I thought I remembered there being some discrepancies between metal and glass sunroof cars, and an interesting problem forced me to remove my glass sunroof. So, I thought I would document how I went about it in case it could help somebody.

There are 3pieces of plastic trim pieces preventing you from removing your sunroof.

First you have to remove the center piece. See if you can free it's tabs from the side trim, and gently pry it straight down.
It's held on by plastic ball clips about 1/5 of the way inward from either end.

Once you get the center piece off, you need to remove the two side pieces. These are held in by two metal clips.
The best way to do this will be to slide the side trim towards the back of the car. You are not trying to get the clips out of the roof, you're trying to slide the trim piece off of the clips.
They're held on with glue or foam rubber that should be pretty well disintegrated. Jiggle and curse a lot, seems to help.



Once you get the plastics off there are 4 bolts holding the sunroof panel to the sliding frame, you're pretty much home free.

Here's a picture of the sliding frame with no sunroof panel.




One of the plastic bump stops had broken it's rivets and come loose from my sunroof panel. I couldn't figure out why my sunroof wouldn't totally close until the bump stop fell in my lap(it was caught up in the tracks somehow).

So, I drilled out part of one rivet, and riveted it back in place(4mm rivets, the shallower:the better). Be very careful not to crack your glass with a rivet or errant drill tip(I came this.close to breaking mine)


Reassembly:
Clean out the roof valley and fix your weather stripping(it will never be easier than right now)
Bolt the panel back on(don't forget the washers for the front bolts)
Attach plastics(I attached the middle first, but you can go any way at this point)
Enjoy a quite, clean sunroof with a view.

Hope this helps,
Barban

 

great write-up. do you if theres one for the metal sunroof. mines is broken...

 

Good writeup!

 

I wasted literally a year on and off trying to remove the side trim by trying to slide them back. There is a c-clip that is attached to the front of the trim (where it curves). This clip serves as the fastener that pops into the frame. Just take a panel removal tool and pry it down to remove. If you slide it backwards, you are essentially pulling the c-clip off of the trim. You run a big risk of breaking the trim attachment point or breaking the clip itself. Pop down, not back.

They middle fastener consists of a locating pin with another fastening pin right next to it (not a c-clip like the front). Simply use your panel tool to pry this down and pop off too. The middle attachment point does not slide nor is there anyway for it to do so. Sliding it backwards will break it.

I recommend squirting a little bit of silicone lubricant on the fasteners first and wiggle the trim piece to loosen it up before prying. Pop the center first, then the front. If possible, pop the roof open first a little bit to give yourself some room. In my case my window came off the rail so I had to remove while closed making it more difficult, still possible, but less room.
If done correctly, it takes like 10 seconds, no cursing required. Depending on the state of your fasteners and if they've been removed before, you may simply be able to pry off with your hands. However, this stuff is old and has been baking for some time now. I recommend a panel tool regardless.
Thanks and good luck.

 

Wow man. Sorry my guide was mistaken, but glad you figured it out. Not sure what I was up to, if that's the case.