KalahariNik said:
Yesterday i noticed that the headliner around the "oh sh!t" handle above the passenger seat is soaked - enough that I can push on it like a sponge and it produces water - I looked in the drainage rail and found a bunch of pine needles and leaves so I cleaned all of that out - The only other thing I noticed is that the driverside front rail at the very corner by the windshield has a clear sealant that is not found on the leaky passenger side -
Well, today i went to check again and it's soaked more than it was yesterday -
Do any of you guys have experience with this? What should I be looking for that I havent yet?
after a couple of years of just putting up with it, i finally decided to take out the entire head liner to do an inspection/water test. it was nearly 60 today and i thought that this would be a good day to get it done.
the headliner removal took awhile, but this is the only way to really see where the leak starts. often, it will start at one location and then migrate to another.
before starting, i opened the rear and front roofs to make sure that the rubber seals were in good condition and that they were seated properly before closing them up. i also inspected the drip rails/gutters to make sure that they were not cracked.
REAR TEST
i sat inside and had a helper run the hose (no nozzle, just open hose)on the rear of the roof. i targeted the sunroof, the anchor points of the factory roof rails as well as the alpine windows. i had the water run for 15 minutes.
FRONT TEST
i targeted the sunroof and the anchor points of the factory roof rails. in addition, i targeted the top edge of the windshield. i had the water run for 15 minutes.
RESULTS
leakage present at the corners on the sunroof internal tray frame where the drain tubes connect. (front edge left and right for both rear and front roofs). drips were also present at some of the torx screws that attach the tray frame as well as where the screen shade attaches.
it looks like the design of the roof is such that water is allowed to enter between the glass and the plastic trim on top of the roof. it is then channeled to the internal tray frame where is flows to the front corners of the frame and then out the drain tubes (left and right).
the rubber gasket that the glass closes on is to keep the water in the channel so that it flows out the drain tubes. unless water is coming in the sunroof opening, it probably is not an issue.
FIXES
disconnect the 4 drain tubes (2 for each sunroof). blow compressed air through them to clear any potential blockage.
remove the lower internal tray frame from each roof. i think that there are 12-14 torx screws (#20). you need to also remove the roof motor.
take the tray frame in the house and inspect the front 2 corners where the drain tubes connect. there is a plastic box with the tube end that is attached to the steel frame.
you will probably notice that the design and attachment of this plastic piece really is bad. i cleaned up the corner and removed the old sealant before resealing with silcone.
after letting it dry for awhile, i reinstalled the tray frame. i also added silcone around the torx screws as well as several other leak points in the tray frame. i also sealed the gap between the roof and the tray edge too.
RETEST
since it will stay above freezing overnight and stay warm tomorrow, i will perform another water test before putting it back together.
if this doesn't do the job, i think that i will just seal the darn roofs from the outside and pull the fuse for the sunroof ecu....
good luck with your repair. i know that this is a lot of work, but taking out the headliner and doing a water test is the only way to determine where the water is coming in.
