Car Tech forum: STUCK SUNROOF

My husband drove our '96 Jeep Grand Cherokee into the carport to do some engine work. He disconnected the battery. When he needed to move the carbefore doing any work on it, he reconnected the battery but it now will not start. All of the instrument panel is out, the diagnostic code scanner will not work. The tech at the code scanner company told us that it will not work if the 'check enging light' is on . With no instrument panel lights we don't have a way to know if that is the case.
Husband has checked all of the fuses and connectors with no results.
My husband is an expert 'connector person' and usually can solve any electrical problem. This has him stumped.
Any ideas on how to get this engine to start ?

It turned out to be a defective diode. We ordered one for $17 and my husband installed it. That fixed the problem and now the sun roof works great.

I changed the bcm ( body control module). This controls the anti-theft system, instrument panel, and dcl. Now everything is working fine.

Good luck!

Hi all...I have a 96 Grand Cherokee and it has the same dash light problem that just flared up about a week ago. Everything works fine.. but no dash lights. I have been told to suspect the Headlight/dimmer control switch pod needs changed. Even tho the odometer light changes as you raise the dimmer control. I will find out tomorrow. Just another aggravation this vehicle has gave me since we bought it

You might first try wiping the track good to see if something has gotten onto the track to keep the sunroof from closing. You didn't indicate if the roof will work up to the point where it will go no further but that is what it sounds like to me. If that is the case then your problem is not the one that we had. The sunroof does have limit switches which act as stops for the sunroof. I would get someone to help me if I were you and one work the switch while the other one GENTLY tries to get the sunroof to close. We had a defective diode in the sunroof motor. That entailed removing the molded headliner to gain access to the motor. Then you have to take a voltmeter to the motor to try to find the problem. I assume that your husband is in the military. Does his military unit have a support group for the wives. There might be a person in it that could help you. Any automotive shop is going to charge you a hefty fee to tackle the proble.

Regards, Bettye

How remote is it where you live that there is a Jeep dealer you can go to ?? The headliner is a molded one piece unit. In order to get it down the trim around the door windows has to be taken down. The sunroof motor is about midway back in the roof of the car. My husband was able to get the unit closed by doing some 'bypass' with an electrical jumper lead. Then he checked out the components and found the defective diode. Jeep dealer wanted $200 + for it but husband ordered it from an electrical supply he deals with for $17. then soldered it in place. He has a vast experience of some 50 years of this type of work. Ask around if there are any electric shops in your area that do automotive elec repair. You might get it done cheaper than a dealer.

Probably too late for you, but I just "fixed" the stuck sunroof on my '97 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Like you, I didn't want to spend anything and didn't care if it worked, I only wanted it closed. By taking the motor off, I was able to easily push the sunroof closed, then secured the motor back in place and it keeps the sunroof locked, closed. I tested the seal by running water over it, and all is good.

Like a previous poster stated, the motor is 1/2 way back, in the middle of the ceiling, easily noticeable because of the bulge. The padded ceiling cover has to be removed, which isn't too difficult, just remove the seat belts, visors, etc., that you can see are helping hold the cover in place. Problem that you may encounter is for an older auto, the cloth cover may be falling off the padding and can be made worse by you touching it. On the other hand, if it's already falling, this gives you an opp to fix it.

Hope this helps others w/ the same problem!

Can anyone help me solve why there is no power going to my sun roof switch? I check all the fuses and they all work. I removed the unit where the sunroof switch is located and checked with a volt meter the wiring that goes to the sunroof switch and there is no power going to it. Is there a way to fix this as my sunroof won't close