Sunroof Shade Broke -- Again

[William330]

The sliding shade that blocks light from coming through the glass sunroof, has now broken a second time.

My car has only 5,000 miles on it.

The first time, it broke from simply pressing the power 'open' button on the sunroof. No abuse. No rough handling.

The second time, it broke from simply sliding the shade back manually to let in some light. No abuse. No rough handling.

This is a joke.

I did some searching online, and this has been a known 3-series problem since 2001 (I have a very late 2003 model).

The plastic clips that keep the shade on its tracks are made of the thinnest plastic imaginable, and are very small.

These clips should be made from stamped metal, not plastic.

I don't know what to do. I asked if there has been a recall, and the dealer said no.

I've only opened the shade about 5 times since the first repair, out of fear it would break. Well, it broke.

If they are going to replace these flimsy plastic clips with new flimsy plastic clips, it seems pointless to take it in for repair (and risk some goof joyriding in the car, door dings, and damage to the paint/interior).

Anyone else dealing with this?

 

[hosagod]

Can't say I am, never even touch my sunroof or sunshade! Sorry! :-(

I would although recommend getting it fixed, and then not using or refraining from using your sunroof for long periods of t ime after that to avoid future breaks if they are so consistent with your car.

 

[bmwrocks]

I don't have this problem. I would say I have used my sunroof maybe 50 times since I bought it. I guess I will know what happened when it breaks. BTW they also use flimsy plastic fasteners in the window regulators. They break over time guaranteed.

 

[gizzy]

Hasn't happened to me yet. Just to note, I never let the sunroof open the shade. I always open the shade first and then the sunroof. I might be overly cautious(might? well, probably), but I don't want the sunroof motor going out because it has the extra resistance of the sun shade.

 

[BMW_FaNaTiC]

WTF, thats weird, mine doesn't give me n e problems,

I usually always have it pushed all the way back when the sun roof is closed, just for light.

 

[theBMWenthusiast]

hasn't happened to me yet...hope it doesn't

 

[stephenn]

You are not alone. A little over a month ago, I bought a '03 325 Coupe with only 8,500 miles and the shade was broken already. If it wasn't under warranty, I would have been angry. It's fixed now and will hopefully stay that way.

Cross your fingers!

 

[uzun]

My sunroof shade just broke a few days ago too! It will misalign and get stuck. My car is a 2004 BMW 325I Sedan and it has less than 2000 miles on it! I probably set a new record for breaking the sunroof shade so soon.

 

[tih2k]

when I traded in my first 325i, the shade was messed up also. It would get stuck halfway to where I had to push it back then pull it hard to close all the way, really pissed me off. When I would open it automatically it would grind and make like a loud snapping noise and would open halfway and close again. Never took it in because I was so busy but it never failed to make me say 30k+ for a car should have some better quality materials inside. Although the BMW sunroof is way better than that cheap feeling GM Hummer sunroof I was driving the other day.

 

[slato1]

My little sunshade clips broke with 15500 miles on my car. It took them an hour and a half to fix the problem. After seeing how flimsy the clips are I now open the sun roof very carefully and do not let the automatic sun roof push it back when I want to open the sunroof.

 

[Frosty Power 323CI]

My sunroof cover has been toast for a long time now and has been replace a couple times already. For now I just open the sunroof just before it is open all the way so I can still close the cover without having to shove my hand in the gap. I have been doing that since. The dealer says they can't do anything about it and told me that I probably abuse it too much cause they don't usually get these clip broken often, what a joke. It's a pain it the @ss but I guess I got to live with it. Hope these "new" clips work better!

 

[jbfog]

this happened to me. I just bought a cpo 325 and the sunroof shield broke a week later. Apparently its not covered under the cpo warranty but the dealer said they would fix it as I just got the car. if you have to pay for it yourself the cost is about $200!! what a joke, The part is clearly cheap. it's made of plastic and car shear off over time just from regular use. My big fear in buying a bmw was the high cost of maintenance- that's why i went with the cpo. Now I find out that the CPO warranty is fairly limited. For example, I also have leak. apparently the vapor barrier in the passenger door must have a hole in it. the dealer said he would fix it since I just got the car but if it wasn't for that I would be on my own since the cpo doesn't cover it. last beef- the am radio reception in non-existent. They're going to look at that also but I've been told by one service guy already that am reception in bmw's is bad. I had japanese cars for 20 years and never had any of these issues. I love driving the car and it's beautiful but i am starting to get nervous about what else is going to break

 

[Bmw 325i 7803]

this happened to me. I just bought a cpo 325 and the sunroof shield broke a week later. Apparently its not covered under the cpo warranty but the dealer said they would fix it as I just got the car. if you have to pay for it yourself the cost is about $200!! what a joke, The part is clearly cheap. it's made of plastic and car shear off over time just from regular use. My big fear in buying a bmw was the high cost of maintenance- that's why i went with the cpo. Now I find out that the CPO warranty is fairly limited. For example, I also have leak. apparently the vapor barrier in the passenger door must have a hole in it. the dealer said he would fix it since I just got the car but if it wasn't for that I would be on my own since the cpo doesn't cover it. last beef- the am radio reception in non-existent. They're going to look at that also but I've been told by one service guy already that am reception in bmw's is bad. I had japanese cars for 20 years and never had any of these issues. I love driving the car and it's beautiful but i am starting to get nervous about what else is going to break

This is my second BMW and the AM reception has been perfect in both, I would demand they fix everything wrong with the car. Another reason I wouldn't buy CPO cars....

You should have bought/leased a new one, theres a nice incentive on the 2004's infact you can lease an 04' 325i for $300 a month with $3k out the door...

 

[tih2k]

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