Sunroof Rattle

[ron.p]

Hi. Got an 07 LE with the power moonroof. I had an issue with it several months ago where the glass would get stuck when trying to open. They fixed it, but now, several month later, I am getting an intermittent rattle when going over bumps. I am out of warranty so I can deal if I have to pay, but I was wondering if there was a DIY way to adjust some screws at home? It seems to do it when it is open or closed and sounds like it is coming from the front of it on the pass side. Thanks

[njerald]

You could follow these procedures:

http://www.djmase.com/tsb/Camry2007/nv006t06.pdf

[thoots]

Originally Posted by njerald

You could follow these procedures:

http://www.djmase.com/tsb/Camry2007/nv006t06.pdf

...Just bear in mind that at the top of this TSB's Page 2, it refers to "the Technical Information System (TIS), 2007 model year Camry Repair Manual: Sliding Roof Housing" instructions, which is about 30 pages worth of tearing your entire interior apart so you can take down the headliner and get to the actual moonroof.

OK, I'm not sure of the actual page count, but the bottom line is that it isn't anywhere NEAR as easy as this TSB makes it seem....

[fdexclpl]

There is one downside to ripping your interior apart. What if you go through all of that work and fix the rattle but create two others? I'm not sure it would be worth it to fix an intermittent rattle.

[thoots]

Originally Posted by fdexclpl

There is one downside to ripping your interior apart. What if you go through all of that work and fix the rattle but create two others? I'm not sure it would be worth it to fix an intermittent rattle.

EXACTLY.

ABSOLUTELY.

That's my attitude about moonroof rattles: You do have to tear most of your interior apart, and the chances are very high that you'll create some kind of "constant" rattle by taking it all apart and putting it back together again. And if you go have your dealer do it, presume they'll be about a thousand times less 'anal' about putting it all back together as you would be, so the chances are even better that you'll get some kind of interior rattle that'll bug you for the rest of the time you own your car.

So, if your moonroof rattle isn't that bad; only happens when you open it; only happens when you open it to a position you rarely use -- and so on -- think twice before tearing your interior apart to "fix" it. Is it something that some lubirication on the rails might help? Might it be something you can 'cushion' with some weatherstripping? For instance, look at the front of the moonroof opening, and you'll see that there are a few bits of rubber that the front of the roof rests against -- I expect you could quite safely add a few more and/or bigger strips of weatherstripping up there, to help cushion it.

I'd definitely recommend trying anything like that before going through the TSB route, and tearing your interior apart. In today's modern 'clipfest' of vehicle interior construction, I just think that the less you do to tear your interior apart, the better. UNLESS, you really know what you're doing, and you rebuild it even better than it was before you got in there. Most especially, don't expect your dealer to think of it like that!