Open Mon–Fri 9–6 · Open Saturdays 9–4 54/58 Princes Hwy, Arncliffe, Sydney NSW · minutes from Sydney Airport Call 0418 200 289
Roof stuck open? Don't force it. Call 0418 200 289 before you touch anything. What to do →

Home / Makes / Range Rover Sport sunroof repair

Range Rover Sport · panoramic sunroof specialists

Range Rover Sport sunroof & panoramic roof repair, Sydney

The sliding panoramic roof on the Range Rover Sport is a regular in our workshop, and when it stops it is nearly always a motor. The roof on the 2014-onwards car is big and heavy, driven by a motor that works hard in Sydney heat, with a second for the blind underneath. When one gives up, the roof stops partway, the blind won't budge under a summer sky, or the whole thing goes quiet. The first quote is often the complete assembly. It is usually one motor, and we stock them. The 2005 to 2013 car has a simpler roof with the same drain habits. Both come through Arncliffe, with the Discovery and Velar roofs that share much of the hardware. Fixed, the roof opens on the switch, the blind moves back under a summer sky, and the A-pillar stays dry after the next storm. Call or text us the year and the symptom; you'll usually hear back the same business day.

20+ yrs in automotive repair 1000+ roofs serviced 4.9★ Google rating
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Known faults: Range Rover Sport roofs

What goes wrong up there,
and what we do about it

A Range Rover Sport panoramic roof is two motors, two sets of guides and cables, a very large piece of glass and four drain tubes running down the pillars. Any one of them can stop the roof or wet the cabin, and the symptom rarely points at the part. We find the part first, because on this car the whole-cassette quote is the expensive guess, and you see the failed part before anything is quoted.

Fault 01

Sunroof stops, hesitates or won't close

Drive motor · guides · cables

How it shows up

The glass panel opens a little and stops, or tilts but won't slide, or closes crooked and leaves a gap at one corner. Sometimes a click from the motor and nothing else. Sometimes it worked yesterday and today the switch does nothing. In summer, it is nearly always the day you wanted the roof open.

Why it gets misread

The whole sunroof cassette is a common quote, and a whole-roof job on this car is a big one. Most of the roofs we see need a motor, or a motor and a set of guides, not the cassette. The other trap is a motor that has been swapped without the guides being cleaned and the roof re-initialised, which brings the fault straight back.

How we fix it

Headlining down, the motor tested on the bench, the guides and cables checked for wear, the panel aligned, then the new motor fitted and the roof taught its open and closed positions again. We cycle it a dozen times and water-test before it goes home. We stock the motor, so the car isn't waiting on one. Covered by our parts & labour warranty, and if the roof ever misbehaves after, you call us first.

Call about a stuck sunroof Submit an enquiry Grinding and clicking roofs →
Fault 02

Blind stuck open under a summer sky

Blind motor · guides

How it shows up

The blind stops partway, runs further on one side than the other, or won't move at all while the glass still works fine. Under that much glass in January, the cabin becomes an oven and the leather starts to suffer, which is when most owners ring.

Why it gets misread

The blind often gets quoted as part of the complete sunroof assembly, because that is how the parts catalogue lists it. It doesn't have to be. The blind has its own motor and its own guides, and on the Sport it is the blind motor that fails far more often than the blind itself.

How we fix it

On the Sport it is the blind motor we replace, on its own, then the guides are checked, the blind re-tensioned and its end positions set. Torn fabric from a blind forced by hand is the one case where we lay out repair, replacement or a clean removal side by side.

Call about a stuck blind Submit an enquiry Sunshade repair in detail →
Fault 03

Wet A-pillar, damp headlining, a soggy boot

Blocked drains

How it shows up

A wet patch on the headlining near the front pillar after rain, water running down inside the pillar trim, a damp boot floor or a puddle in a rear footwell. A musty smell that won't clear. The roof is closed and looks perfectly sealed from outside.

Why it gets misread

Door seals, the tailgate and the windscreen get resealed first, because the water shows up nowhere near the roof. The cause is nearly always the four drain tubes at the corners of the sunroof, silted with leaf litter and Sydney dust, overflowing into the pillars. Left long enough, that water finds electronics.

How we fix it

Controlled water testing until we see the entry point, and so do you, before anything is quoted. Drains cleared and flushed end to end, the sunroof tray and seals checked, then tested again. Covered by our parts & labour warranty. Left long enough on a Sport, the water rusts the sunroof base through at the drain outlets, which we have met, and then the fix is the base assembly rather than the hose. We don't run silicone around the glass; it seals the roof's drainage shut and moves the leak somewhere worse.

Call about a leak Submit an enquiry How we trace roof leaks →
Fault 04

Cracked or shattered panoramic glass

Stone strike · glass panel

How it shows up

A chip that spreads into a crack across the roof over a hot week, or a panel that lets go with a bang on the motorway and drops glass onto the blind. It looks like the whole roof is one piece from inside. It isn't.

Why it gets misread

Owners are sometimes told the roof is a body-shop job, or sent looking for a whole second-hand roof. The sliding panel and the fixed rear panel are separate pieces of glass, and either can be replaced on its own, provided every fragment is cleaned out of the guides, the blind and the drains afterwards, which a glass-only job often skips.

How we fix it

Headlining down, every fragment out of the cassette, blind and drains, the new panel fitted and aligned, the roof re-initialised and water-tested. Genuine glass or a good second-hand panel, side by side on the quote. Insurance claims are quoted with the photo set the insurer asks for.

Call about broken glass Submit an enquiry Glass replacement in detail →

Models we cover

Every Range Rover Sport roof,
and the cousins that share it

Which roof you have depends on the year. Text us the year and the symptom if you're not sure; the fixes below apply either way.

Range Rover Sport, 2014 to 2022 (L494, second generation)
The sliding panoramic roof with a separate electric blind. Sunroof motors and blind motors are the usual reason a Sport comes in, followed by blocked drains and cracked glass.
Range Rover Sport, 2005 to 2013 (first generation)
A conventional sliding sunroof rather than a full panoramic panel. Worn guides, stretched cables and blocked drains are the pattern; the motor is simpler and lasts longer.
Range Rover Sport, 2022 onwards (third generation)
A new design of roof and too new for patterns yet. The few that arrive are glass damage and drains; we'll say what we see as they age.
Discovery 5 and Discovery Sport
Panoramic roofs from the same family, with the same motor, blind and drain behaviour, so the faults and the fixes are familiar.
Velar and the full-size Range Rover
Larger glass, longer drains, similar motors and blinds. They have their own page covering the full-size car and the Velar.
Evoque
The fixed panoramic glass and its blind are covered on the Evoque page.

Not sure which roof yours has? Text us the model and year or call 0418 200 289 and we'll tell you straight away.

How a visit works

Four steps. No surprises.

  1. 1

    Tell us the symptom

    Call 0418 200 289, or text a photo or a short video to the same number. '2016 Sport, sunroof opens a bit then stops, and the blind hasn't moved since summer' is enough for us to say whether it's one for us and what we'd check first, usually the same business day. The number comes after we have the car in the workshop, not before; a price guessed over the phone is a guess with your money. Then we book a time to look at it.

  2. 2

    We diagnose, you see it

    Headlining down where the sunroof motor or the blind motor is the problem, both tested on the bench, water testing where it's a leak. We show you the failed part, photographed for you, before anything is quoted.

  3. 3

    We fix it properly

    Motors replaced individually, guides and cables cleaned or renewed, drains flushed end to end, glass fitted and aligned: OEM or premium aftermarket parts, fitted by factory-trained technicians, with your go-ahead on the quote first. Covered by our parts & labour warranty.

  4. 4

    We rain on it before Sydney does

    No roof leaves on a promise. Re-initialised, cycled a dozen times, drains flow-tested, seals soaked, cabin checked dry. The water test is why our repairs stay repaired.

What owners say

Repair first, replace last.
Owners notice the difference

★★★★★

“Michael is the best. My Benz had a seized panoramic sunroof and the motor for the roof died. He had it fixed and working perfectly in three hours.”

Mercedes-Benz · Seized panoramic sunroof & motor
★★★★★

“Impressed. Fixed the roller & sunshade in my BMW X1. Recommend.”

BMW X1 · Roller blind & sunshade
★★★★★

“Michael saved me and my leaking sunroof. He fixed an issue in less than 8 hours that 3 mechanics didn't know what to do with throughout an entire year. Highly recommend”

Sunroof leak · Three shops couldn't fix

More on the reviews page, or read them on Google.

Straight answers

Range Rover Sport roof questions
we hear most

If yours isn't here, call. You'll get the same straight answer.

Ask us directly Submit an enquiry
My Sport's sunroof stopped halfway. Has the whole roof cassette gone?

Almost never. On the 2014-onwards Range Rover Sport the sliding panel is driven by a motor that fails long before the cassette does, and worn guides and stretched cables account for most of the rest. We test the motor, check the guides, fit a new motor where it has failed, re-initialise the roof and water-test it. The complete cassette is a last resort, not a first quote. Worst case, you find out exactly what is wrong and decide from there. Best case, it is the motor, and we have it in stock.

The blind is stuck and the dealer quoted the full sunroof assembly. Is that the only way?

No. The blind has its own motor and its own guides, and it is the blind motor that fails on these cars far more often than the blind itself. We replace the blind motor on its own, set its end positions and re-tension the blind. If the fabric has torn from being forced by hand, we'll show you the options: repair the hardware, replace the blind, or remove it cleanly. Bring the assembly quote with you; we'll show you what we find and you compare. More on the sunshade repair page.

There's water on the A-pillar but the roof is closed. Where is it coming from?

The drains. A panoramic roof has four drain tubes at its corners, and when they block with leaf litter the water overflows into the pillars and shows up on the headlining, down the pillar trim or in the boot, nowhere near the roof. We water-test to find the actual entry point, clear and flush the drains, and test again. Leaving it risks the electronics that live low in the pillars and under the seats. The leak repair is covered by our parts & labour warranty.

The glass shattered on the motorway. What do you need for the insurer?

Yes. We photograph the damage the way the insurer wants it, quote genuine glass or a good second-hand panel side by side. The job itself is the headlining down, every fragment out of the guides, blind and drains, the new panel fitted and aligned, the roof re-initialised and water-tested. Don't drive it with the blind closed over broken glass; the fragments cut the fabric.

Visit the workshop

Bring it in, or start
with a text

Address
54/58 Princes Hwy, Arncliffe, Sydney NSW 2205, minutes from Sydney Airport
Hours
Mon–Fri 9am–6pm · Sat 9am–4pm · Sun closed

Start an enquiry

A few details so we can tell you whether it's a job for us and how we'd approach it. By appointment; for most faults, we diagnose before quoting. For urgent enquiries or if we missed you, call 0418 200 289.

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