How To Disable Brake Safety While Opening The Top
05-10-2004, 06:21 PM
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How To Disable Brake Safety While Opening The Top
Does anybody know if there is a way not to have to depress the brake while opening the roof...I know, I know that's a safety issue, but I still would like to be able to open/close the top while driving at really low speed....
If you decide to drop the top at a red light and if the light turn green before the roof is fully down, it’s convenient to finish opening the roof while puling aside....
If you decide to drop the top at a red light and if the light turn green before the roof is fully down, it’s convenient to finish opening the roof while puling aside....
05-11-2004, 02:14 PM
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If you keep your foot lightly on the brake the top will still go down (or up). I have a 5AT and have been moving (slowly) while it finished opening or closing. I guess that may work only for the AT's.
05-11-2004, 03:39 PM
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Originally posted by gohorhay
If you keep your foot lightly on the brake the top will still go down (or up). I have a 5AT and have been moving (slowly) while it finished opening or closing. I guess that may work only for the AT's.
If you keep your foot lightly on the brake the top will still go down (or up). I have a 5AT and have been moving (slowly) while it finished opening or closing. I guess that may work only for the AT's.
05-11-2004, 03:42 PM
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Originally posted by elyliu
I would also like this mod if you ever find out....
I would also like this mod if you ever find out....
If anybody has electrical schematics for the roadster, please PM me. With a schematic I should be able to figure that out....
05-19-2004, 04:52 PM
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I've always had this done on convertibles and I will take the Z into the shop that did my last one and see if they can disable the brake sensor for the top. If so, I’ll post all about it.
I remember they make you sign a waiver that makes them not liable for any damage you may do to your top while driving. I always keep the speeds under 30mph and never had problems. People go crazy when they see you in rush hour traffic doing 25mph and putting your top up or down.
I only wish Nissan had made the top completely electronic; the shop I go to could then make the top go up or down via the factory key fob.
I remember they make you sign a waiver that makes them not liable for any damage you may do to your top while driving. I always keep the speeds under 30mph and never had problems. People go crazy when they see you in rush hour traffic doing 25mph and putting your top up or down.
I only wish Nissan had made the top completely electronic; the shop I go to could then make the top go up or down via the factory key fob.
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05-19-2004, 09:41 PM
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If only I could put my hand on a 04 service manual.....
The mod is really simple as long as you have an electrical schematic...
Hoppefully thru this community we should be able to find a solution.
The mod is really simple as long as you have an electrical schematic...
Hoppefully thru this community we should be able to find a solution.
05-20-2004, 05:30 AM
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I know all Z Roadster owners are responisble and sensible people so never would do anything stupid like attempting to raise or lower their convertible top in speeds greater than 25 mph but I think defeating a safety feature is not really a good idea. A top going up or down while you are moving no matter how fast or slow is a distraction and certainly can't help your ability see what's coming in all directions.
05-20-2004, 07:46 AM
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i would only use it in those moments that Chief F1 Fan talked about, when a traffic light changed faster than anticipated. That way you don't **** off a lot of people....
05-20-2004, 10:36 AM
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Elyliu: this is the shop where I’ve taken other cars to and they always do a good job: www.luxurymotorworks.com. When I get back to L.A. I’ll give them a call and see what they can do about the Z and perhaps they’ve already done one. If they do my Z, I’ll post about it here.
Loic: If the above doesn’t work out, then I’ll purchase the service manual, contact you and you can let me know what to look for and I’ll scan the pages and email them to you.
Chief F1 Fan: that happened to me on the night I was driving the Z home from the dealer. They showed me how the top works but I guess I wasn't paying attention. So I ended up pulling over VERY carefully because my rear window was blocked due to the fact that the top and boot where half open.
I don’t like the control button, because you have to hold it down the entire time as well as where it’s located. So far I’ve found myself forgetting which way to hit the button to go up or down. If they had only made that single roof latch electronic then I would have nothing to ***** about.
I’ve had 4 other convertibles (metal and soft tops) in the past and I always had the safety sensors disabled. As recommend I’ve never gone over 30mph and worked the top. After years of doing this, I’ve never had problems or even replaced a top or motor. Mostly use this feature in rush hour, entering a parking lot, exiting a parking lot, leaving my home or returning home.
BTW’ the Porsche 911 Cabriolet comes stock with the ability to operate the top up to 25 or 30mph.
Have you ever been in rush hour on the 405 or any Southern Cali freeway? Look at your odometer and you’ll see you’re doing less than 20mph and sometimes it’s just hot out and you wish you hadn’t put down your top before you jumped on the freeway. When a convertible top is moving, your rear view is blocked. You should keep your eyes on the road ahead of you and obviously not try and switch lanes. Now if something is going to happen behind you, there’s not much you would have done to prevent it, had you been able to see through the rear window at the time.
Loic: If the above doesn’t work out, then I’ll purchase the service manual, contact you and you can let me know what to look for and I’ll scan the pages and email them to you.
Chief F1 Fan: that happened to me on the night I was driving the Z home from the dealer. They showed me how the top works but I guess I wasn't paying attention. So I ended up pulling over VERY carefully because my rear window was blocked due to the fact that the top and boot where half open.
I don’t like the control button, because you have to hold it down the entire time as well as where it’s located. So far I’ve found myself forgetting which way to hit the button to go up or down. If they had only made that single roof latch electronic then I would have nothing to ***** about.
I’ve had 4 other convertibles (metal and soft tops) in the past and I always had the safety sensors disabled. As recommend I’ve never gone over 30mph and worked the top. After years of doing this, I’ve never had problems or even replaced a top or motor. Mostly use this feature in rush hour, entering a parking lot, exiting a parking lot, leaving my home or returning home.
BTW’ the Porsche 911 Cabriolet comes stock with the ability to operate the top up to 25 or 30mph.
Have you ever been in rush hour on the 405 or any Southern Cali freeway? Look at your odometer and you’ll see you’re doing less than 20mph and sometimes it’s just hot out and you wish you hadn’t put down your top before you jumped on the freeway. When a convertible top is moving, your rear view is blocked. You should keep your eyes on the road ahead of you and obviously not try and switch lanes. Now if something is going to happen behind you, there’s not much you would have done to prevent it, had you been able to see through the rear window at the time.
Last edited by GM-West; 05-20-2004 at 10:41 AM.
05-20-2004, 11:23 AM
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hehe, i've driven my car with the top not completely closed too because the traffic started moving. The top part was already touching the windshield area (not latched), but the back window was not down and latched yet....
For the first week or two, i had problems remember which direction was to close/open the top too.
and bout that 405 scenerio...i know exactly what you are talking about. I commute 70 miles a day w/ my Z. And the combination of LA traffic and so cal sun is a bad one. For the first 15-20 minutes of top down, it's nice. But it quickly gets very hot expecially if you are going only 1 mph.
For the first week or two, i had problems remember which direction was to close/open the top too.
and bout that 405 scenerio...i know exactly what you are talking about. I commute 70 miles a day w/ my Z. And the combination of LA traffic and so cal sun is a bad one. For the first 15-20 minutes of top down, it's nice. But it quickly gets very hot expecially if you are going only 1 mph.
05-20-2004, 11:42 AM
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Elyliu: Right on! You know what I’m talking about. And then there’s the opposite; when you’re in traffic after a long day and you wish you had put the top down.
BTW’ if you ever catch yourself at a green light while waiting for your top, I recommend hitting your hazard lights and letting the top finish before moving. I’ve done this in other cars in the past and I’ve never had a single person honk at me.
On a side note: The night I brought the car home, I pulled into my garage and sat in the car trying to set the clock and the radio stations.
After about 5 or 10 minutes, I was thinking damn, it’s getting really warm in here. Checked the heater and it was off just like the engine. Go figure, it was the damn heated seat button. Too easy to accidentally turn on.
BTW’ if you ever catch yourself at a green light while waiting for your top, I recommend hitting your hazard lights and letting the top finish before moving. I’ve done this in other cars in the past and I’ve never had a single person honk at me.
On a side note: The night I brought the car home, I pulled into my garage and sat in the car trying to set the clock and the radio stations.
After about 5 or 10 minutes, I was thinking damn, it’s getting really warm in here. Checked the heater and it was off just like the engine. Go figure, it was the damn heated seat button. Too easy to accidentally turn on.
05-20-2004, 01:46 PM
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Originally posted by GM-West
Elyliu: this is the shop where I’ve taken other cars to and they always do a good job: www.luxurymotorworks.com. When I get back to L.A. I’ll give them a call and see what they can do about the Z and perhaps they’ve already done one. If they do my Z, I’ll post about it here.
Loic: If the above doesn’t work out, then I’ll purchase the service manual, contact you and you can let me know what to look for and I’ll scan the pages and email them to you.
Elyliu: this is the shop where I’ve taken other cars to and they always do a good job: www.luxurymotorworks.com. When I get back to L.A. I’ll give them a call and see what they can do about the Z and perhaps they’ve already done one. If they do my Z, I’ll post about it here.
Loic: If the above doesn’t work out, then I’ll purchase the service manual, contact you and you can let me know what to look for and I’ll scan the pages and email them to you.
I'm willing to buy the service manual myself from Ebay or so, however, I haven't found a reputable seller that can ensure me that I'm getting the 04 manual...
05-21-2004, 08:02 PM
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OK, I have a 2004.5 roadster and the corresponding service manual, so here goes....
The "Roof control unit" is in the soft top storage bay, in the front, slightly to the right of the driver seat, under the glass wind deflector. It is under the cover in the bay, so you have to get to it by careful lifting of that cover. (The top should be in the mode where it is over the seats with the hatch fully open -- the first stage of putting it away.) There is a small label on it saying something like "roof control unit"; it also has a large piece of clear plastic laminated over its rear 1/3 or so.
The control unit has three electrical connectors on the rear: 16-pins on the left (connector B66), 20-pins in the middle (Connector B67), and 12-pins on the right (connector B68) (looking forward from the rear). The pin of interest is pin 38, which is the top row, second outside pin on B68 (its next to the key, only two pins on the top row on that side of the key) -- pink with blue stripe. This pin is hot when the brake is pressed (it is directly connected to the brake lights and the switch on the brake pedal) through fuse #20 (10A).
Hot when the key is on is available at pin 17, the outer pin on the top row of the middle connector (four pins on the top row on that side of the key), wire color green. This pin is just used for detecting that the ignition is on, power for the top is provided on an alternate circuit. You cannot simply bridge 17 to 38 -- if you do that, your brake lights will always be on. You will have to pull 38: either cut the wire (!) or pull the pin from the connector, then jumper pin 17 over to 38 just on the control unit.
I *DID*NOT* actually implement this on my Z, but I verified what I found in the service manual (wire colors) -- so you are on your own. I take no responsibility, etc: please don't hurt yourself or your Z!
-frank
The "Roof control unit" is in the soft top storage bay, in the front, slightly to the right of the driver seat, under the glass wind deflector. It is under the cover in the bay, so you have to get to it by careful lifting of that cover. (The top should be in the mode where it is over the seats with the hatch fully open -- the first stage of putting it away.) There is a small label on it saying something like "roof control unit"; it also has a large piece of clear plastic laminated over its rear 1/3 or so.
The control unit has three electrical connectors on the rear: 16-pins on the left (connector B66), 20-pins in the middle (Connector B67), and 12-pins on the right (connector B68) (looking forward from the rear). The pin of interest is pin 38, which is the top row, second outside pin on B68 (its next to the key, only two pins on the top row on that side of the key) -- pink with blue stripe. This pin is hot when the brake is pressed (it is directly connected to the brake lights and the switch on the brake pedal) through fuse #20 (10A).
Hot when the key is on is available at pin 17, the outer pin on the top row of the middle connector (four pins on the top row on that side of the key), wire color green. This pin is just used for detecting that the ignition is on, power for the top is provided on an alternate circuit. You cannot simply bridge 17 to 38 -- if you do that, your brake lights will always be on. You will have to pull 38: either cut the wire (!) or pull the pin from the connector, then jumper pin 17 over to 38 just on the control unit.
I *DID*NOT* actually implement this on my Z, but I verified what I found in the service manual (wire colors) -- so you are on your own. I take no responsibility, etc: please don't hurt yourself or your Z!
-frank
05-21-2004, 11:35 PM
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Originally posted by ct roadster
OK, I have a 2004.5 roadster and the corresponding service manual, so here goes....
The "Roof control unit" is in the soft top storage bay, in the front, slightly to the right of the driver seat, under the glass wind deflector. It is under the cover in the bay, so you have to get to it by careful lifting of that cover. (The top should be in the mode where it is over the seats with the hatch fully open -- the first stage of putting it away.) There is a small label on it saying something like "roof control unit"; it also has a large piece of clear plastic laminated over its rear 1/3 or so.
The control unit has three electrical connectors on the rear: 16-pins on the left (connector B66), 20-pins in the middle (Connector B67), and 12-pins on the right (connector B68) (looking forward from the rear). The pin of interest is pin 38, which is the top row, second outside pin on B68 (its next to the key, only two pins on the top row on that side of the key) -- pink with blue stripe. This pin is hot when the brake is pressed (it is directly connected to the brake lights and the switch on the brake pedal) through fuse #20 (10A).
Hot when the key is on is available at pin 17, the outer pin on the top row of the middle connector (four pins on the top row on that side of the key), wire color green. This pin is just used for detecting that the ignition is on, power for the top is provided on an alternate circuit. You cannot simply bridge 17 to 38 -- if you do that, your brake lights will always be on. You will have to pull 38: either cut the wire (!) or pull the pin from the connector, then jumper pin 17 over to 38 just on the control unit.
I *DID*NOT* actually implement this on my Z, but I verified what I found in the service manual (wire colors) -- so you are on your own. I take no responsibility, etc: please don't hurt yourself or your Z!
-frank
OK, I have a 2004.5 roadster and the corresponding service manual, so here goes....
The "Roof control unit" is in the soft top storage bay, in the front, slightly to the right of the driver seat, under the glass wind deflector. It is under the cover in the bay, so you have to get to it by careful lifting of that cover. (The top should be in the mode where it is over the seats with the hatch fully open -- the first stage of putting it away.) There is a small label on it saying something like "roof control unit"; it also has a large piece of clear plastic laminated over its rear 1/3 or so.
The control unit has three electrical connectors on the rear: 16-pins on the left (connector B66), 20-pins in the middle (Connector B67), and 12-pins on the right (connector B68) (looking forward from the rear). The pin of interest is pin 38, which is the top row, second outside pin on B68 (its next to the key, only two pins on the top row on that side of the key) -- pink with blue stripe. This pin is hot when the brake is pressed (it is directly connected to the brake lights and the switch on the brake pedal) through fuse #20 (10A).
Hot when the key is on is available at pin 17, the outer pin on the top row of the middle connector (four pins on the top row on that side of the key), wire color green. This pin is just used for detecting that the ignition is on, power for the top is provided on an alternate circuit. You cannot simply bridge 17 to 38 -- if you do that, your brake lights will always be on. You will have to pull 38: either cut the wire (!) or pull the pin from the connector, then jumper pin 17 over to 38 just on the control unit.
I *DID*NOT* actually implement this on my Z, but I verified what I found in the service manual (wire colors) -- so you are on your own. I take no responsibility, etc: please don't hurt yourself or your Z!
-frank
Thanks,
05-22-2004, 01:22 PM
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Hey guys! Well it didn’t work out but I’m not giving up just yet. I had my cousin print out Frank’s instructions this morning and he spent about 2 hours working on my car.
I’m on vacation, so I wasn’t there to see for myself. My cousin is very talented with auto repair as well as electrical components and circuitry (sounds like Loic is too) so I trust his judgment.
My cousin took sometime removing the vinyl covering the control unit. He says it’s pretty easy for him but others should be very careful or you could break some plastic clips that are attached to the bottom of the roll bar covers. He recommends using two people; one person uses a flat screw driver to lift the plastic clips and another person pulls the vinyl between the clips. Once you’ve removed the vinyl from the clips you’ll then have full access to the control unit. He was able to remove the wires and link them as suggested in Franks post.
He says he followed the instructions and found the exact wires Frank outlined. Unfortunately the top would not operate with the suggested adjustments. My cousin also tried the way Frank mentions will make the brake lights stay on and in fact that is what happened.
During this experiment my cousin says a #10 fuse blew out, and the gear selector (automatic) locked up and the gear selection screen went blank. After he replaced the fuse and returned the wires to their original positions, all was back to normal. He then tried a few more configurations with the wires and none where successful.
My cousin informed me that if can get the diagram and supporting documentation he believes he can figure it out. From what he says, the damage that one could cause in trying this is to break the clips when removing the vinyl cover from the boot area. Otherwise a fuse is easy to replace, should you blow one.
Frank if you could scan and email me the info from the Manuel I can have my cousin give it another try. He also was wondering if maybe getting at the wires directly at the brakes might work as well. Again he’s very good with all this so I’ll let him try.
I’m on vacation, so I wasn’t there to see for myself. My cousin is very talented with auto repair as well as electrical components and circuitry (sounds like Loic is too) so I trust his judgment.
My cousin took sometime removing the vinyl covering the control unit. He says it’s pretty easy for him but others should be very careful or you could break some plastic clips that are attached to the bottom of the roll bar covers. He recommends using two people; one person uses a flat screw driver to lift the plastic clips and another person pulls the vinyl between the clips. Once you’ve removed the vinyl from the clips you’ll then have full access to the control unit. He was able to remove the wires and link them as suggested in Franks post.
He says he followed the instructions and found the exact wires Frank outlined. Unfortunately the top would not operate with the suggested adjustments. My cousin also tried the way Frank mentions will make the brake lights stay on and in fact that is what happened.
During this experiment my cousin says a #10 fuse blew out, and the gear selector (automatic) locked up and the gear selection screen went blank. After he replaced the fuse and returned the wires to their original positions, all was back to normal. He then tried a few more configurations with the wires and none where successful.
My cousin informed me that if can get the diagram and supporting documentation he believes he can figure it out. From what he says, the damage that one could cause in trying this is to break the clips when removing the vinyl cover from the boot area. Otherwise a fuse is easy to replace, should you blow one.
Frank if you could scan and email me the info from the Manuel I can have my cousin give it another try. He also was wondering if maybe getting at the wires directly at the brakes might work as well. Again he’s very good with all this so I’ll let him try.