My 05 roadster top did not work, I replaced the vacuum pump and module that had gotten wet when the rear window leaked. Chrysler then installed a new top for me but the top still would not work. What I found wrong with it was an easy fix. there is a micro switch where the center post goes down into the body in the middle of the top at the rear. After I relieved the pressure on the hydraulics on the top, I was able to raise the rear panel up to work on it. I found the water that had run down into that hole over a period of time, had turned the grease into a tacky mess which did not allow the arm to go all the way down to make contact on the micro switch. I just WD 40ed it several times to clean and also to lubricate it. It now works great, top goes up and down as it should.

 

Thanks ! Good find, maybe that will help someone ( like me ) some day.

 

The REAL lesson is:

the dealership never figured it out.

 

My first thought was how did they replace the top without it working? But I guess they did it manually (I'm surprised they knew how to raise and lower it manually). Did they even offer to fix it? Even for $?

 

Old Folks,

thanks for pointing that out! These rear bow latches are quite well made, but a lot of grime can prevent the small lever in the lock from being pulled enough by its small spring to trigger the micro switch.

The picture inserted below illustrates how it works. If the micro switch cannot give the signal to the controller that the rear bow latch is open, then the controller will not allow the rear bow to lift up yet.



The latch is fairly easy to remove through the trunk area, but removal is not normally needed for this fix. As you wrote, WD-40 will do the trick.

Klaus

Top Hydraulics | Rebuilt and Upgraded Convertible Top Cylinders, Pumps, Hydraulic Lines - Top Hydraulics, Inc

Part number references:
Rear bow latch 05142957AA aka A 193 750 0184
Tonneau cover latch 05166559AA aka A 193 750 0183
Folding top rear bow hydraulic cylinder 05142640AA (left side)
Folding top rear bow hydraulic cylinder 05170014AA (right side)
Main drive cylinder 05142639AA (left side)
Main drive cylinder 05170015AA (right side)
Tonneau cover lift cylinder 05142641AA
Hydraulic pump 05142638AA

 

Thanks Klaus for the heads up on the title, I am new to this site and currently am not able to navigate as well as I should, however, one response was they did not know how the dealership replaced the top without it working, I showed them how to manually lower it, there is another problem that they cannot fix and that is when I lower and raise the top, the top material comes off of the rear bow about half way. I cannot latch the front until I reattach the top where it has slipped out of the bow. I thought there might have been some clips on the old top to keep it in place but the dealership said no. I am still not sure what holds the top in place on the bow in the down position when it is slack. Any suggestions? Old Folks