[henry.pelletier]

Soft top not working
When soft is closed I push the soft-top button forward and windows go down, the tonneau cover comes up, the soft top comes out about a quarter way and stops. It does not stop immediately it sort of stutters/pumps up, down, up, down quickly - and then stops. The button blinks when this happens. I can then pull the button and it goes back into place. I can manually move everything into place. When the soft top is connected to the front I pull the button and the tonneau cover opens, back of the soft top compresses but the front does nothing.

I have gotten all the cylinders rebuilt still nothing. I got a new pump. Nothing. Plenty of fluid. Fuses are fine. Battery is good. Roll bar works fine. The micro switch on the driver's side bow extension cylinder clicks when I manually put soft top up and down.

I can put the hard top on and lock it down with the button. When hard top or soft top is locked down is does not move. Also, shop guy said they didn't have tool to scan it.


No clue what to do at this point any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

 

[DORIAN]

Soft top not working
When soft is closed I push the soft-top button forward and windows go down, the tonneau cover comes up, the soft top comes out about a quarter way and stops. It does not stop immediately it sort of stutters/pumps up, down, up, down quickly - and then stops. The button blinks when this happens. I can then pull the button and it goes back into place. I can manually move everything into place. When the soft top is connected to the front I pull the button and the tonneau cover opens, back of the soft top compresses but the front does nothing.

I have gotten all the cylinders rebuilt still nothing. I got a new pump. Nothing. Plenty of fluid. Fuses are fine. Battery is good. Roll bar works fine. The micro switch on the driver's side bow extension cylinder clicks when I manually put soft top up and down.

I can put the hard top on and lock it down with the button. When hard top or soft top is locked down is does not move. Also, shop guy said they didn't have tool to scan it.


No clue what to do at this point any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Check all cylinder pressure lines that clip in, perhaps one set is reversed that could cause an issue.

 

[carltwo]

And is your battery in real good shape. Throw a charge even it's new.

 

[e-420]

And is your battery in real good shape. Throw a charge even it's new.

yes, I make a point to always have the car running when I operate the top. But beware of the hard top "10 second rule". If you don't push the top button within about 10 seconds of starting the car, the red light flashes, nothing happens!!! panic sets in...... then remember, hit the button within about 10 seconds! Does not apply to the soft top

 

[henry.pelletier]

yes, I make a point to always have the car running when I operate the top. But beware of the hard top "10 second rule". If you don't push the top button within about 10 seconds of starting the car, the red light flashes, nothing happens!!! panic sets in...... then remember, hit the button within about 10 seconds! Does not apply to the soft top

And is your battery in real good shape. Throw a charge even it's new.

Yes, I only try it when the car is running.

 

[henry.pelletier]

Check all cylinder pressure lines that clip in, perhaps one set is reversed that could cause an issue.

As far as I can tell all the lines are in the right place. Would the top open even open if they weren't?

 

[DORIAN]

As far as I can tell all the lines are in the right place. Would the top open even open if they weren't?

Depends on which cylinder has incorrect hook up. Check all numbers on lines.

 

[Ken S]

Perhaps also tell us how the problem started initially.
Did the problem start suddenly or did it evolve over time?
Was it this problem that inspired the replacement of the pump and cylinders or did this problem start after some of that work?

 

[Swany]

Soft top not working
When soft is closed I push the soft-top button forward and windows go down, the tonneau cover comes up, the soft top comes out about a quarter way and stops. It does not stop immediately it sort of stutters/pumps up, down, up, down quickly - and then stops. The button blinks when this happens. I can then pull the button and it goes back into place. I can manually move everything into place. When the soft top is connected to the front I pull the button and the tonneau cover opens, back of the soft top compresses but the front does nothing.

I have gotten all the cylinders rebuilt still nothing. I got a new pump. Nothing. Plenty of fluid. Fuses are fine. Battery is good. Roll bar works fine. The micro switch on the driver's side bow extension cylinder clicks when I manually put soft top up and down.

I can put the hard top on and lock it down with the button. When hard top or soft top is locked down is does not move. Also, shop guy said they didn't have tool to scan it.


No clue what to do at this point any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

The problems you're describing could be due to a side window limit switch not indicating the window is down. The top raising up and stopping when closing the top and the front locks not unlocking when lowering the top both have the window limit switches as a possible cause in the MB diagnostics table.
With your model year car there are limit switches in the doors and these switches should both be closed when the windows are down. The status of these switches can be checked at the top controller main connector and should read 0 ohms when the windows are closed. Since the window down switch is supposed to be grounded when the window is down the problem could be the switch itself(bad switch or adjustment) or an open wire to the switch(maybe door hinge area).
If you have a multimeter you can check the status of the door switches and all the limit switches related to the top position.
With the windows down, the ignition key off and for extra precaution battery disconnected; you'll need to unplug the main connector to the top controller and probe the wire harness side connector pins to measure if the switches are open or closed, don't probe the controller side connector just the unplugged wire harness side connector. See the pdf pages 10 and 11 for the window switch probe pin/socket. You just need to do a resistance measurement between the connector pins and ground. Check the window limit switches first and if they are okay you can check the remaining limit switches for the expected on/off state by referencing the table in the pdf. With the windows down you should measure near 0 ohms on the two windows pins.
You should also get an error code if one of the windows switches isn't closing correctly, which you can read with a simple tester.
R129 CEL Diagnostic Trouble Codes & Procedures (1990-1995) | Mercedes-Benz Forum (benzworld.org)

 

[henry.pelletier]

Perhaps also tell us how the problem started initially.
Did the problem start suddenly or did it evolve over time?
Was it this problem that inspired the replacement of the pump and cylinders or did this problem start after some of that work?

I bought the car with the soft top not functioning at all.

 

[henry.pelletier]

The problems you're describing could be due to a side window limit switch not indicating the window is down. The top raising up and stopping when closing the top and the front locks not unlocking when lowering the top both have the window limit switches as a possible cause in the MB diagnostics table.
With your model year car there are limit switches in the doors and these switches should both be closed when the windows are down. The status of these switches can be checked at the top controller main connector and should read 0 ohms when the windows are closed. Since the window down switch is supposed to be grounded when the window is down the problem could be the switch itself(bad switch or adjustment) or an open wire to the switch(maybe door hinge area).
If you have a multimeter you can check the status of the door switches and all the limit switches related to the top position.
With the windows down, the ignition key off and for extra precaution battery disconnected; you'll need to unplug the main connector to the top controller and probe the wire harness side connector pins to measure if the switches are open or closed, don't probe the controller side connector just the unplugged wire harness side connector. See the pdf pages 10 and 11 for the window switch probe pin/socket. You just need to do a resistance measurement between the connector pins and ground. Check the window limit switches first and if they are okay you can check the remaining limit switches for the expected on/off state by referencing the table in the pdf. With the windows down you should measure near 0 ohms on the two windows pins.
You should also get an error code if one of the windows switches isn't closing correctly, which you can read with a simple tester.
R129 CEL Diagnostic Trouble Codes & Procedures (1990-1995) | Mercedes-Benz Forum (benzworld.org)

I will look into this thanks.

 

[RKH]

You will need to use a proper MB specific scanner to do a scan.
If your shop/mechanic does not have such equipment, they are not MB specialists, and you may need to take it to another shop ?
Or, you can spend a few hundred dollars to get your own scanner

 

[henry.pelletier]

The problems you're describing could be due to a side window limit switch not indicating the window is down. The top raising up and stopping when closing the top and the front locks not unlocking when lowering the top both have the window limit switches as a possible cause in the MB diagnostics table.
With your model year car there are limit switches in the doors and these switches should both be closed when the windows are down. The status of these switches can be checked at the top controller main connector and should read 0 ohms when the windows are closed. Since the window down switch is supposed to be grounded when the window is down the problem could be the switch itself(bad switch or adjustment) or an open wire to the switch(maybe door hinge area).
If you have a multimeter you can check the status of the door switches and all the limit switches related to the top position.
With the windows down, the ignition key off and for extra precaution battery disconnected; you'll need to unplug the main connector to the top controller and probe the wire harness side connector pins to measure if the switches are open or closed, don't probe the controller side connector just the unplugged wire harness side connector. See the pdf pages 10 and 11 for the window switch probe pin/socket. You just need to do a resistance measurement between the connector pins and ground. Check the window limit switches first and if they are okay you can check the remaining limit switches for the expected on/off state by referencing the table in the pdf. With the windows down you should measure near 0 ohms on the two windows pins.
You should also get an error code if one of the windows switches isn't closing correctly, which you can read with a simple tester.
R129 CEL Diagnostic Trouble Codes & Procedures (1990-1995) | Mercedes-Benz Forum (benzworld.org)

Im unsure where the main connector to the top controller is. I understand the instructions for the link you tagged at the bottom but this seems different.

 

[Swany]

Im unsure where the main connector to the top controller is. I understand the instructions for the link you tagged at the bottom but this seems different.

Here are a couple of photos of the top controller, main connector and with connector unplugged to measure the status of the limit switches. These pictures are from my 2000 SL500 so the controller is a later revision than yours with 3 rows of sockets in the main connector; your main controller connector will have two rows of sockets.

Top controller located behind seat right side in lower compartment. Your earlier revision controller will have 3 connectors; two smaller connectors with one on each end and the long main connector on the side. The long main connector is where the limit switch pins/sockets are located.

To measure the limit switch on/off status in the connector sockets I had to remove the two mounting nuts so the controller can be rotated to unplug the main connector. Your earlier revision controller will have two rows of sockets instead of the three rows shown here. The meter has one lead connector to ground(green wire jumper) and you probe the sockets of the wire harness connector side(not the controller connector pins) to measure resistance to determine if the switch is opened or closed. As a precaution I disconnected the battery before checking the switches.

 

[silarrow]

Holy smoke.............I am living with this symptom in pass 2 years or maybe more . Too complecated for a guy who don't like electrical spider webs like this , Mine was start exact problem when bat was completed dead while 3 in months vacationing. Bur thanks to Swany I may have to bite this bullet and monkey around by apply your great info..