Expert: Josh Fields - 2/4/2006

Question
Coupla things--I recently bought the car,used obviously, and
have found two trouble spots.
 One- there is no power to the stereo,it's an aftermarket and it
was in when I bought it. I replaced the 7.5A  fuse (but maybe i
should replace all of them?) and pulled out the unit to see at the
back which looked fine. All the other electrical components of
the car work great.
 Two- the handle in the backseat required to open the soft top
storage doesn't work so I can't lower the roof. Is fixing that little
lever/handle a big job?
 that's all. The rest of the car is great. Thanks.
chris

Answer
Chris, I own an '87 convertible as well, so hopefully I can help.  
 To open the latch you pull the handle and it will release the passenger's side, and you slide your hand under the hatch for the driver's side.  You should be able to slide your hand/screwdriver under the passenger's side to temporarily open it.  Sounds like the cable is broken or the handle is broken.  Either way it's a pretty simple fix.

 These BMW's use an uncommon wiring practice, where they "daisy-chain" the speakers.  So you only had 2 wires per side of the car, vs. the conventional way of 2 wires per speaker.  Also the factory head unit were "dead", meaning they did not feed the speakers, they just sent a signal to the built-in amplifier.  The amp has to get power as well, and it took me some time to find this out.  I think it's a white or light-blue wire that feeds the amp.  

 Hope this helps,
 Josh