retcav1sg

Picked up my 2011 Cyber Gray GS convertible last week, I knew the top might be an issue as it had a really hard time completing the opening and closing cycle. The cover would close but not lock, it seemed that the actuator stopped pulling or didn't have the strength to lock it down at the end of the cycle. After trouble shooting and many searches on the Forum I came to the conclusion that the Tonneau cover pull down actuator needed to be replaced. I thought about just replacing the gear, but decided just to get the entire part. Got the part from rock auto, it was an AC delco part:

http://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/c...rch+for+DORMAN

About as easy a job as I could have hoped for. This is my first write up so please cut me some slack

Cycle the top to the half way point so you can access the waterfall.

Go to the passenger footwell fuse box and remove the 20 amp TPA fuse

Remove the waterfall, no pictures here, already many DIYs on the interweb, here's a link for the lazy among us


https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...all-cover.html

You now have access to the actuator. Disconnect the electrical connector on the passenger side of the actuator



There are 3 bolts on the drivers side of the actuator, remove them and the actuator is free.




Install the new actuator in reverse order of removing the old one, reinstall the fuse. I left the waterfall off and ran through a couple of cycles to make sure everything worked then replaced the waterfall.

Here's a few pictures of the old actuator that I removed, I was surprised that the gear was plastic, it appears that the teeth of the gear had been worn down over time and no longer grabbed like they should. Total time was about 30 minutes, I was a bit shocked at how simple it was. I replaced my front emblem, installed mild to wild, seat track cover and fixed the roof in less than an hour, now what to do with the rest of the morning.

4SUMERZ

Great Job and good pics for future reference to vert owners with similar symptoms.

beachcomber

Excellent! Saving this as I'm sure it won't be long until I need to do this. Appreciate your DIY post!

topdown1999

Thank you to retcav1sg for the write up. With your help, my repair was a breeze. RockAuto was a good choice. They had the best price I could find and my part was delivered 25 hours after I placed the order. (I paid the extra $1 for 1-2 business day ground shipping.) Thanks again.

N-Rod

Excellent post.... I have the same problem with my 2010 GS Convertible and I almost bought the Part at the Dealer over the weekend... They wanted 498.00 for the Tonneau cover pull down actuator motor.... Based on your link, I ordered it through RockAuto for 223.00 next day shipping...


Again, thank you very much...
Great Post
Great Pictures
Great Savings....


THANK YOU
Nelson Rodriguez
Orlando FL

windyC6

You mention that the part was an A/C Delco part. How does Rocky get by with selling it at what looks like about 1/2 normal retail ?? Seems like GM would have something to say about that. But heck....thats good news to know if the parts ever needed.

BLUEMEANIE

enventr

Great post thanks

lorenedopp

Thanks so much for posting this! I had the same problem. Ordered the actuator from Rock Auto on early morning Friday and got it Saturday. What GREAT Service. Replaced the part in 25 minutes and my power roof works PERFECT!

Have a great week!

Loren
Palatine IL
2011 Grand Sport Convertible
Torch Red

bonnell

Thanks for posting this. One day after reading it my Tonneau cover did not want to open. The actuator opened it partially. Fortunately I closed the cover completely and tried again and it worked OK.

I am marking this thread so that I can follow your instructions when I replace my actuator.

I may have to stop reading the forum. One day after reading about a member not being able to shift out of park, mine did the same thing and I was on a trip to Florida.

Jeff T.

As a new vert owner "Thank You"!

STL Mark

I just finished this repair this evening.
The RockAuto part was the exact correct part.
All perfect now.

Thanks for the info.
M

windyC6

Mine has had an issue for several years also, but it doesn't seem to be that the actuator has a gear problem. The actuator will pull the tanneau down fine when it can grab it. Sometimes it seems more like a timing issue when the tanneau won't close. I'll look at the actuator and it will be stuck at its lowest point when the tanneau comes down.....that means that the actuator isn't high enough to grab it. When I cycle the top about 1/2 way back up and then come back down the actuator will then come up and grab the tanneau. Make any sense??

gtmalone

This happened to me the other day on an '07. Tonneau almost closed then heard a motor running and no other actions. Cycled the top and then it closed. Got home and then it failed completely - Tonneau close motor running, nothing happening. Removed the motor and found this:

Gear teeth pretty much gone like the other examples and case cracked with a chunk missing from it. Wondered why there were only two bolts instead of three. One fell out. New part on the way from Rockauto.

Thanks to the folks on this forum for sharing their knowledge! Saved me time and money!

lorenedopp

Great!!! Glad it worked

Orangesled

Saving this and hoping I never need it. Great post/pictures and explanation. Thanks for taking the time and the car looks fantastic!

gtmalone

New motor arrived today. Install was a snap except for the top falling on my head a couple of times.

I wondered about the position of the arm on the new motor. It was fully retracted. When I hit the top button the motor cycled to the correct position. I positioned the new motor in about the same place as the old one using the bolt marks on the bracket.

When you guys replaced yours, did there seem like a lot of downward pressure on the tonneau? I know it has to be tight enough to seal but not sure if it's too much. Wondering if that's why the gear was stripped and the case cracked.

Here are more pics to go with the already great info.
http://s471.photobucket.com/user/gtm...ette/top%20fix

Also the foam pad on the bottom edge of the waterfall came off - sticky tape was dried out. Put it back on with this:
http://s471.photobucket.com/user/gtm...ette/top%20fix

indyblue67

Is this part different than the hydraulic pump? If this isn't it, what is the correct part and what category or drawing is it listed.
That link above for rockauto is a good find, but I'd like to find the the part in the diagram.

gtmalone

Yes, different than the hyd pump. The part is not on that diagram. It's #9 on this diagram.

Scroll down the page (Cultrag) in this example to view the tonneau parts.

leo lossett

Great job thanks so much for the info as a vert owner this info is very useful