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Made a new thread on this so other owners in the future with this problem can find a solution without having to scroll through the other post.
To recap what I added to another thread on this topic. After my battery was disconnected for a few days for an alternator replacement my sunroof needed to be reinitialized. When that was done it set the fully closed position as partially tilted upward. Multiple attempts at disconnecting the battery and reinitializing did not correct the problem. The service manual is very vague on how the sunroof operates and there was nothing about adjusting the sunroof more than just a few millimeters with screws.
This is where the car would position the sunroof as closed.
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I gave in and took it to Nissan. The dealership had never seen the problem before and contacted Nissan engineering for assistance. I was told there was no way to tell the sunroof controller where the correct closed position is. The solution they came up with was to drop the headliner, remove both the sunshade/sunroof motors, manually place the sunroof and shade into fully closed positions then put it all back together. Headliner removal is very labor-intensive and I was given a price of $2,000 for this repair attempt with no guarantee it would correct the problem. If that did not work they would have to replace the entire sunroof assembly. Either way, I would have to bring it back at a later date and drop it off for the repair.
After returning home I wondered how hard it would be to remove the motor and adjust the roof myself so I began hunting online for photos of the mechanism. The best photos I could find were of one for sale on eBay by a company called Danvi-llc in Michigan. They took fantastic detailed photos of an entire sunroof assembly including this one that showed both of the motors.
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Also in searching, I found lots of sunroof motors for other Nissan models and they had access ports for manually adjusting or closing the sunroof on them with a hex driver. However, the photos I found of the motor housings for 2015+ Murano’s did not have a visible access port in the photos.
But then I noticed this in one of the photos. This is on the sunshade motor from the same eBay seller as above
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Is that a manual adjustment access port under the sticker? I also noticed the stickers on both sides were oddly placed at an angle. Photos of other sunroofs for sale online also showed the same stickers located in the same place.
I had to check my own.
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Sure enough, under the serial number sticker on my sunroof motor was an access hole to manually adjust the sunroof! You can see the sticker residue around it in the photo.
I removed the sun visor and the A-pillar cover on the passenger side so the headliner could be pulled down a little for a tool to be inserted. I closed the shade and then disconnected the battery before inserting a hex driver and giving it a turn.
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The sunroof went down!
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Reconnected the battery and let the sunroof and shade fully open and close several times. Closes in the right spot now.
This is the tool I used. It’s a ¼” craftsman ratchet that holds screwdriver bits. The size that fits the access port is a 4mm hex. I believe it was in the loosen direction setting to close the sunroof. Bought it a couple of years ago to tighten a screw in a confined space.
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This raises the question of why does Nissan not know that adjustment exists? The sunroofs are obviously manufactured by a third-party company. The fact that the service manual available to both consumers and to dealership technicians has no mention of this access port leads me to believe that since it was covered with stickers by the sunroof manufacturer Nissan may not have even known the option was there when the manual was written.
I've been going to the same dealership for several years for one specific technician to work on my car. If he had known that adjustment was there he would have done it. He really didn't want to drop my headliner to fix this and I could tell he did not like giving me that $2,000 price.
Either way, the sunroof is now closed properly and since I already owned the tool it was free, just took a little bit of time searching photos online to find the solution.
To recap what I added to another thread on this topic. After my battery was disconnected for a few days for an alternator replacement my sunroof needed to be reinitialized. When that was done it set the fully closed position as partially tilted upward. Multiple attempts at disconnecting the battery and reinitializing did not correct the problem. The service manual is very vague on how the sunroof operates and there was nothing about adjusting the sunroof more than just a few millimeters with screws.
This is where the car would position the sunroof as closed.
I gave in and took it to Nissan. The dealership had never seen the problem before and contacted Nissan engineering for assistance. I was told there was no way to tell the sunroof controller where the correct closed position is. The solution they came up with was to drop the headliner, remove both the sunshade/sunroof motors, manually place the sunroof and shade into fully closed positions then put it all back together. Headliner removal is very labor-intensive and I was given a price of $2,000 for this repair attempt with no guarantee it would correct the problem. If that did not work they would have to replace the entire sunroof assembly. Either way, I would have to bring it back at a later date and drop it off for the repair.
After returning home I wondered how hard it would be to remove the motor and adjust the roof myself so I began hunting online for photos of the mechanism. The best photos I could find were of one for sale on eBay by a company called Danvi-llc in Michigan. They took fantastic detailed photos of an entire sunroof assembly including this one that showed both of the motors.
Also in searching, I found lots of sunroof motors for other Nissan models and they had access ports for manually adjusting or closing the sunroof on them with a hex driver. However, the photos I found of the motor housings for 2015+ Murano’s did not have a visible access port in the photos.
But then I noticed this in one of the photos. This is on the sunshade motor from the same eBay seller as above
Is that a manual adjustment access port under the sticker? I also noticed the stickers on both sides were oddly placed at an angle. Photos of other sunroofs for sale online also showed the same stickers located in the same place.
I had to check my own.
Sure enough, under the serial number sticker on my sunroof motor was an access hole to manually adjust the sunroof! You can see the sticker residue around it in the photo.
I removed the sun visor and the A-pillar cover on the passenger side so the headliner could be pulled down a little for a tool to be inserted. I closed the shade and then disconnected the battery before inserting a hex driver and giving it a turn.
The sunroof went down!
Reconnected the battery and let the sunroof and shade fully open and close several times. Closes in the right spot now.
This is the tool I used. It’s a ¼” craftsman ratchet that holds screwdriver bits. The size that fits the access port is a 4mm hex. I believe it was in the loosen direction setting to close the sunroof. Bought it a couple of years ago to tighten a screw in a confined space.
This raises the question of why does Nissan not know that adjustment exists? The sunroofs are obviously manufactured by a third-party company. The fact that the service manual available to both consumers and to dealership technicians has no mention of this access port leads me to believe that since it was covered with stickers by the sunroof manufacturer Nissan may not have even known the option was there when the manual was written.
I've been going to the same dealership for several years for one specific technician to work on my car. If he had known that adjustment was there he would have done it. He really didn't want to drop my headliner to fix this and I could tell he did not like giving me that $2,000 price.
Either way, the sunroof is now closed properly and since I already owned the tool it was free, just took a little bit of time searching photos online to find the solution.
