Howto: Mondeo manual moonroof crank

[rouar]

We all know the Contour's plastic sunroof gear likes to disintegrate. I decided to solve this permanently by replacing the motor with a hand-crank from a '96 Mondeo.

Parts:
Moonroof Housing
Crank, with included Torx screw

Gently pry the dome light out of its housing with a flathead screwdriver or similar tool.

http://filedata/fetch?id=1825424&d=1599408164

Remove the two screws behind the dome light.



Slide the housing toward the sunroof to remove it.
Then disconnect the moonroof switch harness.





Disconnect the red harness from the moonroof motor.

 

[rouar]

Note - The clips on the '96 Mondeo housing that I purchased were much stronger than the clips on the existing housing (from a '98 SVT). They made it very difficult to install the housing, so I swapped the clips.





Install the new housing by sliding it on and then screwing in the two screws behind the dome light.
**NOTE Do not tighten the screws. Leave them very loose. The Contour/Mondeo housings can break very easily due to changes in temperature.



Insert the handle facing down, to align it with the housing. Then open it to screw it in.



Connect the dome light back into the housing, and you're done.

Bear in mind the wiring for the moonroof is still live. I just tucked it away (for now), but suggest you investigate better alternatives, like taping it.

Overall thoughts: I have not decided if I want to keep the handcrank or not. However, this is a very foolproof method of bypassing the problematic moonroof motor.

edit 9/6/20: Still have it installed and it works fine!

 

[2000SVT449]

Hey that's kinda what I've ben considering, is something like that! Where can a person get one?

 

[SVTalex]

wow that brings me back in the days with my XR4ti with the crank open sunroof, I never figured someboby will downgrade from a power to crank open sunroof

 

[Dyoel182]

Oh heck yeah. Just like the ford I drove down south. And I know what you mean about the housings breaking easily. When I took mine off to check a bulb I found the two screw parts shattered and one of the clip holders broken off. I epoxied it back on so I could slide the clips back on along with pulling the moonroof switch plug so none of my friends try to play with it.

 

[CSVT1214]

Very cool Matt! Awesome work.

I love it and hate it at the same time. :laugh: I'm a big fan of power everything and I haven't had a single gear fail yet. If it ever fails, maybe I'll give it a shot. I'll have to convince myself to "decontent" the power sunroof. :crazy:

 

[blu_fuz]

Oh , that is awesome - thanks for taking the chance to try this mod out .


So your sunroof is an "up only" now and can't slide into the roof anymore, correct?

 

[hotdimmes]

I have a hand crank moonroof on my XR. I feel like the handle is going to snap every time I turn it!

 

[CSVT1214]

So your sunroof is an "up only" now and can't slide into the roof anymore, correct?

I highly doubt it. Just crank the other way. Nothing has changed in the movement of the sunroof, just how it moves (power or hand crank).

If you ever look at how the sunroof moves, to tilt up, the gear just keeps rotating past the position of closed. The only reason it stops in the close position going either way is because the motor feels the stronger resistance when it gets to that point and stops movement until you click the switch again.

 

[hotdimmes]

I highly doubt it. Just crank the other way. Nothing has changed in the movement of the sunroof, just how it moves (power or hand crank).

If you ever look at how the sunroof moves, to tilt up, the gear just keeps rotating past the position of closed. The only reason it stops in the close position going either way is because the motor feels the stronger resistance when it gets to that point and stops movement until you click the switch again.

yup, that's exactly how mine works.

 

[Dyoel182]

Any idea where to find the pieces needed to try this? You didnt mention pulling the motor off but I assume that the handle attaches to the gearing where the motor did?

 

[rouar]

oh snap, you're right, I never mentioned removing the motor. The motor is held on by three larger Torx screws (not sure what size). Once they are off, it gently slides off the gear.

I bought the pieces from ebay.co.uk. You have to check to see if the seller is willing to ship internationally.

There is a bit of resistance between closed, tilt, and open positions, so you can feel when it is correctly shut. The moonroof can open fully and tilt.

 

[todras]

Pretty cool. How long does it take to fully open it? I don't even know if I even really have mine fully open very much at all. Mostly back a few inches or tilted up.

 

[rouar]

depends on how fast you can spin the handle.. :laugh:
It tilts up with just one full swing. Not sure about opening fully. Requires force, a bit more than a manually operated window, but nothing impossible.

I think I'm bringing the SVT to SZ. If I do, anyone is free to check it out in person.

 

[Dyoel182]

Pretty cool. How long does it take to fully open it?

The Focus I drove with a crank roof took 5-6 revolutions to fully open if I'm remembering correctly. It also had a weird hidden key lock to keep the keys in the ignition.

 

[rollinstylee]

It also had a weird hidden key lock to keep the keys in the ignition.

Was it a button under the column? Aerostars have that (yes, I know you wanted to know that) and no one but owners ever find it.

 

[Dyoel182]

Yeah it was a button under the column that looked like a screw hole. We found it by accident and then spent the rest of the trip telling other folks to look for it.

 

[todras]

depends on how fast you can spin the handle.. :laugh:
It tilts up with just one full swing. Not sure about opening fully. Requires force, a bit more than a manually operated window, but nothing impossible.

I think I'm bringing the SVT to SZ. If I do, anyone is free to check it out in person.

Can we check out your crank?

 

[hotdimmes]

Can we check out your crank?

woah aren't you going to buy him dinner first?

 

[SONICR]

Ah, my moonroof is messed up. I may have to mod mine into a manual like this!