MadeInJapan Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 On my '98 S70 I've developed a sunroof leak that soaked my headliner from the corner of the driver's side almost halfway across to the middle of the windshield as well as almost to the "B" pillar between the 2 side doors. It has been raining a great deal here lately and the leak first began last week.Anyway, one evening last week I opened the sunroof wanting to begin some diagnostic work on it and see if I could fix it myself. When I opened the liner cover (the part you slide back with your hand), a piece of rubber stipping that almost looks like the material our windshield wiper blades are made of fell out and onto the center console. This piece is about 2.5 feet long and is grooved to fit into some very slim piece of edged metal. I looked and looked at diagrams for the sunroof but couldnt' find where this piece needs to go but I couldn't find it. I chalked it up to the previous owner inserting this in there somewhere, but I don't know the true reason it was there. I think that now this piece is key in fixing my problem.For my initial repair, I took the headliner out in the front to see the plastic tube that leads down from the "gutter" in the sunroof and used a snake and cleaned it out. It was stopped up and the snake freed whatever was clogging it. I thought that this was the issue to begin with and felt good, but still wondered about the rubber weather stipping sitting in the passenger side seat. It was good to visually inspect the hose and make sure it didn't have any holes in it- cofirmed by pouring a glass of water in the sunroof gutter without having any leaks. I though that now my leak was fixed, so I let everything dry out and tightened everything back up. This was last week.My car stayed in the driveway last night due to my in-laws visiting and needing to unload things from their car in our garage. Long story short, it rained last night, and when I got in my car to go get my father-in-law a newspaper this morning, I noticed the same area of the headliner very damp...not really soaking like before, but still getting wet. I've looked and looked at the area. No place that a piece of rubber weather stripping would go anywhere. I've called the dealer and no one knows there either, even after looking long and hard at their own diagrams.Who knows why my sunroof is leaking and where in there does the rubber stip go? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2006 Including me, 10 people have read this thread now...someone has to have gone through this or taken the sunroof out and know where this trim piece goes. Anyone? I really want to drive my car when it rains and keep dry, not to mention ruining my head liner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 Okay, 23 people have looked at this post but no replies. I've figured out the piece...it goes in the rear of the sunroof across in the direction from side to side, but this isn't stopping my leak. It's suppose to rain hard tomorrow and the next day. My leak appears to be in the left front corner of the sunroof down inside of my roof lining. The drain is clear and the hose from it isn't cracked. Any help is appreciated...Do I need to replace the entire rubber weather strip that goes around the glass? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AlvinL Posted January 23, 2006 Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 I've read it too and I too don't know what it could be. Sorry...Someone help this guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2006 I've read it too and I too don't know what it could be. Sorry...Someone help this guy.Thanks...and I appreciate your honest reply and attempt to help. I think I've figured it out. It's the rusting part of the frame that allows water in between the rubber weather stripping and the glass. Will need to get it off, clean the rust and seal it before putting a new weather strip piece on it. For now, I think I'll just use some silicone sealant until the weather warms up and it's dry. Here are a few pictures (not mine) that give you an idea of what happens to these. Mine isn't as bad, I hope, but I won't know until I get into it.http://www.cardomain.com/ride/410686/6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Figawi Posted January 24, 2006 Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 i had the same problem you described in one of my previous 850s. i ended up having the ENTIRE sunroof replaced because my motor ended up stripping the gears to shut it while i was trying to diagnose my leak.before going that route, take out the glass and replace the rubber seal that goes around the glass. you can buy it from the dealer for about $40 i think. water gets under the seal and rusts out the metal. so you might have to do some sanding and bonding (or use some sort of clear calking). put the new rubber seal around the glass and let it dry (if you use some kind of adhesive). there is also a write-up on this somewhere on the board in the repair section. you might also want to clean out the drains in the sunroof. they are in the corner of the sunroof frame. your could be clogged.do a search for sunroof leak. your leak problem isn't that uncommon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2006 Thanks for your reply...have part numbers and a write-up from someone with pictures so I'm good to go. I'm going to try resealing the strip first and it that doesn't hold, wait until warmer and drier weather for the big job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 25, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2006 Never made it to the dealer yesterday or today, but I got good advice from fcpgroton (who has all the parts for cheap) as well as a few folks over on a couple of other boards, and the guy who replaced my windshield back in April (rock hit the windshield on the way home from picking up my "new" car). I ended up with a weather stripping sealant sold at autozone (made by Permatex) and with the help of some syringes (from old printer ink refill kit), I was able to get a good amound of this stuff in and under the rubber trim around the sunroof. I think I sealed both the outside and the inside of the sunroof now and hope to have no leaks. I'll replace the entire piece and do the job that Papa_Kirlo posted about when things warm up and I have the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted January 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 by the way, I found where the rubber stip that fell into my cabin goes. With sunroof all the way open you can see a metal ridge that goes all the way across the opening in the back, under the glass (from pillar to pillar, direction wise). The windshield blad looking rubber piece fits on it. I used the same adhesive (a dot on each end) and tacked it down. So far my total job looks decent and I'm hoping I have no more leaks until spring when I can do this thorough repair over a weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hawks25 Posted February 2, 2006 Report Share Posted February 2, 2006 I had the same problem last year. I ordered the sunroof weatherstripping from FCP and tried to replace it. The frame just crumbled. At this point, my only option was replacing the glass. When I went to the dealer, they said that they had to replace the whole assembly and the bill would be around $1200!!! I held off, and went home to think about this. I called the local junk yard, and lo and behold, they had a sunroof assembly in stock. I got it for $125. Glass, motor, rails...the whole assembly. I replaced the glass and no more leak. Aligning the glass was a PITA for me, but well worth a 90% savings. And now I have a spare motor and rails in the event that I need them.If you need the weatherstripping, PM me, I still have it and never used it.Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadeInJapan Posted February 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2006 Cool...my repair is holding up fine. I'll PM you or email you when I decide to do the repair...probably in March or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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