1979-1993 & 94 Conv [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
I was lucky enough that when my '87 vert top started not going down intermittently last year I noticed a couple of times that putting the parking brake up and down seemed to fix it...but this stopped working and my top has not worked since last summer. Then I left the country, and it still didn't work when I got home.
But I always figured the problem was in the parking brake switch. I looked in the Bentley and on the forum in vain for specific instructions on how to get to it, what it looked like, where exactly it was...so I decided to go slow and think (as one of the wise sages here advised me several fixes ago), and figure it out.
Being somewhat lazy, I did not want to take the front seat out to get the center console off. I pulled off the shift boot, and unscrewed the 2 torx screws underneath in order to get the front of the console up. Then I was able to lift the front console up couple of inches...enough to allow me to get to the 1 torx screw underneath that fastens the rear part of the console down. I removed the rear ashtray to get to the 2 screws that remained holding the back of the rear console in place.
I was then able to jiggle the rear console up a few inches, which enabled me to see the convertible top spring switch and where it contacted the hand brake mechanism...there is a removable plastic door on that side of the console which helps to reach this switch as well...this is all, by the way, on the drivers side of the console.
Again, seeking the lazy fix, I noticed that while the switch appeared to be moving back and forth, it was incredibly gummed up with 29 years of cabin crud. Without removing it, propping up the console, I simply sprayed the heck out of it with some electrical contact cleaner, pressing the switch in and out as I sprayed. Then, praying, I reassembled everything and hoped that it would work.
My top is back to working like a charm! Love it when fixes are this easy.
posted by 75.111.9...
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