Started raining pretty heavily earlier today, so I clicked my key fob to make sure the car was unlocked as I ran to it in the parking lot. Must have clicked it too many times, as I have a Jag Wrangler and the top started going down. So I jump in and try to reverse the top going down. Apparently ended up confusing the system instead, and it gets stuck partly open in the rain. Convertible top open/close button is completely unresponsive so I pull into a covered area. Dash is showing a "Hood not latched" message (graphic is of the hood over the engine compartment not the convertible top). I open and close the hood a couple of times, but message won't go away, and top still won't respond. Main windows work fine, but rear windows only go up or down after holding the convertible top button up or down for several seconds. When I hold the convertible top button, I can hear clicks from the area where the fusebox/JagWrangler are located, but nothing happens except for the rear windows going up or down.

The center panel in the rear is stuck for some reason, so I haven't been able to try pulling F8 yet to reset the top. In the meantime, has anyone run across the "hood not latched" message before? I see a lot of posts about it for the X100s but I don't see any posts about it for the newer cars. For those of you with Jag Wranglers, are you able to interrupt the top operation midway without it getting stuck?

 

 

 

I had something similar but not with a Wrangler mod. My rear windows went down but not top operation then same indication of the hood not latched. Like you, opened and closed hood, but no change in top operation and still had hood fault. Later the lights came on & wipers began to operate. I determined it was the battery. Car was in the garage so just put it back on battery tender. Next morning the hood warning was gone, lights and wipers were normal and was able to operate the top ok.\

I'm not saying this is what you are experiencing but is it possible it is a battery problem?

 

I've closed the top by accident by pushing LOCK too many times. Also, yeah, I think I too have opened accidentally with too many pushes. Not in a couple years now though, I think I got the hang of it.

 

Well, did the manual reset, pulled the fuse, and the top will now go down all the way but when going up, it gets stuck at the last part (Pos. A in the manual) where the front end of the roof comes down and latches to the the top of the windshield frame. Even trying to do it manually with the pump valve open, it seems to be stuck at that position. Any suggestions?

 

No suggestions. As to your question of stopping the top in mid-cycle I have done it a couple of times to no ill effect. Actually, I do have a suggestion. Get in touch with the Wrangler, I'll bet he can help.

 

Hit up WhiteXKR, I’m sure he knows.

When you said you did the reset what procedure did you follow. I understand it’s finicky.

Best!

 

I released the pump using the allen key and stowed the top. Also pulled and replaced F8. Reset the windows by going up and down and holding at each endpoint for 5 seconds three times. After all that, the top looked like it was working fine but stopped at the last stage before closing all the way. Tried holding the close button for over a minute but nothing. Tried it again and can hear the pump whir but no further forward movement. Stowing the top seems to work fine, but closing always stalls at the same point. Trying to close it manually with the pump released, it seems stuck at that point and I don't want to force it. Also still getting the "hood not latched" message at the point where it gets stuck.

Sent a PM to Steve (WhiteXKR). Hope he can help.

 

Hi Simon-
Looks like you are doing the right stuff to reset it.

Try repeating the window reset a couple of times with the exact factory procedure and try the top again ONLY with the interior button . Do not operate the top with the remote until it works correctly with the interior button:
· Ignition ON
· Raise window up to the top seal and release
· Raise again until window stops moving
· Release
· Press Raise button again for a 2 seconds
· Lower window fully
· Release
· Press lower button again for a further 2 seconds until a relay is heard to CLICK


Also, when you tried to close the top manually, did you try to latch the top with the hex key in the roof header? Also, when going to manual, it can take up to 30 minutes or so for all the pressure in the system to release to allow you to manually latch.

Steve

 

Thanks, Steve. Will try the window reset again. When going manual, I haven't been able to even get to the point where I can latch it. I'll try to leave the pump release open longer and see if that allows me to fully close the top.

 

Ugh I hate to take it in to the dealer, but it's starting to feel like something is physically locked up. Both manually and with the pump, I'm able to stow it and bring it up to the almost closed position (Fig A in the manual). I'm wondering if maybe one of the articulation points got out of whack when I interrupted the top mid-operation yesterday.

Worst thing is I think the top is one of the few excluded items in my extended warranty, and even if it isn't, I could see them trying to void it over having an aftermarket controller.

Anyone know anything I can look for in the frame? Also, one other thing I'm noticing is the "hood not latched" message comes on when it hits the stage it keeps stalling at. This is right when the tonneau cover goes down and the rear part of the roof comes down on top of it. After that the front part is supposed to go down, but that's where it stalls. Is there a lock somewhere that won't let the front part of the roof fold down if the tonneau cover isn't latched? When closing it manually, I've noticed the tonneau cover doesn't seem to lock when I close it. Is there normally some sort of click or something when it comes down on the latch?

 

You should always be able to close the top manually.

Are you sure the rear of the top is sitting flush on the tonneau when closing the top? The rear of the top must be fully down for the front to shut. Double check there is no foreign object at the seal at the rear of the top that contacts the tonneau. (Any chance something was on the rear shelf before all this started?)

BTW, the tonneau does not latch when you operate it manually.

As last resort let it sit overnight in manual mode and see if the pressure is just slow releasing.

If you do need to go for service, remember there is a physical switch on the remote module that disables the 'one touch' feature, so the roof console button behaves just like factory original.

 

Here are some pics showing the stage where it's getting hung up. The rear part of the roof and the tonneau cover are both all the way down, but I'm still getting the "Hood not latched" message. Do you have any idea where the sensor for that is?

I'll leave the pump release open per your suggestion, but if I'm able to manually fold up and stow away the top, wouldn't that mean the pressure is also released enough for me to close the front all the way down? Or is there a separate line for that step?

To add to my frustration, I can't even take it to the dealer for a while since it's expected to rain for the next several days.

 

Did you try disconnecting the battery, doing the drain, then re-connecting? Would not surprise me at all that the "controller" needs to be re-set.


Number one rule is check battery first!

 

This is one instance where I think the battery can be ruled out since I can't even close it manually.

 

I would tend to agree, but if you have attempted the manual top down reset and then tried to close the top with the roof console button without the engine running, I would definitely suggest repeating it with the engine running.

 

Slightly off-topic, but maybe not...
Steve, your controller has that Firmware Update capability. Has there been any updates in the last three years?

 

No, no bugs reported in recent years. Last update June 2015 for the '06-'09 version and May 2014 for the '10--'15 version.

Also, the stop or reverse feature of the remote top normally works fine as long as the top is not left in mid-position (not fully up or down) more than a couple of minutes or so. When left in mid-position, the top will eventually move due to pressure lost in the hydraulics without power, and then the mechanics and the electronics will get out of sync. This has nothing to do with the remote top add-on and happens without the remote top as well.

 

So I think I may have figured out what's wrong, but need someone to do me a favor and verify how things look on a normally-functioning top. The pics below are of the joint that won't close manually. I'm guessing the silver bolt head is supposed to be inside the wrench-looking thing I drew an arrow to, but it looks like it got dislodged somehow and is now blocking the joint. Not exactly sure how that happened, and I'm even less sure how to put it back in place, but I'd really appreciate if someone can snap a pic of how theirs looks in mid-operation.