Saab Sunroof

[3dwin]

Hi Guys,

Possibly very foolishly at 18 I have bought a 1990 saab 900s (though not turbo I believe) four door hatchback.
I need all the help I can get, so your reply's are highly appreciated.

Just with regards to the sunroof, are there supposed to be seals around the outside of it? and if so, where can I purchase them?

The previous owners filled the gaps in badly with some sort of silicone, however the motor in the roof works fine. I suspect it was leaking and wetting the inside as they had not cleaned out the drains? Could someone please explain where these are located, and exactly how the sunroof drainage works?

Do you reckon I should fix this up or just fill it in better with silicone?

See picture:


Thanks,
Edwin

[jskrebs]

There is a tray between the roof and headliner that houses the sunroof mechanism. typically there are 4 drain hoses one for each corner and they run down the a and c pillars and drain into the fender wells. It that was my car I would take everything apart clean and reassemble. If you headliner is bad its a good time to fix that as well.

As you suspect it is likely that the tubes are blocked which caused the tray to overflow. If you can get the sunroof to slide back you can see the front pair of drains in the corners. when the roof is back you can remove 3 or 4 screws across the leading edge and the panel lifts up and slides forward. If you can get it out it will be simpler to see what is going on and to remove the silicone and get it all cleaned up. You may need to remove the headliner if you suspect the rear drain tubes are in question. Plenty of parts cars to pick sunroof parts from.

I just has my 85 manual sunroof all apart to re do the headliner and found that it was a very well engineered mechanism. I used to install sunroofs for Lincoln, Olds and Cadillac dealer in the late 80's.