Rain Leak!!!

[kdunn]

Arggg... that what I get for buying a used car over ebay... After the first big rain I feel a drip and notice a wet spot in the headliner in the drivers corner. I do have sunroof, but did not find any obvious wetness around the inside of it. Looking outside, the only obvious thing that looks questionable is near the top corner of the windshield their seems to be a little dent in the molding.I guess I need to pull the headliner to try and tell a little better where the leak is coming from. Any experience with this type of thing in the past?

[kdunn]

I guess I should learn to use the search feature.... After finding a few related threads I went out the car to check the sunroof drains. (I didn’t even know that sunroofs had drains.) Sure enough, I saw the blade of a small maple seed sticking out of the drain hole. There was a little standing water down the left side channel. Pretty sure I found the culprit. Thanks for a great forum!

[lovemyraffe]

I hope that you fixed your problem. Sometimes the windows can leak if the haven't properly been sealed, but where the water is collecting I would assume it is coming from the sunroof.

[kdunn]

It's back.....I thought this problem was fixed, but no such luck. After dealing with drips and leaks for the last month I finally had time and reasonable weather to drop the headliner this weekend and now I can't get it to leak!A hose on the roof couldn't reproduce the leak and neither could rain the past 24 hours.The corner of the sunroof develops a pretty constant drip, but so far, the water flows down the drains as expected. There also appears to be extra caulking at that corner of the windshield on the inside, but no water to be found...For now I am driving around with no headliner hoping to catch it in the act. Any other suggestions?

[star_deceiver]

Patience... You could always try sealing it with some spray sealent or maybe re-caulk it.

[kdunn]

Thanks for the suggestion... at this point I am not even sure where I would attempt a fix. The sunroof leak is where the sunroof meets the car roof so I don't think I can do much there. Everything else is still dry after 48 hours of rain.I am beginning to wonder if the headliner or trim I removed could be wicking water from somewhere.

[IMakeVibes]

So you're sure it is actually coming through the sunroof? Possibly the seal around the glass? Is there any noticeable damage in this area or any variation from one side to the other? Is it a factory sunroof? Any damage, accidents, or other repairs that you know of that may affect this? I guarantee you it didn't leave the plant this way as we did fairly thorough leak tests on all vehicles. But what has happened to it since then is anybodys guess. I realize its a pain, but if you're able to, completely drop the headliner and leave it off until you get it figured out. This should allow you to find the actual source of the moisture.Good luck!!!

[kdunn]

From the outside a little water seems to pool in that corner of the sunroof, but there is no noticeable gap or anything. From the inside it appears that the water is coming in at the seal where the sunroof meets the roof not through the sunroof.I bought the car about a year ago so I don't know much of the history, but it appears to be a factory sunroof and there is no obvious damage in the area other than the dent shown in the windshield trim.The headliner has been out of the car since the weekend and I have yet to find any moisture even with the constant rain we have been having... Thanks for the suggestions.

[sublime1970]

Had a similar problem bout a yr ago...would only leak if parked on an incline (driveway.) Finally traced it to the bolts that hold the roofrack down on the sides of the roof.Took it to a local body shop & dude put fresh blue silicone in the holes (total cost $80) & it hasn't leaked since.

[kdunn]

Thanks for the suggestion! I do usually park at an incline and notice it more often when parked there. I will start concentrating my efforts in that area. I was just about to give up and put the headliner back in....

[musicmanmu]

It's weird...about 3 times since I bought my 09 Vibe brand new, it's leaked in the manner you've described - through the sunroof area. It was never a lot, however. Just a few drips. It hasn't done it in more than a year. Weird.

[kdunn]

The next chance I get I'm putting the headliner back up...I don' think the roof rack has anything to do with it since I am parking nose up and the roof rack doesn't start for quite a ways back.Still bone dry since I've removed the headliner

[IMakeVibes]

Quote, originally posted by kdunn »The next chance I get I'm putting the headliner back up...I don' think the roof rack has anything to do with it since I am parking nose up and the roof rack doesn't start for quite a ways back.Still bone dry since I've removed the headliner But you know, if you put the headliner back you're going to get a freak summer storm and its going to start leaking again...at least thats how my luck goes.Good luck!!!