My Carrera GTS has a sunroof. I DESPISE sunroofs. They're noisy, heavy, complicated contraptions that put additional weight at the top of the vehicle, messing with the CG. Curse them.
Anyway, I've had the car just shy of 3 years (bought used), have put 40k+ km on it, and never once opened the sunroof. Never touched the button...never cycled the system. Now I'm wondering, should I just continue with NEVER opening the damn thing? It doesn't squeak, doesn't rattle...it just sits there quietly up in the headliner shadows, a silent affront to the concept of function over form. By attempting to open it, I could open up a can of worms...maybe it gets halfway open and the motor seizes, or the carrier gets jammed. Maybe I awaken the rattle demons and I'm forced to go on a time-consuming and potentially futile quest to expel them from my vehicle?
On the other hand, maybe it works just perfectly, and opening it would give me the opportunity to clean out the mechanism, then just close it back up. No biggie. And if/when I sell the car I can honestly say "yeah...opened the sunroof once: it worked fine," then cycle it for the prospective buyer with some level of confidence it will function.
My inclination is to let the evil mechanism continue its slumber. If Murphy's Law is just waiting to ruin my day, it could well be set in motion by pressing that innocuous sunroof button.
What would other folks here do?
I faced a similar predicament a few years back with cruise control on a Nissan 350z. I have to say I curbed my curiosity to see if it worked ok or launched me into a world of sh*t, so while that may not be what you want to hear, my advice is leave well alone.:dance:
+1 on not liking sunroofs. I am in the same situation with my headlight washer nozzles. Its been 8+ years. No idea if they work. That said, I would test your sunroof as I think it will be fine. I just put my original seats back in my car after being stored for 4 years. The seatback motors worked just fine.
Being a winter DD, I actually use the washer nozzles...they're great for cleaning grime and muck off the lights without having to get out and do it by hand. They're also great for (very occasionally) creating a cloud of spray when a car in the next lane is being obnoxious ;-)
Also not a sunroof fan. Have had them on multiple cars, most recently on my new Acura RDX and only open them once a year or so just to see if they work or not. Never really understood the desirability. They just let in a lot of polluted air, dirt and most importantly noise. Might be worthwhile if cars weren't air conditioned but otherwise a waste in my book.
gcurnew, your post has made me wonder - whats the weather like in Alberta?
I always imagine, I'd be at least keeping the shade open on nice days/nights and opening it up for when the weather is nicer, kind of like a convertible?
since you've got it, why not use it?
