BMW 5 Series Stuck Sunblind: Common Causes & Solutions

Hey there! I have some experience working on cars and had a similar issue with my 2002 BMW 7 series (also own a 3 series). The sunblind motor died on me last summer, totally frustrating when it gets stuck! Took it to my regular workshop and they confirmed the sunblind motor was shot. Parts and labor came to about 330 Euro, which seems to be the standard rate for this repair. They had it fixed in about 2 hours. What's the current mileage on your 5 series? Also, does it make any noise when you try to operate it? These details would help me understand if you're dealing with the same problem I had. Just a heads up, with these older BMWs, it's usually better to replace the entire motor unit rather than trying to repair individual components. Let me know those details and I'll try to offer more specific advice!

Thanks for sharing your experience! My 5 series has 8794 KM and just had its latest service. When I try to operate the sunblind, there's actually no noise at all, just complete silence and no movement. That's what made me think it might be the motor. Good to know about replacing the entire unit rather than individual parts. Seems like your repair experience was pretty straightforward, which is encouraging. Did you get any warning signs before your motor completely failed?

Hey again! Thanks for those details about your 5 series. Actually, my experience was very similar, absolutely no noise when trying to operate the sunblind, just like yours. Looking back, I wish I'd paid attention to the early warning signs, but yes, I did get them! About a month before it completely died, my sunblind started moving slower than usual, and sometimes it would hesitate before responding to the switch. I just ignored it (classic mistake, right?) thinking it wasn't a big deal. Then one morning, complete silence, exactly like what you're describing. Since you mentioned your car just had its latest service, it might be worth checking if this was flagged during the inspection. In my case, I later found out that these motors typically start showing signs of wear around 80-100K KM, but they can fail earlier depending on how frequently they're used. One quick tip from my experience, while you're getting it fixed, have them check the tracks and guides too. When they replaced my motor, they noticed some debris in the tracks that could have contributed to the wear. Might save you from future headaches! Would you mind keeping me posted on what you find out? Always interesting to compare notes on these repairs!

Thanks so much for all that detailed info! It's really helpful to know about those warning signs. Actually, now that you mention it, I do remember the sunblind being a bit sluggish about two weeks ago, but I didn't think much of it at the time. Guess that was probably the motor starting to go. I've just checked my service records, and surprisingly this wasn't flagged during the inspection. I'll definitely get it looked at this week and make sure they check those tracks and guides you mentioned. Really appreciate the tip about that, wouldn't have thought to ask about it otherwise. Will absolutely keep you updated once I get it checked out. Thanks again for taking the time to share your experience, it's been super helpful in figuring out what I'm dealing with!