My sunroof broke last sunday. I went to open it and heard some popping/cracking. It'll still move forward and back but it doesn't close nor does it move to the vent position. I watched it from up top and I can see one side slightly drag versus the other. I believe it has come off the track. It's currently not closed all the way and I really need it fixed. I've ordered a sunroof repair kit from sunroofdoctor.com but I'm not finding a lot of information about how to go about it. I'd call myself an average DIY'er but it'd help greatly if I could read up on what others did when installing a repair kit. I will have an extra set of hands as well. Are there any special tools needed? Any special care needed during certain steps? A write-up with photos would be perfect if it's out there.

 

I don't think it's the most difficult item ever, but it will almost certainly require dropping and/or removing the headliner.

 

So I ended up fixing my sunroof about a month ago. The cam brackets were broken on both sides. The repair kit cost me $127 shipped and included everything needed to rebuild the running gear, minus the motor and cables. The entire job wasn't too bad. Dropping the headliner and removing it proved to be easy, but I think it's because I have a supercab rather than a supercrew; no pillar in the way. I did break some of the plastic trim pieces that go around the door latch by overtightening bolts, but some washers helped remedy that and they are holding strong now.

Dropping the sunroof assembly was probably the hardest part. I did the entire job myself and the sunroof assembly is very large, heavy, and awkward for my short arms to handle. I ended up using a 2x4 and wedged it between the back seat and the rear of the assembly while I unbolted the front and carefully lowered it on top of my seats. If you can remove the glass before unbolting the sunroof, I recommend doing that because it does make the assembly a bit lighter.

The only special tool I needed was a rivet gun. The repair kit comes with new rivets to assemble it back together. I opted to wait until I had the sunroof assembly bolted back into the truck to install the glass.

Having done it now, I can definitely say it was worth doing the job myself versus paying the dealer $800 to fix it. It took me about 10 hours by myself (but I'm slow) and part of that was because I forgot to attach the drain tubes on one side and had to unbolt half of the headliner to get to it. Oh, and while I was in there, I fixed the infamous rattle above the headliner by adding some pieces of weatherstrip above the rear dome light as well as above the factory foam pieces. Much quieter truck now.

Some photos:

 

Thanks for reporting back on the fix. Not too many posts about sun roof repair.

 

Agreed. Not a lot of answers to the moonroof questions that pop up a few times each year. I just hope I never have any issues with mine.

 

Looking back on it, I'm glad I decided to drop it and rebuild with new brackets than to have a used unit installed. The brackets are largely all plastic and over the years I'm sure the summer heat just makes those brackets really brittle and easy to break, especially with my black truck. It'd be just my luck to install a used unit only to have the brackets snap soon after.

 

Much respect and congratulations on conquering this task. Glad to hear the job wasn't all too bad. I hate working with interior plastics. I swear they are meant to never come out in one piece again.

 

thanks for the write-up and photos.

my sunroof is stuck tilted open with broken tracks. sunroof dr got me the kit. today, i drop the headliner and sunroof. your photos have given me a much better idea of what is needed.

thanks again...

 

all done..., no fun...

sunroof working again...

 

Ugh, I can't imagine having to work on it in the bitter cold. But then again, I guess you're in Texas so it's probably a bit warmer there than it is here lol. Glad to hear it helped someone out. It sucks to have a sunroof break and get stuck open.

 

thanks...

not always warm here, but i picked a 60 degree day. here's headliner dropped and all but 1 or 2 screws left in the sunroof assembly...

 

Hi every one my name is Saul . Nice Post. yesterday I've started with a inspection and rework in my 2003 HD . I found a bolt loose completely from the sunroof motor, this caused that the gears doesn't work and let the sunroof a few inches before closing . So I placed again the bolt and manually close the sunroof, it works great but,, one that I notice is the "one touch" button to open it doesn't work . do you think it is a programmable stuff to do? best regards to all

 

There is a procedure to recalibrating the motor but I don't remember it off of the top of my head. It involved pushing the open button for a certain amount of seconds and then closing it. I also don't know if your 2003 would recalibrate the same way as the 2004 and up models.

EDIT: Here's the procedure for recalibrating the sunroof motor for the 2004 and up models, but it might work for yours. Press and hold the open switch until the sunroof goes to full open position. Once the sunroof is fully open, quickly release the open switch and press and hold it again for approximately three seconds or until the sunroof starts to close. It'll perform a close/tilt/close procedure. Once it is finished, check for proper operation. If your sunroof won't finish the calibration process (as in it won't close) then it's back to broken cam brackets.

 

Thank you Dunesgirl. will try it!!
I've tried yesterday this.. but didn't work.