keep you posted. Cheers!!

P.S. Here's some pics for you, including the boot cover I got off eBay a few months ago. Hopefully it'll see some use over the next few years!

Worked on it some more. I ended up using graphite oil (here) on the cables as well (should've lubed the gear too, judging by the amount I used). Got the roof to move back and forth a few times, seems to be working ever so slightly better.

However, it still doesn't wanna move off of the rear window and I'm starting to think it must be the fabric causing it. Either too thick and inflexible or just too heavy...??? I noticed it's contacting/rubbing on the window, I assume that's normal? Any ideas?
Cheers!

Well done on fixing your roof! Seems no one gave you help and you did it without them.
I'm a female trying to fix my roof, hubby has had enough of hearing about my poor roof.
My roof motor broke on the inside, and I'm waiting for a second hand one today! Im hoping this will either make the roof open or at least allow me to open my boot!!
I'm going to grease all moving parts like you did to see if this helps.
Well done on sticking with it.

smac wrote: ↑Wed Apr 01, 2020 7:20 pm Quarantine = More time to work on Blue-Plu!

I figured out quite a few things today:
- I won't be needing new roof cables... Yash!
- Good grease really does help a lot. I went ahead and oiled up all of the tracks and interslides with graphite oil spray, and it made a world of a difference!

I don't know why lubricating the mechanical parts is not a service item. I am sure a lot of roofs could have been saved from more major damage with a yearly lube. It would be interesting to hear why this was missed from the servicing. I know the plastic should self lube, but the metal bits don't.

How do you grease the cables and intersliders? Can you remove old cables grease up then refit? Or are new cables best once removed?

smac wrote: ↑Wed Jul 17, 2019 1:10 pm Just ordered the roof cables & gear kit - There's no turning back now, I'm fixing this myself, haha
Also ordered a second taillight, the old one looked like crap next to the new one.
Still looking for the roof fabric - I was quoted around 300 euros (may end up to be more, or less) from a local upholsterer to make a new one, which is decent, but I was hoping I could cut save some time by doing it all myself with a used fabric off of another pluriel.

Can you give me the details where you bought these from, my cables need replacing

Haven't been here in quite a while.

edzios wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 9:51 am Can you give me the details where you bought these from, my cables need replacing

All Citroen parts were bought at my local dealer. The part number for the cables is 8401Z0. But then again, they called me back last month to ask me where I'd gotten the interslides as they had trouble finding a set for another car they wanted to repair - Thy didn't remember I bought 'em from them and apparently Citroen is no longer making them. Worth asking though.
Grease, lubes, etc were all bought locally (Idk who put those amazon links in my posts, but I didn't get them on Amazon).

EmmaC3 wrote: ↑Tue Sep 29, 2020 3:38 pm How do you grease the cables and intersliders? Can you remove old cables grease up then refit? Or are new cables best once removed?

Interslides is easy, just lube up the tracks and spray wherever you can in between them. A bit of back and forth should do the trick.
I did grease the cables through the motor hole and the two openings where the rear window meets the car, but it seems like everything became worse (slipping and rattling) after doing so. I think they're not meant to be lubricated, that furry thing on the cables themselves is enough to make them slide where they need to, without losing precious friction between the cog and the cables.


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Last summer I was driving with some friends, roof half way open, when we decided it was chilly and went ahead to close the roof without pulling over. Tons of rattling later, the roof ended up stuck sideways (Seems like one side is not "pushing" as well as the other, could be the motor mount - or something resisting, which at this point I kind of doubt).
So, 700 Euro or so later, I still don't have a working roof (And it's even started leaking from the drivers side, my guess is there's something blocking the water passage in the roof bars, need to put the roof down to check/clean).
I really really liked it with the roof down during the summer - But it makes no financial sense to keep trying to get it working. I'm torn between fixing the leak and keeping it as is, trying to convert it to a manual (remove the motor, cog, and cables, drill some holes and put some kind of latch in) potentially ruining it in the process, or passing it down to my sister and getting something else, say an old Z4.