NEED HELP -- roof won't go up

On the face of it it's easy, but I've been told by my dealer's chief tech that it's not that easy. The trick is to pull the old one out with a couple of safety wires attached to the hydraulic lines so that pulling the new lines back along the correct route is easier than it would otherwise be. It sounds easy but I bet it's a full day's work!!

I'm looking for a used ram but will have to spring the $800 for a new one from Maranello UK if my search is fruitless.

Is there anything of value to be obtained by energizing L016 and performing the manual tests that I did a short time ago (i.e., when L020 was energized)?

 

Thus far, $550 seems to be as low as anybody's prepared to go on a used ram, but this is too high IMHO.

I had a closer look at the ram's install today. I can see that it's going to be a nightmare for a multitude of reasons. For example, the pivot on which the currently attached end of the ram rotates is held in place with a tiny circlip that's impossible to get to unless the "roof undertray" is loosen and raised. I'm sure this is going to be a job from hell. The Ferrari tech I referred to yesterday told me that as a warranty repair, Ferrari expect for the entire roof assembly to be lifted from the car in order to swap out this particular ram!!!! Ouch, it's a really horrid job.

With reference to the hydraulic lines, do your schematics show 21 (RHS) and 23 (LHS) going to L020 and 22 (RHS) and 24 (LHS) going to L016? I think I need to remove 21 and 22 at their respective solenoids and test the ram in place before going through the pain of removal and replacement.

 

I realise that this thread has possibly been a bit dull for many (you know, a problem specific to me and no photos etc. etc.) but I've been enjoying myself.

We might have a confirmed winner. I disconnected lines 21 and 22 and used an earlier trick (i.e., syringe and piece of clear rubber tubing) to withdraw all fluid from the lines (didn't want to run the risk of it dripping inside the car).

Once empty of all fluid I decided to use my syringe and tubing as a kind of mini compressor. I first connected it to 21 and moved the plunger in and out -- much to my satisfaction I could could air escaping from 22 along with a bit of residual fluid. I then connected to 22 and repeated -- this time I could hear air escaping from 21 along with a few drops of residual fluid.

I don't think there can be any doubt at all that the ram's internal seal must be shot. What a relief.

I'm so thrilled that I'm attaching a photo which illustrates my "mini compressor" set-up -- you can just about see the plastic tube exiting the syringe and connecting to 22. Then you can see 21 disconnected in free space. Pump the syringe and you can hear air escaping from 21.
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Thanks muchly, I'm blushing, although most of the credit must be given to Trent -- I've merely been his willing helper!! In this respect I daresay Trent is but a few moments away from suggesting that I should perform the same test on the LHS ram!!!

 

Tested the LHS ram using my "mini pump" and it held pressure on 23 and 24. Okay, I'll admit that I'm unable to administer a lot of pressure this way, but the LHS held pressure whereas the RHS absolutely did not. I'm satisfied that the RHS needs to be replaced. I agree that the $800 new item is the sensible way to go.

I've probably spent a total of 8 hours or so disassembling and playing with stuff. Probably a couple of additional hours with posts on fchat. My guess is that the new ram will take (me) of the order of 8 hours to install properly, neatly, and with the lines run correctly. Total time is therefore of the order of 18 hours, let's round it up to 20 hours, or 2.5 shop days. I guess this is a lot, but I've learned a great deal in the process and have a greatly reduced fear factor concerning the roof. All-in-all I'm happy. Of course, all of this presupposes that the new ram fixes everything. Followers of this post will now have to wait a couple of weeks for the conclusion. Do we want photos?

 

I ordered a new ram today and will start the install as soon as it arrives (probably a couple of weeks from now). Given that the install effort is huge, I opted for a new unit as opposed to a used one -- it's the only sensible choice.

 

Gents. I was away on a business trip, got home on Sunday, collected my new ram yesterday. I'll do the install next week and will post photos. Fingers crossed that this sorts everything out. I hadn't realised that Trent and I had managed to create the post of the month ... it has been an interesting process trying to sort all of this out.

 

I spent an hour or so yesterday and a good chunk of today getting the old ram out. I can tell you for an absolute fact that it's a horrid horrid job. I took lots of photos, and of course, now that I've done it once, I could do it again in a fraction of the time (I'd say that 2 hours would cover the removal IF you know what you're doing).

I'll probably write-up the procedure in a PDF as it's easier to annotate than posting a bunch of photos if you know what I mean.

For now, here's the proof that the old one is out, and yes, it's totally totally shot:
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The good news is that the replacement ram shows the manufacturer to be Hoerbiger. I guess as the years go by, and parts become scarce, it might be possible to source new parts from these guys or at least persuade them to recondition old items. Who knows.
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Got the new ram in today and the roof worked first time, but it worked better the 3rd or 4th time once the lines were re-primed with hydraulic fluid. Total time to install (in addition to yesterday's removal of the old ram) was about 3 hours; this included adding about 100ml of hydraulic fluid.

When I post the photos on this job you'll see that it's an involved process. Quite a bit of the interior needed to be removed otherwise it would have been impossible to get to the several nylon cable ties that keep the hydraulic lines in place. There's also one small step that involves the use of a Dremel!!! Ah, my 3 hour estimate above does not include replacement of the interior trim, which I will do tomorrow.

This job is not for the faint of heart. Needless to say, I'm over the moon and massively indebted to Trent for his wonderful assistance.

Stay tuned for photos.