Cablerat

So my sunroof did something very odd today. You know when u open the roof, the black rail pops up, up front?

Well got home and tried to close the sunroof. Right at the point the sunroof touches the beginning of that black rail, it would re-open, as if it detected something in the way and opened for safety.

I tried closing it several times with the same result. If i pressed the black rail down, the roof would get closer to closing but once it touched the rail, it would reopen.

So i turned off the car and back on again. Closed the roof and no problem... It pushed the rail down as per normal and shut fine.....

WTF??? Anyone heard of or experienced this?

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

my sunroof on my MDX would not close from tilt function. my dealer cleaned, lubed, realigned the last two times i was there. so far my sunroof is behaving. yours...

this is a new one that i haven't read about yet. there might be something stuck in the tracks or something is going on with the front rail tripping off the open function to not allow full closure of the sunroof.

mine was similar to yours...the sunroof would eventually close. then you get paranoid the next time you try and use it that it won't close and it rains.

time for a trip to the dealer...of course the sunroof needs to misbehave. get it on video and then show it to the dealer if the sunroof is functioning fine when you take it to them.

Cablerat

Thanks for the response. This is the first time this has happened and nothing since. What was really odd that it just took me turning the car off and on and then the sunroof closed no problem.

Sounds like a system (digital) glitch vs a physical issue. Going to keep an eye on it for sure and definitely good idea on video taping the next time it happens.

Thanks

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

i did the same thing you did when mine didn't close initially. i got home, parked the car and then shut the engine off. hit the close button and it closed finally. after that i was paranoid until i was able to get it back to the dealer.

oddly i tried to open the sunroof fully, but it wouldn't open from the tilt function. it would close then open in tilt.

i've read of others having the issue on their MDXs and even the 4G TLs. my TL has never had issues, my bro's MDX hasn't had issues...it's annoying to say the least esp if the weather takes a turn

weather

*lol* Now you see an advantage of not driving the vehicle in the rain...you never have to worry about your sunroof.

Just being silly of course .....

Cablerat

Did it again today.... Same deal as the first time... This time i got it on video for the dealer..

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

let's see if the dealer will look at the video and try and fix it. of course it's always easier for them to fix if the car is actually acting up, but at least that can't look at you like you're nuts.

i took a video of my clutch pedal squeak. luckily it was squeaking when i took it to the dealer. still need to get it fixed though.

weather

1. I wished my dealer would be able to look at me and not make me feel like I am nuts....but I have too many quirks that I have resigned myself to the fact that regardless of how much help I get...I will always be seen as nuts

2. I took a video to my dealer once.....Turns out I had brought home videos by accident - Could be why they look at me weird now


Now to the serious part of my post: Cablerat, please give us an update because although it hasn't happened to mine yet, it is always nice to be able to at least give the techs a starting point to begin their diagnoses....like the weird "swooshing" sound that some have reported to be a plastic panel underneath. I am glad you were able to catch on video but I do feel its unfortunate that you are having some issues with your RDX.....I always like to see our Acura's trouble free as possible.

On a TOTALLY unrelated subject (and my apologies for being off topic) but its weird that Honda is releasing their Honda Accord with LED running lights but their 2013 RDX didn't come out with it, especially that the Acura is their premium brand. I would assume that the MDX will have it. I am sticking to my point that I think Honda/Acura missed the boat on the LED DRL and now it looks like they are playing catch up so I don't feel they have the same appeal as an Audi for example.

gbriank

Weather:
Acura has been known to have a few hiccups during the first few months of production on a new car. Just happens. I've instructed my friend to wait until December for his RDX purchase. As for LED's, there should be some aftermarket stuff soon. Probably didn't install them to save a buck.

weather

^^^ While I agree that waiting a few month is a good idea, I find that most problems are never rectified unless it is a safety issue (like the Ford Escape and fire problem). I have a 2012 TL and the sunroof problem that was present in the 2009 models is still there in all its glory. There are TSB issued but they never solved the problem at the source, rather, they want the owners to take their cars to the dealership to have fixed which is annoying if you ask me. If you are aware of a problem, you issue a TSB for the vehicles that left the assembly line and could not be fixed, but you better solve the problem on outgoing vehicles from that point onward.

As far as aftermarket LED...I will never do such a thing! I see these cheap car like Pontiac Sunfire with after market "angel eyes", LEDs or "blue headlights" trying to pretend they have HID and its just so tacky. Some aftermarket things are OK but 99% of the time, I think its just tacky in my eyes. Then again, I like my vehicle stock (or OEM equipment only) and very conservative in general....

Cheers

Cablerat

Will do weather...

Im waiting for my remote starter to come in, which should be in sometime in august. Im gonna try and get them to do everything at once...

Brake squeak
Sunroof
Install remote starter
Regular maintenance (maintenance minder)

Will keep you posted...

matt7869

Now I am having the same issue!! Any fix??

matt7869

Forgot to say, I have a 2013 rdx...

jpargo

Anyone know what the dealer cost and installation charges are for the remote starter? I just took deliver of an RDX All-Wheel drive last week and am thinking about one. Thanks...

nyse_19

I just started having the “sunroof” issue about 3 weeks ago. It worked fine from April 2012 through end of April 2013. Now, when I have the sunroof open and close it, just like what was posted, as soon as it hits the “black bar”, it stops and re-opens.

I’ve turned car off many times and tried, and the issue continues. It will never close on its own when all the way open.

The only solution I’ve found is to hold the black bar down with your hand. Once the sunroof is over ½ way closed, get your hand out of the way quick and then it continues closing. Not a “fun” way to close your sunroof, but it’s working for now. Will mention it to the dealer next time I’m there…I’ve been there for so many little things like this, this is getting a little old.

strato10

"Sunroof not closing" Seems to be a common problem on the 2013 RDX. My dealer tells me "at least four RDX owners at this one dealer experiencing the same issue. Has been six weeks now and no fix from Acura. Dealer telling me "tech support" working on it but nothing yet.

Davecv67

Leased a 2013 Monday....Moonroof broken on Wednesday...they said Acura told them to replace the black bar & a motor. I'm not a mechanic but I'm not buying that fix....first of all the black bar moves freely with no resistance and a motor really has 2 states....on & off. My thoughts are it's the sensor needs adjusting or is just bad, kind of like a garage door closing; you can adjust the downforce sensitivity when it encounters resistance.

matt7869

I had the same problem in March. Brought it to the dealer and the moonroof very clearly had the wrong automotive-type grease in it (black in color) that prevented the roof from closing when it hit the bar. The dealer cleaned out this grease and replaced it with a white grease. Since that, I have not had the problem at all and use the moonroof everyday... He was surprised that the wrong grease was in there and suspects that it was incorrectly used when either manufactured or getting the initial service...

Cablerat

Hi all,

Sorry its been some time since i checked the site. So i went to the dealer a couple of times and showed them the video i had of the sunroof problem. While they acknowledged the video, they said they cant do anything unless the mechanic can replicate the issue.

That being said, it of course never did it at the dealer..now however about a week ago, 95 percent of the time it wont close. The only way to close it is to hold the black bar down until its almost closed..

Ive been really busy lately but intend to see acura about it now that it constantly happens.

As for the grease issue, they put new grease the last time i complained but no improvement.

Pain in the ass.....

strato10

So it has been almost five months since I reported to my Acura dealer that my sunroof would hit the wind deflector and stop closing.

I was told that a significant other number of RDX owners have the same problem, and the engineers at Acura have yet to find the root cause and develop a fix. I am not an automotive expert, but I would have thought the engineers at Acura are a smarter bunch than that. I suspect that they know what the problem is and for whatever cost reason, they don't want to hurry up with an explanation of the issue and a fix.

I would suggest that all RDX owners with the same problem start an e-mail and calling campaign to Acura to light a fire under their resolution activities.

I did get them to send me an e-mail acknowledging that the issue and that is was not only my RDX.

strato10

It has been six months now since I initially reported the sunroof not closing issue to my Acura dealer. My dealer has not provided me with an update recently. Has anyone on this thread received any info or had the problem fixed by their Acura dealer ?

techman707

You're lucky. I have a 2014 RDX and NEVER use the sunroof. One day I looked out into my driveway and saw the sunroof "slightly open and tilted up in the front". Knowing I NEVER touched the switch or used it and I believe I would have noticed if it had been open when I parked the car, I closed it. While I didn't have the problem described (not closing all the way), I can only wonder if I had not spotted that it was open, my car would have been flooded since it rained hard a couple of hours after I noticed and closed it.

Cablerat

So i finally took the car back now that the sunroof was ALWAYS hitting the wind deflector and bouncing open again. They said they did an adjustment to sunroof track alignment and now it works fine. Mind you it's winter now and I've only tried it a handful of times, but problem seems to be gone.

weather

^^ Thanks for the update and glad to see things are back to normal.

strato10

After continuously badgering Honda Canada about my occasionally inoperative sunroof, then threatening to take them to arbitration they finally fixed my sunroof not closing issue. It only took 8 months.

The fix was major surgery. They kept the care for three days, replaced the whole sunroof mechanism and made changes to the software/firmware.

That was December. Since it has been a very cold winter I have not had the opportunity to use the sunroof much, but since the issue happened almost all of the time when the car was stopped, I think it is fixed.

My conclusion was that it must have been the software since it only did not close when the car was stopped. It closed all of the time if the car was moving forward, which led me to believe it was not a mechanical issue.

My Acura dealer said they were issuing a service bulletin since I was not the only RDX owner experiencing this issue.

nyse_19

Interesting. I had this issue last summer/fall, but haven't opened my sunroof since then. I'll be mentioning it to the dealer when I go in for service soon. Thanks for sharing. I'll post what my dealer says.

nasskash

My 2013 RDX does the same thing. I took it to the dealer, they couldn't fix the problem. they wanted to changed the motor. Acura called the dealer to ask the reason to change the motor since still under warranty, and they told the dealer its a design problem and they are working on finding the solution!

strato10

Well the good news is Honda has a solution, and it's NOT the motor. In my case, they replaced the whole sunroof including the mechanism and a software patch. As I mentioned in my last post, it was major surgery, but I think if they did nothing else but tweak the firmware that monitors and controls the anti-pinch circuitry, it would have been fixed a lot sooner.

This is one problem that fits into the category of "bug the hell out of Acura/Honda and they will finally fix the problem"

Good luck !

prestont

Hi All - I'm in the same boat as most here with a 2013 RDX with a sunroof issue. The dealer already replaced the rails, and it temporarily fixed the issue. However, now experiencing the issue again where the sunroof hits the wind deflector and retracts. Service rep worked with corporate, and let me know that others have reported similar issue.

Scheduled to drop off on 6/15 - and will let folks know how it goes. Wish me luck!

Int3gr1ty

I've had my car for 2 years and today noticed this problem for the first time. For me the situation happened when I attempted to close the sunroof after passenger opened their door. Car was still running and I was closing up the windows when the passenger got out. Sunroof was able to close after holding down the air deflector. Hope this doesn't become a recurring problem.

ARascal

Makes me wonder..... I just gave up looking for a slightly used 2013 and bought a new 2015. While in the search, I often wondered why some one would sell a new (2013) RDX vehicle with low miles? I think that I now know....


These cars appear to be real "buggy" and the factory does not appear to give a hoot in hell to fix the problems. If I get any of this similar shit from mine, it will be on the dealers lot. I will take the financial hit rather that put up with this B.S. It almost feels like I'm reading a Chrysler forum at times.


As I had a 99 RX 300 for 15 years with comparatively no problems. I was also looking at 2013 used RX 350 vehicles before I made my decision to buy a RDX. If you could find one (RX 350) for sale it always had over 15K miles and was a short off lease vehicle or a dealer service loaner. It did not seem that people were getting rid of their RX's.


I closed on my RDX last week and loved the way it handles and the 6 +/- sec at the stop light. But..... you guys have me worried that the quality is not in the same league as Lexus. Time will tell....

llamc

I found this on another thread, but haven't tried it yet. I'm having the same issue.

Moonroof motor calibration



NOTE: The moonroof calibration must be performed when any of the following events have occurred.
The moonroof is manually moved with the battery dead or disconnected.
The moonroof motor is replaced with a new one.
Any component related to the moonroof replaced.
- Wind deflector
- Moonroof glass
- Moonroof seal
- Moonroof glass bracket
- Moonroof cables, etc.
To calibrate the moonroof, perform the following steps

Turn the ignition switch ON (II).
Open the moonroof to full open position and release the open button.
Pull and hold the moonroof OPEN switch until the moonroof glass moves slightly back to its mechanical stop and then forward again slightly.
New Motor
Other than new motor: This will take about 13 seconds.
Release the OPEN switch.
Within 5 seconds, pull and hold the moonroof OPEN switch again.
In about 3 seconds the moonroof glass will begin to slide closed.
Continue to hold the open button until the glass moves to closed position, tilts up, and returns to the closed position again.
Test the moonroof auto operation.

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

Another moon roof issue: mine was slightly elevated when closed on the driver side only. Dealer made some adjustments and fixed it, looks perfect now.

matt7869

**NOTE- finally heard from Acura customer service- A service bulletin was issued the end of November for the moonroof issue.

Brought my car in and had it repaired. Will assume it is fixed but will know better once the weather warms up!

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

Can someone post that TSB please? Thanks

electricview

Bump. Just started experiencing this same problem. 2013 rdx was sold to original owner Dec 2012. I'm second owner.

Is there a tsb? What's the fix? Major surgery???

electricview

I feel this might become a problem for more and more 13-14 rdx owners so I'm posting a little personal observation update.


for me this problem was prominent on HOT days when the car was sitting in the sun.. This seems to go along with previous comments that it wouldn't ever 'not close' when the car was moving. I feel maybe this Is because when the car is moving there is air blowing past it cooling down whatever is hot.. I think something might be getting hot and warping.


Acura has just put a 'fix' in my car today (haven't had it long enough to test). They told me they just replaced the tracks. I don't feel that what they did was majory surgery (they called me at 8:20 am, so they were only open for 20 minutes, so cant have been that hard and they didn't have the part yesterday they had to order it yesterday). I suspect this will not permanently fix the issue from others stories I've read here..


But anyways best way to tell if your car might have the problem in my opinion is to let it sit DIRECTLY in the sun for about 30-40 minutes parked (were talking a hot summer sun here, like 80+ degrees if you can, 70 might work too if its left longer) and then try to close it. I even left mine in the sun when it was in flip up mode.. Came out, opened it all the way tried to closed it, BAM bounced back off the wind bar thingy.. so it doesn't necessarily have to be open fully while its sitting in the sun either. (I had my visor mostly slid closed while it was propped open to keep it shady in side the care while letting hot air vent out)


Now I could be totally wrong about my assumption here but I figure ANY info is better than no info, and since my 13' is still under factory warranty, I'm sure a lot of other peoples are too, and I'd rather see them all get their car fixed for free before its too late..


Now if I could just get that light engine flutter sound at 1900rpms fixed I might love this car again.