Retrofitting a solar sunroof to RS4

[iconic78]

Hi Guys,

Im sure this has been discussed before but im trying to find out what's needed to retrofit a solar sunroof to my RS4. Living here in Dubai, temps never go any lower than 80F in the winter and upto 140f in summer!! So having one of these would be a clear benefit.

Anyone that has done it before or knows what parts are needed, let me know.

Thanks in advance

James

[TarlCabot]

i think the cost of solar would be way beyond any cost vs benefit you could possibly go for... why not carbon fiber, block the heat and save weight win win

unless you had a full electric only car and wanted the solar to keep the batteries topped off (would not be enough to charge it completely) there would be no benefit...

[Agent Anger]

That sounds like a great idea, but I don't think the area would be great enough to charge a battery per se. Maybe to charge an extra small battery to use a air compressor or cooler? I don't see a benefit.

[melomandn]

Im guessing he's referring to adding a solar sunroof to provide cooling to the car while the car is not running. This has been an optional feature on the A8's for awhile now.

[Mr.Wrong]

^yup and was an option on our cars as well, just look at the euro ones. OP I don't think you're going to find much info on this topic here as we NA folks didn't get a lot of stuff in comparison to motherland. In all the years I don't think I've seen a single B6/7 S4 with that option stateside. I'd try Audi-sport.net, they should have a larger knowledge base on this topic. If you do go through with this retrofit, please update this thread. Good luck and god speed on that build

[DarrenOman]

I also live in the middle east (Oman) and my B6 S4 has the solar sunroof fitted. It runs the interior fan during the day to stop excessive heat build up. Like the Prius. Maybe you could find a solar roof from an totalled car.

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[iconic78]

^yup and was an option on our cars as well, just look at the euro ones. OP I don't think you're going to find much info on this topic here as we NA folks didn't get a lot of stuff in comparison to motherland. In all the years I don't think I've seen a single B6/7 S4 with that option stateside. I'd try Audi-sport.net, they should have a larger knowledge base on this topic. If you do go through with this retrofit, please update this thread. Good luck and god speed on that build

Ive now bought the sunroof from a totalled S4 in Germany on ebay. As my car is currently a rolling shell, i figured why not. Just need to know what else i need to get it to work but ill try Audi-sport.net.
Trying to give the car all the factory options during the build.

[iconic78]

I also live in the middle east (Oman) and my B6 S4 has the solar sunroof fitted. It runs the interior fan during the day to stop excessive heat build up. Like the Prius. Maybe you could find a solar roof from an totalled car.

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Thats exactly what im aiming for. already ordered the glovebox fridge mod.
Do you live in Muscat? or ever come to Dubai?

[iconic78]

So after getting a copy of Elsawin, it turns out that its really straightforward to install. 1 wire goes to earth and the other to control unit. then its a case of activating it in comfort control module.

[DarrenOman]

Thats exactly what im aiming for. already ordered the glovebox fridge mod.
Do you live in Muscat? or ever come to Dubai?

Just read your reply.
I will be moving to Abu Dhabi in the coming weeks and hope to bring the car over once I get my ID processed. Will have to look you up in the new year.

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[iconic78]

Sure by all means. The car should be finished this week.


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[neilpaku]

Well this is an interesting thread. Do you have the part numbers for the sunroof and the glovebox fridge - I could use that for sure!

[iconic78]

For the coolbox :-

8E1816311KT
8E1862807A6PS
N90936503
8E0947415

Solar sunroof:-
8E9877041F


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[wednesday]

For the coolbox :-

8E1816311KT
8E1862807A6PS
N90936503
8E0947415

Solar sunroof:-
8E9877041F


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This is a really cool thread. I just found the shape of that cool box. Pretty sweet.

Have you tried fitting cans in it? How many can you fit?

Thanks!

[iconic78]

Not yet as the car is still being built. See my other thread


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[iconic78]

1st pic I've Pulled this from Elsawin and it's what I've used.

2nd pic is of the coding needed in vcds.

The sunroof only has a live and an earth so it's super easy.


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[Laurentiu]

Sorry for reviving this thread after two years, but I just wanted to update this thread with some info that might be useful for other users. I just finished retrofitting my solar panel sunroof on my 2004 A4 B6. It's a pretty easy retrofit, but it takes a lot of time and having a buddy with you helps a lot.

I took the entire sunroof assembly off an Audi S4. You cannot replace just the glass panel, because the sunroof assembly has two contacts, one on each side. When the glass is closed or lifted up, these contacts touch the glass panel, transferring the power from the glass panel to the frame. It is almost impossible to take the entire wire harness from the donor vehicle, because the two cables (live and earth) get lost in the harness with tenths of other cables that go down the A pillar and into the driver footrest. I just cut the wires and the connector that goes into the sunroof, and I also extracted the pin with a piece of wire from the fresh air blower connector. I noticed that just before entering the fresh air blower connector, the wire has something round shaped on it, covered with some plastic tubing/insulation. I guess it might be some kind of voltage regulator. It is important, so you'll need that piece of wire. After that, just buy some 4mm^2 wire and make your own harness.

The original wiring goes through the driver side A pillar. The ground wire stops on one of the grounding points of the vehicle, while the live wire goes into one of the kick-panel connectors. From there, the wire crosses the dashboard and enter into pin 6 of the fresh air blower connector. I considered that it's pointless to go through the left A pillar, so I went through the right B pillar. I grounded the ground wire into the kick-panel (you can find the grounding point on the right side by removing the glovebox; you have to remove the glovebox anyway to access the blower unit), and connected the live wire to pin 6. After doing this, just use VCDS to code the HVAC unit for a solar powered sunroof. You'll now hear that, when removing the key from the ignition, the HVAC will adjust the flaps to guide the air through the air grills and will disable recirculation if it was previously activated. If it's sunny outside, the fan should start blowing fresh air in a few seconds.

LE: Use the roof lining removal tutorial to remove the pillars and roof lining, and the just unscrew the bolts that hold the sunroof to the car. A friend is helpful here, he can hold the sunroof while unscrewing the last two bolts. Also, he can hold the sunroof from inside, wire you guide it outside through the passenger door. Be careful, the metal edges are pretty sharp, and can easily damage the door cards and the dashboard.

[Nollywood]

Sorry for reviving this thread after two years, but I just wanted to update this thread with some info that might be useful for other users. I just finished retrofitting my solar panel sunroof on my 2004 A4 B6. It's a pretty easy retrofit, but it takes a lot of time and having a buddy with you helps a lot.

I took the entire sunroof assembly off an Audi S4. You cannot replace just the glass panel, because the sunroof assembly has two contacts, one on each side. When the glass is closed or lifted up, these contacts touch the glass panel, transferring the power from the glass panel to the frame. It is almost impossible to take the entire wire harness from the donor vehicle, because the two cables (live and earth) get lost in the harness with tenths of other cables that go down the A pillar and into the driver footrest. I just cut the wires and the connector that goes into the sunroof, and I also extracted the pin with a piece of wire from the fresh air blower connector. I noticed that just before entering the fresh air blower connector, the wire has something round shaped on it, covered with some plastic tubing/insulation. I guess it might be some kind of voltage regulator. It is important, so you'll need that piece of wire. After that, just buy some 4mm^2 wire and make your own harness.

The original wiring goes through the driver side A pillar. The ground wire stops on one of the grounding points of the vehicle, while the live wire goes into one of the kick-panel connectors. From there, the wire crosses the dashboard and enter into pin 6 of the fresh air blower connector. I considered that it's pointless to go through the left A pillar, so I went through the right B pillar. I grounded the ground wire into the kick-panel (you can find the grounding point on the right side by removing the glovebox; you have to remove the glovebox anyway to access the blower unit), and connected the live wire to pin 6. After doing this, just use VCDS to code the HVAC unit for a solar powered sunroof. You'll now hear that, when removing the key from the ignition, the HVAC will adjust the flaps to guide the air through the air grills and will disable recirculation if it was previously activated. If it's sunny outside, the fan should start blowing fresh air in a few seconds.

LE: Use the roof lining removal tutorial to remove the pillars and roof lining, and the just unscrew the bolts that hold the sunroof to the car. A friend is helpful here, he can hold the sunroof while unscrewing the last two bolts. Also, he can hold the sunroof from inside, wire you guide it outside through the passenger door. Be careful, the metal edges are pretty sharp, and can easily damage the door cards and the dashboard.

Great write-up. I’ve saved this for when I do mine.

[Terry.Reese]

I just found one on Ebay... muahahaha