BMW 3231 1994- User Manual

Page 2 - E36 CONVERTIBLE TOP; OVERVIEW; The top design consists of two pivoting sections

Convertible Tops - 2 E36 CONVERTIBLE TOP OVERVIEW E36 - 318i, 323i, 325i and 328i: The top design consists of two pivoting sections; the tension bow at the rear and the foldable top section with multiple bows. When lowered, the top is stowed in a storage well behind the rear seat. The well is cov-er...

Page 4 - FEATURES; Fully diagnosible EM Top Control Module.

E36 AUTOMATIC ELECTRO MECHANICAL (EM)CONVERTIBLE TOPS The Automatic EM convertible top was introduced as a “Semi” Automatic in the 1994 model year. The top was upgraded to a fully automatic top in 1997. Except for a few addi-tional components and an additional function on the fully automatic version...

Page 5 - Convertible Tops - 5

FULL AUTO ONLY: • A concealed top lock motor with twin (left/right) lock drive mechanisms on the forwardedge of the top for automatically locking and unlocking the top to the windshield frame. • Comfort close feature which is activated from the driver’s or passenger’s door position.Holding the key i...

Page 6 - COMPONENTS; L E D - F u l l y A u t o m a t i c T

COMPONENTS CONTROL MODULE: • Located behind the left side rear seat interiorquarter trim panel (1). • All relays and operating electronics are installedin the module. The control module is fully diag-nosible with the DIS or MoDiC. TOP SWITCH: • The top switch is positioned inthe center console. • Th...

Page 7 - Top Lock Motor with flexible drive tubes and lock drive mecha-

Convertible Tops - 7 MOTORS: • Top drive motor (A) with gear assembly and position micro switches (S1 & S2). The topdrive motor is located under the top storage compartment on the left side of the trunk. • Top storage cover motor (B) with drive linkage and an integrated hall sensor. The covermot...

Page 10 - S5 - Identified as Trunk Lid Microswitch in the ETM (Not Adjustable); Signal is input to ZKE IV General Module.

Convertible Tops - 10 S5 - Identified as Trunk Lid Microswitch in the ETM (Not Adjustable) • Located on Trunk Lock. Prevents convertible top operation when trunk is open. • S5 is also used on fully manual top. It provides a ground for the convertible top stor-age lid lock motor. This is a unique com...

Page 11 - Convertible Tops - 11; COMPONENTS REVIEW

Page 12 - OPERATION; Trunk Lid Closed; LOWERING THE TOP; SEMI AUTOMATIC TOP ONLY -; Unlock the top with the turn lock fastener and push; FULLY AUTOMATIC TOP ONLY -; Press and hold the top switch.

OPERATION The following prerequisites must be met for the top to function: Trunk Lid Closed - Electrical interlock of the trunk and top. Due to the design of the top storage cover and trunk lid, damage to the cover or lid would occur if both were open atthe same time. Ignition key switched on KL R ,...

Page 13 - Convertible Tops - 13; TENSION BAR RAISED

Convertible Tops - 13 TENSION BAR RAISED At the same time the windows are lowering, the top drive motor is switched on and the ten-sion bar is raised to a vertical position. The drive lever of the top linkage rotates counterclockwise to push the tension bar to a raised position. The control module r...

Page 14 - Convertible Tops - 14; E36 Fully Automatic Convertible Top Micro-Switch Logic Chart

TOP ASSEMBLY LOWERED The top motor turns clockwise immediately opening S1 & S2. It pulls the top into the stor-age compartment. The tension bar drive linkage is mechanically released from the top driveas the motor continues to run. Once the top is completely lowered microswitch S3 closessignalli...

Page 15 - Convertible Tops - 15; E36 Semi Automatic Convertible Top Micro-Switch Logic Chart

Convertible Tops - 15 E36 Semi Automatic Convertible Top Micro-Switch Logic Chart Top Position S1 S2S3 S4 S5 S6 (GM) Hall Sensor Top Up and locked Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi Not active Top Unlocked and pushed past tension point Hi Hi Hi Lo Hi Hi Not active Tension Bow Raising Lo Hi Hi Lo Hi Hi Not active Ten...

Page 16 - RAISING THE TOP; FULLY AUTOMATIC TOP

Convertible Tops - 16 RAISING THE TOP The procedure for raising the top follows the same pattern as lowering. Press and hold the top switch. • The windows are automatically lowered. • The top storage cover opens • The top is raised out of the storage compartment • The top storage cover is closed and...

Page 17 - Convertible Tops - 17; EM TOP EMERGENCY OPERATION; The top storage cover is unlocked.

Convertible Tops - 17 EM TOP EMERGENCY OPERATION In the event of electrical failure, the top can be raised manually. The procedure is as fol-lows: • Pull the release lever located under the left rearseat cushion as shown. • Both motors are disconnected from the geardrives. • The top storage cover is...

Page 18 - RE-CONNECTING DRIVE MOTORS; Lower all the side windows with the central switch

RE-CONNECTING DRIVE MOTORS Due to the interlock of the trunk lid an unlocked top storage cover, the following proceduremust be followed to reconnect the top drive motors, to restore electrical operation: • Lower all the side windows with the central switch • Unlock the top from the windshield frame,...

Page 19 - Convertible Tops - 19; EM TOP INITIALIZATION; INITIALIZATION PROCEDURE; The top must be placed in the storage compartment

Convertible Tops - 19 EM TOP INITIALIZATION Initialization of the system is required for the CVM to learn the end limits of the top storagecover. The CVM counts the pulses from the integrated hall sensor in the cover motor todetermine the cover position. An initialization run occurs automatically af...

Page 20 - CONTROL MODULE DIAGNOSIS/TROUBLESHOOTING; Fault Code Description

Convertible Tops - 20 CONTROL MODULE DIAGNOSIS/TROUBLESHOOTING • Faults that occur during opera-tion of the top are stored in theCVM. • They are accessed with the DISTester or MoDiC. • The table reflects the possiblefault codes stored in the CVM. • Additionally, the diagnosticrequests (status) and c...

Page 21 - Convertible Tops - 21

Page 22 - Convertible Tops - 22

CONVERTIBLE TOP STORAGE LID POSITION HALL SENSOR TESTS Before testing always verify pin numbers andwire colors from the appropriate ETM. DC Voltage Test Procedures: • At X13145 disconnect and access ground (pin 6) and the hall sensor supply voltage (pin 3) = battery voltage. • Re-connect plug and ch...

Page 23 - Convertible Tops - 23; E36 CONVERTIBLE TOP ADJUSTMENTS; Adjusting left or right

Convertible Tops - 23 E36 CONVERTIBLE TOP ADJUSTMENTS NOTE: All mechanical adjustments are critical for synchronous top operation. The following adjustments are possible on E36 convertibles. The Repair Manual section ofTIS provides system component R&R and adjustment procedures. The following Re...

Page 28 - Convertible Tops - 28

Group 54 90.. includes trou-bleshooting charts for the Semiand Fully Automatic Systems withlinks to repair procedures. Group 54 90.. also includes amicro switch logic table for diag-nosis. Convertible Tops - 28

Page 29 - E36 CONVERTIBLE SPECIFIC SI BULLETINS

E36 CONVERTIBLE SPECIFIC SI BULLETINS Refer to the following list of Service Information bulletins when servicing an E36 convertible.Always check the most up-to-date SI’s and recent DCS messages for current service infor-mation. • E-36 CONVERTIBLE TOP HEADLINER SAGS. Repair kit P/N 54 31 8 227 354. ...

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