I have a 900 gm convertible 1997. last weekend I opened the roof since it had been closed for a couple of months. Initially it was reluctant to open but did open okay after a couple of attempts.Closed no problem too(no SID messages were displayed)Today however I decided to open it and the tonneau cover only went half way up before stopping and the SID displaying check soft top.Could not find any obvious reason so tried to close it again, but it would not do anything. Eventually used manual lever to close roof,reset lever then tried to lock roof in closed position.Now nothing is happening at all and SID still saying check soft top.Any suggestions????

Hi Steve

I decided to open it and the tonneau cover only went half way up before stopping and the SID displaying check soft top.

This happened to me a while back with my first gm900 convertible and the local Saab garage said that a tonneau motor strengthening kit was needed, so a few quid for the bits and a fair few quid for the labour all sorted. There is a kit on ebay for £15 worth a look.

Now the bad bit these kits can help but the bigger problem is that the motors needing changing as mine did less than a year later.

If you pm me I will send you the ebay item no

Hope some of this helps

Robin McG

I seem to recall reading (can't check, nowhere near my manuals) that if you use the emergency close lever that you have to press the tonneau drive motor back into position so the gears mesh up - could that be the issue that is preventing the roof from operating at all?

Tonneau not lifting is symptomatic of a twisted frame that the drive motor lives in (or worse, stripped gears). If the frame is twisted you can get away with the £10 reinforcing kit. If the gears are stripped it is time for a reconditioned unit (hint, there is a trader on eBay based in Bristol that sells them).

Hope this helps,

Andy

I seem to recall reading (can't check, nowhere near my manuals) that if you use the emergency close lever that you have to press the tonneau drive motor back into position so the gears mesh up - could that be the issue that is preventing the roof from operating at all?

Tonneau not lifting is symptomatic of a twisted frame that the drive motor lives in (or worse, stripped gears). If the frame is twisted you can get away with the £10 reinforcing kit. If the gears are stripped it is time for a reconditioned unit (hint, there is a trader on eBay based in Bristol that sells them).

Hope this helps,

Andy[/b]

Guys, quick question. If the motor/roof were to fail - is there anyway of manually operating it on a 900?

On a GM/NG900 there is a facility to close the roof in an emergency. On an NG900 you drop the rear seat and pull the emergency release and then pull the roof closed and latch it at the front but you won't get the fifth bow latching to the tonneau at the back so treat it as a 'get the car reasonably water tight before driving to the dealer' solution. I believe the 9-3 has similar (although that roof is hydraulic).

Not sure about the C900 with its hydraulic roof...

Hi Steve, you PM'd me rather than posted to the thread, not sure if you meant to do that! I've posted your PM into the thread so others can read it.

QUOTE(steve w)
Hello and many thanks for your replies.Tried everything as suggested but had to go to Saab dealer for diagnostic plug in. Tonneau motor is indeed knackered!! Part and labour come to grand total of £1474.20!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Search on ebay turned up company who re-condition and upgrade motor for £299. think they will be getting my custom.Diagnostic plug in threw out some other codes, can anybody point me in the right direction for list of codes and what they mean??
Many thanks
Steve[/b]

Ouch! Parts for the top are expensive - you should be alright with the refurbished unit (the lot in Bristol?), I've not swapped the tonneau motor in mine (was done before I bought the car) but I think it is relatively easy to do. Provided the unit goes on in the same orientation as the original comes off the you should be fine.

On the other fault codes you have, if you post them here I'll try and look them up in the copy of WIS I have access to - can't guarantee the answer will make sense though!

Andy

Hi Andrew, apologies re reply, am new to forums and not sure how they work!
Codes are as follows;B1183, B1186, B1309, B2472, B1605. Dealer did not give any info regarding codes and have had no luck searching for them myself. Would appreciate any help. Even if its gobbledegook to me it may be clear to local garage!!
Many Thanks
Sarah
(user name is my husbands! He's PC illiterate and I'm car illiterate so we're trying between us!)

Part and labour come to grand total of £1474.20!!!!!!!!!!!!!![/b]

:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

Good grief!!!

How can we prolong the roof's life? Is there anyway of taking extra special care of it to avoid the motor breaking? Or is it just luck of the draw?

Hi All,

Just a note on the SAAB strenthening kit, it is available from SAAB dealers for less than £5.

No instructions come with it tho.

Hope this helps.

Stoob

Welcome to Saabscene Stoob :)

HiAll,

Further to my last part available from SAAB dealer part No 104613519 total cost £4.94 Circa December07.

Many thanks for the welcom, I post on UK Saabs as Boots but owing to an error registering here I had to start again.



All the best

Stoob
Boots

Codes are as follows;B1183, B1186, B1309, B2472, B1605.[/b]

My copy of WIS won't recognise these codes so I'm afraid I can't help :( with any further diagnosis so you might need to ask the dealer nicely what they mean.

Andy

Codes are as follows;B1183, B1186, B1309, B2472, B1605.[/b]
Hi Sarah...greetings from across the pond.
B1183 refers to "Microswitch Open Circuit", 5th bow
B1186 refers to "microswitches do not indicate the same information as the potientiometers", Tonneau motor
B1309 refers to "No motor is moving when top is activated"
You should be getting Top Cycle Error on the SID with these first 3 codes.
B2472 refers to "Front Window Lift Motors Open Circuit / Shorted / Grounded", passenger side
B1605 refers to "Top Cycle Error on the SID. The soft top cannot be operated." Unfortunately this code gets thrown sometimes without any noticeable symptoms.

I have full page printout (my WIS in on CD) of each of these codes. With a little effort, I could probably either printscreen them to an e-mail, or scan the printed page.

FWIW, most of this can only be diagnosed by a garage that has a Tech2 tool and knows how to use it.

Personally, I'd check maxifuse #5 under the bonnett ("hood" here in the colonies...little black box just next to the battery). Then, I'd check fuses #7 and #17 inside the car. On LH drive cars, it is a little flap on the side of the dashboard, seen almost at the hinge of the door; door has to be open to get to it. Not sure about RH.

Take care,
Trey

Further to all posts

I have had an issue when raising my roof

Had Check roof message on SID

After helpful advice on this site checked out the usual suspects, and found that when engine is running my boot release showed boot was open, when engine off but ignition on the roof worked fine.

Have always used roof mechanisms when engine was running before ( 206cc, various bm's) saving battery power...

Also when engine running and boot switch closed, the bulb just dimmed....

Question

Something needs to be replaced , but what ?????

Best Regards in advance

Chris

PS where exactly are the switches that prove that the roof space in the boot is down ( As today took out all interior carpet and still cant see them)

Hi Chris,

If you raise the roof to the point where the tonneau cover is open but the roof is not going into the boot, then pause you should be able to see the switches inside the roof bag. If Iam correct they are two tiny devices at the lower edge of the back (i.e. towards the back of the car) of the inside of the roof bag.
THe other problem might be a dodgy earth but I don't know.
Anjum