1998 VW Jetta Sunroof wont close, need possible cost to repair?

check fuse and relay if good than possible motor ot track problem their should be a mechanical bypass that will let you close it if stuck open the following information is courtesy of monte carlo forum

To check the condition of your original sunroof guides:

1. Gl*** in closed position.
2. Locate & remove 3 torx bolts on each side of sunroof glass. Lift glass out of sunroof opening & set aside in a safe place.
3. Locate "J" shaped cover plate at front of sunroof track assembly. Remove 2 torx bolts from each cover plate.
4. Lift up bracket to remove.
5. Inspect the plastic guides on each side. The sunroof cables attach to guides on front outer corner. Inspect this area closely for damage.
6. Do not operate the sunroof with the J plates removed.

Troubleshooting:

If the sunroof guides are not broken & the glass is a uniform height along the rear edge your problem may be a stripped gear inside the motor. The motor has a manual override:

1. Get access to the motor by removing the map light/switch console or lowering the front of the headliner.
2. Insert a large standard screwdriver into the nylon bushing at the center of the motor hub. Push up & turn the screwdriver to manually move the sunroof glass. If the unit will fully open & close manually, you most likely only need a replacement motor.

If your sunroof is stuck in the open position follow these steps to get it closed:

1. Remove the glass.
2. Try to close the unit without the glass. Many times one side will still be operational and close correctly.
3. Try to slide the inoperable lift arm forward. If it moves, slide it forward until it stops.
4. You now need to slide the original plastic guide forward to lower the arm to the closed position. Using a standard screwdriver, push it forward. The lift arm should begin to lower.
5. If the lift arm will still not fully lower, remove the J plate as explained above, sometimes the sunroof cable will need to be lifted up to allow the guide to fully slide forward.
6. Reinstall glass.

there is a part of the shade jammed in the track if you remove the piece is jammed it will work properly

You have somehow shaken the crash detection module and now it needs to be reset. I need time but i can figure out where it is for you. Mike. Rate 100% and respond back please.

If your indicating the roof is crooked, that's odd... The roof slides along a channel actuated by a coiled cord.

Both of the cords pass along a gear attached to the Sunroof motor which pulles the cord tooth by tooth, impossible to go crooked unless really jammed or tampered with.

There are two plastic wedges that drop into the plastic slides on the sunroof (the plastic slides are behind the more forward metal slides.)

The plastic slides control the tilt of the roof when moved independantly. The plastic wedges join them.

If the roof moves too far back, it is possible for the wedges to stick up and jam the roof open.

This should never happen, but could if the two switches on the gear fail and no longer provide feedback to the controller indicating the roofs position.

Access to the Sunroof motor requires you to drop the headliner.

To drop the headliner, the plastic pillar shrouds need to be removed front and back, the seatbelt bolts in the middle secion need to be removed, the oh-**** handle, the front visors, and cabin lights.

Hope the info is helpful.

have the repair shop chek the switch, it seems that the problem is in the switch or the wiring of the switch.
the motor is not receiving the correct votage to go reverse.

Hey i have 95 VW jetta too with the exact problem, my friend told me it is a common problem. I Too would like to get this fixed. So far i only found autopartswarehouse.com has one for 155 dollars. I started to take it apart and it looks like only one of my brackets brole so i'm going to see if some guerilla glue will do the trick. good luck and let me know if you find out anything.

you will need to hold the glass why you hold the button to close need more info go to collisionrepairadvice.com

remove wipers. remove plastic covering by loosening plastic screws first. unplug wiper motor wires. there are about three 10mm nuts at the motor location and you also have to unscrew the big nuts that were below the wipers when you unscrewed them. replacement is reversal.

Go to the library and find the Manuel you need and photo copy it .or if you have a smart phone (goto how do I fix my vw year make and problem.and will have some thing there for shure.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v125/mechorg/Cars/sunroof%2520diy/Sunroof02.jpg&imgrefurl=http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread%3Fid%3D1993783&h=448&w=273&sz=42&tbnid=6mipVZxqqncJ::&tbnh=127&tbnw=77&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dvolkswagen%2Bsunroof%2Bdiagram&hl=en&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=2&ct=image&cd=1

me too, this should get you started.