ugh - sunroof has to be replaced.
 

since the first month or so after I bought my car the sunroof has made a groaning sound when it opens and closes, the dealership has greased it at each service interval and it goes away for awhile.

recently the wind deflector stopped popping up,, and if I manually push it up then it won't come down when the roof closes, causing the roof to retract when it hits it.

took the car in for my 25K service and pointed out the issue, and got the call today that they have to replace the whole unit.

I'm a little apprehensive about this because I know from experience that once you start taking the interior panels apart, squeaks, rattles, and buzzing noises are not far behind.