ROOF LEAKS.

[jega]

Hi all,

Has anyone actually managed to solve the roof leak problem?

Despite tapes on the outer sill and the ribs on the roof, it still leaks into the front inner sill. In the rough, it splashes onto the dashboard, rearview mirror etc. From the sills above the door, it spills onto the shoulder. Very distracting. Then there are times when it just does not.

Then again, the flow from the top right corner goes down the door rubber lining, then in by the side of the dashboard/door hinge and onto the floorboard.

Any help, helps.

Thanks,

Jega.

[sloss]

Hi Jega,

I can't seem to find which particular vehicle you are referring to - they all leak!

Give us some more info and we'll try to help.

Stew,

[:)]

My Defender sunroof dos NOT leak. I have taken the seal out cleaned it and stuck it in with silicone mastic, then applied a thin bead of Vaseline to the seal lip. There are leaks from other places but not the sunroof.
BUT
What you do get is a huge amount of condensation in cold weather, probably due to the inside being a bit damp because of all the other 'non-sunroof' leaks; this condensation can collect into droplets and drip onto the seats, so might look like the roof is leaking.
--
Tim.

[sloss]

Who said it's a Defender....?

I can't find any vehicle details in Jega's Profile.

And they ALL leak

Stew,

[Just Sam]

Even Disco 3's leak - fact!

[LandyAndy™]

[jega]

Ok Ok sorry all. I have a 1975 series 3.

By the way Tim, I do not mean droplets. I mean a reservoir filling in the sills and a real good flow, waterfall like.

Hope this helps better.

Jega.

[:)]

[sloss]

All right Tim,

Now try to answer this truthfully.....

Can you open the sunroof in a downpour, give it a few minutes then shut it and remain leak free?

Remember if you lie your nose will grow!

Stew,

[:)]

Honestly it doesn't leak. I can open it, take the glass out and put it back in and it still doesn't leak - look, my nose is the same length. I know you are finding this hard to believe but it is true, when it rains no water comes round the seal. I've got other leaks but that is a different story.

As I hinted at above I have taken it completely apart and refitted the seal using is thin bead of quality mastic between the seal & frame and the seal & roof. I also took a lot of time to make sure the lip of the seal which touches the glass was in properly so that it applies even pressure all round.

If you still don't believe me I'll see if I can find some pictures from when I did it.
--
Tim.

[sloss]

Of course I believe you - you take me far too seriously.....

I did a refit job on my Discovery one - after getting dripped on all night when I had to sleep in it but that's another story.

Decent sealant in first and made sure the thing was evenly distributed made the difference.

Jega's is a Series so it will always leak but torrents is not acceptable nor necessary. Just track them down and apply a fix - mastic, new seal or bend the frame appropriately - try not to break glass though!

If it's that bad then shine a torch from outside or inside and inspect for leak paths from the other side.

Stew,

[LandyAndy™]

[jega]

Thanks for the ideas each and everyone.

Brilliant idea using the torch. I will try that tonight in deep darkness, (now if only I can shoot that streetlight outside).

I have tried the slow flow water treatment but that does not work. Just can't see the flowing in. Tried in segments even. Frustrating you know, water building up and don't know where from.

Tolleys can be found here as sealants but I must look out for the creeping crack cure.

As for the top right corner, I may have to bend it somehow and create a lip so the water flows on to the sidescreen.

Driving in heavy rain is like back to basics driving in the days before air conditioning. The windscreen and sidescreen fogs up. One hand on the wheel (steering I mean, knowing how precise you guys are), one hand wiping the glass and then for me the dash. Driving slowly, wipers single speed. Slower still at night. Luckily, these days highways and streets have lights. Helps a lot in rain even with headlights on.

The early cars had the quarter glass designed so you can keep it open and direct air to the inside, in light rain though.

By the way we must have that famous yellow cloth. Every car has one, why yellow I do not know. Must be a left over British tradition, so you guys may know.

Meanwhile, I will try the above and report back.

Thanks all,

Jega.

[(Gray)]

The roof above the load bay on my SIII sags slightly, so when it rains two pools of water gather between the ribs. The middle rib leaks slightly, but instead of dripping between the rear wheelarches, the water runs along the inside of the ribs and down to the front windscreen and down the rear view mirror.

Tim, IIRC, aren't you a local councillor?

[:)]

[sloss]

[(Gray)]

[jojo]

Anyone remember when Tim tried to tell us that his shelves were straight?

[LandyAndy™]

I keep hearing about these shelves.

Any chance of a picture Tim?

[:)]

jega, I hope you don't mind all this frivolity in your thread.

Those others are just jealous because I've got such nice shelves! And now I'm not reposting a picture.
--
Tim.

[xenon]

might be a silly question, how do you get the sunroof glass out? got a 95 defender, cant see anything that looks like it detaches, other than by unscrewing the hinges

[alclark]

I could always be silly and suggest a big hammer. The glass would come out, just in several thousand pieces.

[(Gray)]

[jega]

No harm with the frivolity guys.

I've been hoping to solve the problem today. Hot sunny morning.

I tried the light shining last night but no light came through.
Today I tried shooting water from inside out, but no gush outside.
I checked the ribs on the roof again dripping water along them but none dribbled into the car.
So I tried the water drip on the sills. It leaks but frustrating when you just do not know how.
I have narrowed it to the sill above the doors on either side but how it gets in still beats me.

I let it all dry out in the heat and intended to continue in the evening. My plan was to remove the masking tape I used earlier and now seal all the gaps below the outer sill with silicone which I have a lot of. But it rained heavily and so could not work. I even sat in the car while rained to see if I could spot a dribble, but no.
I will try tomorrow evening and report back on Tuesday. With pics.

So guys, standby for the continuation of this episode....now it's time for a Tiger !!!

You guys can feel free to keep up the frivolous talk in the meantime. By the way...shelves?

Cheers !!!

Jega.

[jega]

Hello All,

Well, after those rainy afternoons last week, I managed to do something in the mornings yesterday and today.

The leak was coming from the right corner sill and the sill over the drivers door.

I found a leftover can of rubberised spray sealant and tried this on the sill over the drivers door. For the corner and the sill over the windsreen, I applied silicone. Of course, when you really need it, it did not rain yesterday evening for a test.

This morning, I poured water over the usual places and felt my hand inside the sills. Did this for a while and well well well, no leak.

I hope this is the final solution to the problem. Turns to be a simple solution, but narrowing it to the exact spot is really trying. Now for some pics.

General view of the roof after taping ribs and front.


This is the problem corner and sill.



This is the front sill with no leak but suspect for very slow seeps.



This is the inside of the corner top right of the driver.



The following are after the seal was applied.







So, I hope that this is the end of the roof leak problem........fingers crossed and all.......or being Land Rover is it?

Jega.

[Dixon8]

I have suffered with being a freeloading spammer who likes answering 6 year old threads

[Nightbar]

I re-silicon the roof on my 90 every year or so but even then she still leaks. Well - a bit like the waterfall described above.

When it rains heavily the water gets in between the roof and the roof seal then sloshes around until I go round a left hand bend and then the passenger gets about a pint of water in their lap. Great fun!

I did have the roof seal replaced under warranty 10/11 years ago but that only fixed the problem for about 6 months.

I did find that when I fitted the front roof rack the feet on the rack must have been squeezing the roof in just the right place as she stopped taking on water.

[absquatulation]

I've got the photos of Tims shelves, but as he doesn't play here anymore there is little point in posting them.....

[DD]

Shame, the shelves were a good talking point.

Where does Tim play now? Can we entice him back?

[Nightbar]