Thanks for the help on vario roof lube!

Reverendbiker · Mar 30, 2013

My lightly-used (10,000 miles) 2006 SLK350 has been a real delight during the first two months of ownership. It's a ball to drive, and I have been busy learning to live with it. This forum has been a great help. The car is amazingly tight and noise-free for a 7-year-old vehicle but I have been getting just a bit of noise from the vario roof when driving on rough pavement so I decided to take advantage of a nice Spring day and lube the rubber after I washed the car.
A search of the forum turned up some really good information, particularly the thread on "John's Broomstick.":
http://www.slkworld.com/diy-section/13187-diy-r171-holding-roof-open-broomstick-modification.html
Using the information from that thread, I cobbled together my own "broomstick" and ordered a small bottle of Krytox GPL-105 from an eBay seller. The broomstick worked like a charm, and cleaning and lightly lubricating the seals took only 15-20 minutes (including lubing the latches and hinges).
I fired her up and set out on a test drive--silence! Sharing this kind of information is the best use of these forums, and I thank those who paid it forward! Have a blessed Easter--
jack <><

jbanks15 · Mar 30, 2013

For those newbies, use white lithium grease on joints and hinges:

http://www.slkworld.com/313539-post21.html

and krytox/einszett gummi pfledge/food quality silicone grease for rubber seal where they meet the window and roof areas like this:

http://www.slkworld.com/slk-r170-general-discussion/20937-spring-here-gummi-pflege.html

Wooddoor6 · Mar 30, 2013

Hi Reverend
Is the 1oz bottle of Kryton enough to lubricate all the seals or would you need the 2oz
Thnks

Reverendbiker · Mar 30, 2013

I bought a 1/2 oz. bottle and I should get at least two applications out of it. I didn't treat all of the vehicle's seals, however--just the top.

sean2325 · Jan 30, 2016

Forum member CHIVAS and myself decided to do the vario roof maintenance on our cars today following the forum instructions and it worked a treat. The forum was once again a great source of useful information and we did the two cars in quick order thanks to the excellent instructions and pictures. My thanks to all the members who put up useful pictures, product recommendations and helpful hints. We used the broomstick method and all worked as described.

We sourced the gummi pfledge and some spray lithium white grease and went to work. We were both very impressed with the way the rubber seals come up following application of the gummi pfledge. This will be a regular project now to ensure the roof continues to operate smoothly and quietly.

Thanks for the help on vario roof lube!

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