ludovici Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 Well, here I am after a fruitless morning of searching and driving. Here's what I know:The steel pipe used to guide and protect the cable is not standard, everyone who looked at it this morning, from plumbers to dealership techs, seem to agree that it 'might' be metric, maybe 7mm. I have contacted every auto parts shop and plumber's supply shop in my area to no avail, and dealerships have been even less helpful than the former listed.I'm going to dig in the trash for the tubing remnants I tossed yesterday, all I can think of for the moment is to use the two end pieces that have the flares, provided I didn't complete goob them up, and have a friend weld them onto a piece of 5/16" brake line. I can't justify spending $120 on a RX-7 assembly, and my guess is any Reatta sitting in a yard will have suffered the same effects with the cables that mine has.More later."I have not failed. I have merely found 10,000 ways in which it will not work." - Thomas Edison Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 Depending on the junk yard, you can probably buy the cable that you need for a few $$, the pick and pull yards let you remove the part and the check out guy probably doesn't know or care what it is from. Why do you start a new post instead of adding to the earlier one? That is like making a new file folder for your electric bill every month....keep all the related posts together, it makes finding information easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 Take a look at this website: Eagle Stainless Steel Tubing they seem to have most any size tubing you could want and they will cut to any length you like according to the website. I hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludovici Posted June 27, 2007 Author Share Posted June 27, 2007 TDman, thanks for the lead. I contacted them and of course they need the exact specs of the original tubing. I'll track down a caliper and do the measurements to figure it out. I contacted GM directly, and they want $50 to give me that information!!!Good lead on the cable as well Barney, I'll make some calls in a bit to see what I can track down. Does anyone know what other vehicles besides the RX-7 used the same mechanism?Thanks again all, I'm back to the races... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludovici Posted June 29, 2007 Author Share Posted June 29, 2007 All the updates fit to print... :-DMy research has uncovered the sunroof is OEM, manufactured by Webasto Corp out of MI, and used in the Riviera, Trofeo, Toronado and Reatta, as well as the RX-7 and other vehicles. They are still around and continue to supply sunroof assemblies for OEM and aftermarket applications. It's the Starlight 5 model. According to a friend assisting me in the search, GM issued a TSB on the sunroof in '94, and provided an 800 # to Webasto tech support. That number is still good and a call has been placed. Of course, this is all still informational, I haven't as yet landed replacement tubing, but I endeavor to persevere.I spoke to a couple of Webasto authorized resellers yesterday, one in my area (MD) and one in CA, and both said they might be able to assist. We'll see, I'm hopeful.Webasto is a German company, which lends greater credence to the belief that this is metric tubing. Maybe a stretch...I'll keep you posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MauiWowee Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 Great job on the research. It should prove to be invaluable. Personally, I would love to have a sunroof, but being vertically gifted, I can't give up the headroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludovici Posted June 29, 2007 Author Share Posted June 29, 2007 I must give credit where credit is due, my good friend Derek landed that bit about Webasto, which will probably be the fact that breaks this whole conspiracy wide open... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincent Vega Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 Great job. Do you think Derek can help me find the spare keys my daughter lost? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CL_Reatta Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 Would it be possible to find an old wore out assembly in a junk yard for cheap and just take the needed parts off of it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CL_Reatta Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 Any luck on finding that copper tubing yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney Eaton Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 Webasto may have made sunroof for the Riviera, Trofeo, Toronado, Elderado, and probably lots of other cars, but that design slid straight back under the roof. The Reatta's roof was too short for that design so it used the sunroof that pops up then back.I have a letter from Webasto, Japan that states that only three part number are different between the Reatta and Mazda RX-7... armed with the letter and part numbers, I went to a Mazda dealers parts department, and we could not find the numbers they discribed. However we believe that (1) the Mazda used a different switch than the Reatta and until we uncover the facts, we believe Webasto furnished the assembly with the steel painted top panel, this reduced the requirement to have the painted panels as seperate parts and the assembly line did not need to install them on the sunroof...... however, the painted panel was different on the two cars... one was flatter than the other, so you must use only a Reatta painted panel if you install a sunroof from a Mazda RX-7.Webasto can probably supply you with replacement parts, but there are lots of RX-7 in junk yards and the parts from them are cheap...I believe that every RX-7 imported had a sunroof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludovici Posted July 5, 2007 Author Share Posted July 5, 2007 Here's the latest for all you sunroof saga fans (you kn ow who you are...) I have turned over every stone I could possibly think of, and a few completely unrelated, and, to no avail. Heavy sigh...I never received a return call from Webasto, and I just started calling all the numbers they have listed on their website, minus the European list, I'm not THAT dedicated, and wouldn't you know, EVERY number I dialed went directly to one voicemail or another. I eventually spoke with only ONE person, down in Kentucky, and he was the security guard!!! Now I wonder if Webasto actually exists...So, there I was, July 4th morn, Independence Day, walking with my lovely bride-to-be and our kickin' dog Hunter, and we come across a mini frig someone has discarded about a 1/4 mile from the condo, door side down, and as I casually pass it I note the tubing connected to the compressor looks strangely like what I've been searching for!!Anita, ever faithful to the Reatta cause, immediately recommends I go home and grab the pipe cutter, so off I go.I crimped the tubing at the compressor and at the entry into the frid so as to protect the ozone layer (or more accurately, my fingers), and cut out a large section of tubing, and when we got back to the condo I headed to the car to grab the cable...aaaaaaaaaaaaaand......IT FITS!!!! OMG, it's the right ID, OD, and wall thickness, and plenty rigid, so all I need to do is cut to length, flare the ends and check the bends to see if they'll work (I'm pretty sure they will). Gotta pick up a rivet tool to replace the rivets I drilled out to remove the cable and tubing, no big deal there.Ultimately I think this is the fix. Major thunderstorms moving in today, so I probably won't go near it until the weekend, though I'm chomping at the bit to see how well this will work. I'm cautiously optimistic.I'll continue to post as I go...WOOHOO!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 Did you get the name and model number of the frig in case someone else here has the same problem? I'm glad to see you are making progress in getting the sunroof fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ludovici Posted July 10, 2007 Author Share Posted July 10, 2007 So here's the latest....IT'S ALIVE!!!!!Amazingly, I screwed up my courage on Sunday and in the blistering heat again dropped the sunroof mechanism and lo, and behold, installed my new found refrigerator tubing. The tubing is a tad bit more pliable than the original, but only just so, enough that it allowed me to bend it without too much issue. Once the cable and tubing were in I simply adjusted the rails to the full entended position and installed the motor.I reinstalled it without incident and it works like a charm.Sadly, I was never able to speak with anyone at Webasto about it, no return calls or emails.Now, does anyone know where I can get a replacement rubber seal for the sunroof panel? :-DThanks for everyone's assistance on this one, what a ride!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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