[neilvan]

Originally Posted by rothwem

All E91s imported to the US have the panoramic sunroof.

Some Canadian 06 325 wagons did not have sunroofs at all.

I was sad to see a slicktop E91 at the local pick n pull yard but also surprised(its still there)

[allex29]

then just a piece of sheet metal, welded, primed, painted, spot on

[86Zed]

tetsuo111 this is a rad effort and great car you have built. If I had ordered my wagon from factory it would 100% have been slicktop. Nice to let the sunlight through on a sunny day but a bunch of extra weight where you don't want it and items to fail.

I'll be watching from the sidelines unfortunately, already have another money pit for driving thrills.

[rothwem]

Originally Posted by E91WAG3N

See my post above, it's not outrageously priced new. Much better option than commissioning a delete plug imho.

Right, though its pretty intimidating to me to drill out out the spot welds, weld in a new roof, make sure its all sealed, and then send it to paint.

At the start of this thread, I was imagining a $500 carbon fiber dummy sunroof that bolts into place where the original sunroof cassette goes. Add in a little bit of RTV gasket maker around the edge, put the original headliner back up and boom, you're good to go.

However, like my father is fond of saying, "Nothing is ever easy, if it were, they'dve already done it". I wonder if a fiberglass plug would be cheaper?

[Igor_M5]

Would love to entertain how much a cf mold and a run of 10pc would run us froM RKP or similar companies offering this. I'm in the middle of a swap on a E90 for my client, and after getting my hands wrapped around this job for the first time, I'm dying to delete the pano off my wagon.

[fazm]

I'm so intrigued by this project - I'd go the other way: I'm game for a fixed pano with no cover/cassette.

[CoralRed]

Long shot I’m sure…. But did this ever go anywhere?

[peeezy]

Originally Posted by tetsuo111

Sorry for the double-post. A similar post appears in the E91 picture thread.

One of my interests is weight management / weight reduction.

Why?

Colin Chapman said, "adding power makes you faster on the straights. Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere" and "simplify, then add lightness".

My experience agrees with Chapman's perspective. In my case, not so much to go fast (this is still a wagon after all...), rather to enhance and enjoy the agility of the E91 platform.

My wagon weighs ~3200 lbs with a half tank of fuel. It feels light and agile and different (in a good way) after dropping around 300 lbs. And it feels great driving the car whether commuting or tracking.

The Point:

I've had a conversation with Alex at S2R about fabricating a CF plug for an E91 panoramic roof delete. S2R has a documented history of fabricating well-fitting, quality CF sunroof delete plugs for the BMW community. The motivation is reducing 60 lbs of weight from one of the highest points on the car - the roof. I also had a similar conversation with a CF fabricator locally in Seattle. Both vendors are willing to support this project for a minimum production run to make it worthwhile. The numbers vary from 4 - 6 units.

S2R E92 plugs retail for $400. Alex estimates the larger size and materials needed to fabricate a plug for a pano roof might run an additional $100 or so, making this weight loss project tremendously attractive from an economic and performance perspective @ $8.33 / lb ! This metric is at the extreme end of the range.

S2R Tuning

My Proposal(s):

1) I'm seeking an E91 owner with similar interests, located around the LA region to volunteer to be the test mule for this project. The volunteering part means visiting Alex for a session to dimension the mold for a plug. I would do this myself but live in a different part of the country.

2) I'm seeking a list of like-minded E91 owners to express interest in a product like this. I will use my car as the test mule for the CF fabricator here in Seattle. I would like a half dozen or more owners as an incentive for this vendor to commit to the project.

Summary:

Whether you want to reduce weight for performance or fuel economy, or simply are attracted by the aesthetics of a well-documented, well-fitting, and quality carbon fiber roof panel, we are close to having this option available for our platform. The economics are ridiculously attractive, compared with other weight-saving measures.

But in order to make this happen, the vendors need some expression of interest from our community, or one person to volunteer in LA. Let's make this happen!

Thanks.


Pics from the late, great justpete :

JustPete S2R

can u make this for a 2019 x3 with pano roof?

[lordnikon]

Originally Posted by neilvan

Some Canadian 06 325 wagons did not have sunroofs at all.

I was sad to see a slicktop E91 at the local pick n pull yard but also surprised(its still there)

Damn I want to find one of those!