How To Repair 5th Bow Motor, with photos.
05-25-2012, 06:06 AM
#41
Registered User
Well we took out the plastic piece and just tried putting the spindle back in the motor and tried to get the spindle to sit back down. When the spindle is down in there the gear turns. BUT the spindle ISNT seated all the way down because when you put the gold cover back on there is that small little gap. My mechanic friend had about the same amount of luck I did. As it stands right now I have to buy a new motor and it's $634 bucks. The spindle is not sitting all the way back in and Ive turned it clockwise over and over again with applying pressure. Anyone know where I can get a new motor WITHOUT having to go through the nissan dealership?
05-27-2012, 03:35 PM
#42
Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: San Diego
Posts: 22
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
bows
Hey thanks for this DIY. It worked wonders on my roadster!!! I was wondering if you knew how to make the actual bows operate correctly... seems like mine dont flex enough. In other words I have to assist the bow in order for it to allow the top to sit properly in the storage compartment and have the cover close completely. Hope this makes sense.
06-25-2012, 11:30 AM
#43
Thank you so much for this DIY.. I actually didnt even need to repair my motor!! took out the motor and brushes were fine.. just cleaned up the carbon build up and reinstalled. and BAM top went down flawlessly!!.. Dealer quoted me 2k to fix.. too about an hour and 5 bucks for electrical cleaner lol!!. I would post a friendly warning.. When taking out screw #3 be very very very careful. Make sure you have a long enough philips head to meet the thread.. I stripped my screw and was a BITC* to get out.
06-25-2012, 12:04 PM
#44
New Member
Thread Starter
Dang
Sorry you weren't able to fanaggle it back into it's socket. I wish I were able to help further. If you have tried everything (and it sounds like you have) then I would see if there is a part number on the housing and google it. I wish I could have been more help, post the part number in here if you locate it that way it might help others if you are able to source one. If I can think of anything else I will be sure to post!
Good Luck
BB
Good Luck
BB
Well we took out the plastic piece and just tried putting the spindle back in the motor and tried to get the spindle to sit back down. When the spindle is down in there the gear turns. BUT the spindle ISNT seated all the way down because when you put the gold cover back on there is that small little gap. My mechanic friend had about the same amount of luck I did. As it stands right now I have to buy a new motor and it's $634 bucks. The spindle is not sitting all the way back in and Ive turned it clockwise over and over again with applying pressure. Anyone know where I can get a new motor WITHOUT having to go through the nissan dealership?
06-25-2012, 12:10 PM
#45
New Member
Thread Starter
HHmmm, Roof Bands?
That might have something to do with the bands, to be honest I'm not 100% sure. The only issue I had was having to give the bows a nudge every now and again to get the roof to fully stow, and that seemed to work for a while until the 5th bow motor quit totally. If you look for threads that talk about replacing the roof bands that might be of help in further diagnosis (I think the bands are pretty inexpensive and easy to replace).
Good Luck and thanks for sharing your experience. Glad the tutorial helped you save some big $$$'s and keep spreading the word.
Cheers
BB
Good Luck and thanks for sharing your experience. Glad the tutorial helped you save some big $$$'s and keep spreading the word.
Cheers
BB
Hey thanks for this DIY. It worked wonders on my roadster!!! I was wondering if you knew how to make the actual bows operate correctly... seems like mine dont flex enough. In other words I have to assist the bow in order for it to allow the top to sit properly in the storage compartment and have the cover close completely. Hope this makes sense.
07-04-2012, 11:35 AM
#47
Registered User
Did you end up doing this repair, and did it fix your problem? My 2005 Z is doing the exact same thing. It would stall sometimes going all the way down as yours did for quite some time, but just recently I have had it stall lifting up the angled back of the top like yours does at the beginning, so yeah thinking I have a 5th bow motor issue.
07-04-2012, 01:36 PM
#48
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: DC
Posts: 116
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Did you end up doing this repair, and did it fix your problem? My 2005 Z is doing the exact same thing. It would stall sometimes going all the way down as yours did for quite some time, but just recently I have had it stall lifting up the angled back of the top like yours does at the beginning, so yeah thinking I have a 5th bow motor issue.
08-16-2012, 05:49 AM
#49
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Canada
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
*** How To Repair 5th Bow Motor ***
The model featured is my 2004 Touring Roadster, Current mileage is about 123k and I have never cleaned this motor or replaced the brushes before, so this is what you can expect if you are doing this for the first time.
Ok, so I've been wanting to do a how to guide for a while and this is a doozie! yup, 5th Bow Motor Repair!! If your 5th bow is getting stuck or not retracting your soft top in the storage compartment, the is a high probability that the brushes in the 5th bow motor are worn out. My how to will show you how to replace these brushes... The brushes can be bought online and they are the same ones used in the tutorial for fixing a sticking window motor, in fact this is pretty much the same as that, only easier!
What you'll need before you start.
1) A couple of hours spare time
2) A right angled (90 degree) phillips head screwdriver (or really short screwdriver)
3) Pair of suitable brushes got mine from Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/MBS5-Stand-Up-.../dp/B001BHLX0W )
4) Small socket set (not 100% needed but useful)
5) Soldering Iron, Flux and Solder
6) Scissors
7) Egg Box and Double Sided Sticky Tape (just messing!)
8) Electrical Contact Cleaner and Rag
9) Fine sand paper (the wives nail file would do!)
10) A couple of band aids just in case!
The whole process took me a couple of hours with help from domrvt (cheers dude!)
Ok first you want to cram yourself inside your Zee (if you are over 6ft I feel for you!) Everything from this point is in picture format so .....
Once I got the motor back in the car I re-attached the electrical harness and press the button for the roof, and voila! it worked, then put it all back together, now my roof works flawlessly! Hope this How To was of help to those (like me) who were facing a $1000 plus repair job! this only cost me a couple of hours and about $10.
Cheers, feel free to re-post this on any other forums that you know of where people are having the same issue!!!
If you have any questions please message me. This is my first how to, so feedback is welcome.
BlueBadge
PS You will notice that I didn't re-lube the components as I didn't have any grease on hand, but I definitely recommend it! (i'll do mine later!)
The model featured is my 2004 Touring Roadster, Current mileage is about 123k and I have never cleaned this motor or replaced the brushes before, so this is what you can expect if you are doing this for the first time.
Ok, so I've been wanting to do a how to guide for a while and this is a doozie! yup, 5th Bow Motor Repair!! If your 5th bow is getting stuck or not retracting your soft top in the storage compartment, the is a high probability that the brushes in the 5th bow motor are worn out. My how to will show you how to replace these brushes... The brushes can be bought online and they are the same ones used in the tutorial for fixing a sticking window motor, in fact this is pretty much the same as that, only easier!
What you'll need before you start.
1) A couple of hours spare time
2) A right angled (90 degree) phillips head screwdriver (or really short screwdriver)
3) Pair of suitable brushes got mine from Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/MBS5-Stand-Up-.../dp/B001BHLX0W )
4) Small socket set (not 100% needed but useful)
5) Soldering Iron, Flux and Solder
6) Scissors
7) Egg Box and Double Sided Sticky Tape (just messing!)
8) Electrical Contact Cleaner and Rag
9) Fine sand paper (the wives nail file would do!)
10) A couple of band aids just in case!
The whole process took me a couple of hours with help from domrvt (cheers dude!)
Ok first you want to cram yourself inside your Zee (if you are over 6ft I feel for you!) Everything from this point is in picture format so .....
Once I got the motor back in the car I re-attached the electrical harness and press the button for the roof, and voila! it worked, then put it all back together, now my roof works flawlessly! Hope this How To was of help to those (like me) who were facing a $1000 plus repair job! this only cost me a couple of hours and about $10.
Cheers, feel free to re-post this on any other forums that you know of where people are having the same issue!!!
If you have any questions please message me. This is my first how to, so feedback is welcome.
BlueBadge
PS You will notice that I didn't re-lube the components as I didn't have any grease on hand, but I definitely recommend it! (i'll do mine later!)
any help would be appreciated. Thanks
Gus
08-16-2012, 12:19 PM
#50
New Member
Thread Starter
Dang!
Dang, you didn't need to quote the whole post!
anyway... in the second photo you will see the 3 White plastic trim holders that I was referring to in the first photo. I was pretty adamant I was going to remove the cover so I just used brute force and ignorance to get the cover off! eventually it popped up (it took a bit, as they are pretty well seated) the only advice I can give you on this is use even pressure from both sides... DO NOT pull up one side as you may crack the plastic trim. If you are using something for leverage I would make sure you are using a proper trim removal tool (or a wooden spatula wrapped in a towel to protect your paint and plastic) The cover will (or rather should if you did it right) come up at the front and not the back, as the back is taped down somehow. DO NOT completely remove it!Not sure if I helped any but good luck! and let us know how you get on!
Cheers
BB
08-23-2012, 05:40 PM
#52
Registered User
So they finally checked the 5th bow and sure enough the brushes were shot. they were willing to replace the motor for me for free, but can't find anything without the entire assembly which costs $1400. So, LOL they are using BlueBadges thread to 'fix' the motor that way and reinstall for free. Also the band issue is what causes the pause when it is stowing the top, which they are going to do the labor for free on that one too.
So bottomline, what you have it the 5th bow problem, I am just not confident enough to do that repair on my own, but if you can find a place that can find just the motor and fix it for $900 that will solve most of the problem. Fixing the bands is about $450 when you include the labor.
Obviously if I had to do it all over again I would have taken it to my buddies and had him help me refurbish that thing, it would have been worth the hassle for $1800!
08-25-2012, 09:55 AM
#54
Registered User
The bands are only $10/set and it takes less than an hour to install them if you throw away the Nissan TSB and carefully drill the rivets with the top still on the frame: https://my350z.com/forum/350z-roadst...-tutorial.html
10-20-2012, 11:29 AM
#56
Bluebadge is the man!
Thanks for the detailed instructions. I just finished my rebuild this afternoon. If you have a few hours to spend on this it's worth it. Be sure to change out the phillips head screws. I replaced mine with hex heads, as recommended by bluebadge. It will make the next time alot easier(hopefully thats quite some time from now). The tops closes very well now. The motor is alittle noisy right now, but i think that will go away once the brushes break in. The main thing is now my wife wont be afraid to put the top down.
10-20-2012, 08:25 PM
#57
New Member
Thread Starter
Awesome! this made my day...!
Well I finally buckled down and took it to a repair shop. Two Nissan Dealerships and the shop they referred me to didn't want to give me the time of day. Wouldn't call back, basically didn't want to mess with these top issues. So I took it to the third party place who has done all my other out of warranty repairs. I told the manager guy I was 99% sure it was the 5th bow motor, but by the time I dropped it off the roof didn't work at all. As the mechanic was watching what happened(he could get it to work if he manually helped it along) he was convinced one of the two side motors was stripped and out of sequence, so he replaced those to the tune of $1800 and when I went to pick it up, guess what did exactly what I brought it in for.
So they finally checked the 5th bow and sure enough the brushes were shot. they were willing to replace the motor for me for free, but can't find anything without the entire assembly which costs $1400. So, LOL they are using BlueBadges thread to 'fix' the motor that way and reinstall for free. Also the band issue is what causes the pause when it is stowing the top, which they are going to do the labor for free on that one too.
So bottomline, what you have it the 5th bow problem, I am just not confident enough to do that repair on my own, but if you can find a place that can find just the motor and fix it for $900 that will solve most of the problem. Fixing the bands is about $450 when you include the labor.
Obviously if I had to do it all over again I would have taken it to my buddies and had him help me refurbish that thing, it would have been worth the hassle for $1800!
So they finally checked the 5th bow and sure enough the brushes were shot. they were willing to replace the motor for me for free, but can't find anything without the entire assembly which costs $1400. So, LOL they are using BlueBadges thread to 'fix' the motor that way and reinstall for free. Also the band issue is what causes the pause when it is stowing the top, which they are going to do the labor for free on that one too.
So bottomline, what you have it the 5th bow problem, I am just not confident enough to do that repair on my own, but if you can find a place that can find just the motor and fix it for $900 that will solve most of the problem. Fixing the bands is about $450 when you include the labor.
Obviously if I had to do it all over again I would have taken it to my buddies and had him help me refurbish that thing, it would have been worth the hassle for $1800!
I love the fact that the dealers are starting to take the "bluebadge fix" seriously, (i'm digging that, I wonder if I google it, it will bring up this thread???) that's pretty cool
. Still beware wary though... many dealerships may still try and fleece you on the labor costs. This repair should really take no more than 3 hours. I understand that the dealers need to make some money, but not to the tune of $1800.Thanks Guys (and Gals)
BB
10-20-2012, 08:29 PM
#58
New Member
Thread Starter
Cheers for that too!
Thanks for the detailed instructions. I just finished my rebuild this afternoon. If you have a few hours to spend on this it's worth it. Be sure to change out the phillips head screws. I replaced mine with hex heads, as recommended by bluebadge. It will make the next time alot easier(hopefully thats quite some time from now). The tops closes very well now. The motor is alittle noisy right now, but i think that will go away once the brushes break in. The main thing is now my wife wont be afraid to put the top down.
The following users liked this post:
Chief F1 Fan (06-01-2017)
11-28-2012, 07:16 PM
#60
Registered User
Well I ended up buying a new 5th bow motor. The only thing that sucked (besides shelling out $700.00 for the new motor), it came with the metal tracks the top attaches too. I couldnt understand why the motor just couldnt be sold by itself. I'm sure it would knock the price down somewhat. I just changed out the 5th bow motor (with the conv. top off),the top went up and down great. With that problem fixed I went ahead with the DIY for replacing the conv. top. I'm going to try and get the old motor back together again evenutally so I can sell it, or break it, whichever comes first. hah Thanks everyone for the help. I love this site, I did the DIY on a new top replacement and worked like a charm. I saved thousands of dollars repairing the problem with the top going up and down AND putting on a completely new conv. top.
Last edited by mnDanger69; 11-28-2012 at 07:26 PM.
