How to seal off sunroof (1 Viewer)

[monster80]

Dear All,

I have a persistant leak from the sunroof of my 80, since I dont use it much anyway, was thinking of just sealing it off. I have read many posts of leaky sunroofs and would think to seal it off permanently would be a good solution.

Would applying silicone do the trick? Anyone out there who has sealed theirs?

I dont want to remove the glass, just seal off the gap between the roof and the sunroof glass/rubber.

 

[thestunts]

Silicon would work and some of have done it in fact. Search and it would prevail.

I've personally taped it up. @ Wal mart, in the paint section for all the window crap, they have weather tape. It's clear and as wide duct tape .. it's for home windows and stuff. I bought that and just put tape over the edges ... Works well. Clear enough so you don't see it. Has been through the car wash a couple times with no problems either. If your concerned about paint ... maybe not a good idea. I'm not.

Cheers

 

[MHTARSTON]

Have you tried the trick by feeding electrical wire in the rubber gasket to make it expand and seal? This worked like a champ for me.

 

[joseywales]

Have you tried the trick by feeding electrical wire in the rubber gasket to make it expand and seal? This worked like a champ for me.

Care to expand on this mod? Link to a thread?

 

[Schwein]

i used industrial silicon on an old jetta that i had to seal the sunroof off (for similar reasons) worked great, while your at it i would remove the wires that are attached to the sunroof switch, so nobody opens the roof and ruins all your careful silicon work!

 

[B Legit]

I used black RTV gasket maker from napa to do this. It is holding up great and my cab is bone dry. I was planning on removing the switch connection as well. I could take a photo of how it looks if you are interested.

 

[jlg32281]

is the sunroof on it's own fuse, if so, you could pull the fuse. if it's on a fuse with other stuff, then please ignore this comment.

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

You've ensured the drains are clear and replaced the little plastic parts that warp and cause leaks, right? Or just looking to be done with it once and for all? Other than putting wire around the seal, some people have used a bike tire inner tube and stretched that around the glass under the seal. The net effect is to push the seal outward a bit and create a tighter seal. There are threads on this. I tried it on mine to stop a rattle. It ended up making the seal too tight (and did not stop the rattle), so I pulled it out.

 

[kbushnz]

My sunroof seals were shot and had huge gaps which water would pour in and over load the drains.
So I masked it off 1/4 gap between roof and sunroof.
Wiped in a bead of silicone. Not too much just a thin coat.
Removed tape and left it to cure.
Then ran a razor blade around it. In about the middle.
Now I can open the sunroof and it has a tight as seal.....

Cure in place seal.

 

[B Legit]

Mine would no longer pull all the way up and set level with the roof. Only operational fix would have been replacement which was more money than I cared to spend, so I sealed it up.

 

[skibob]

Does the seal just wrap around the glass or is it glued on?
Seems like the inner tube trick would be a cool fix if it isn't too fat to allow the glass passage through the roof opening.
I just might give that a try tonight, the will be at the gym so I have a couple of hours quiet time to tinker.
Nothing like working on the sunroof during a rainstorm.
If it works if not,

 

[BirfMark]

Care to expand on this mod? Link to a thread?

I think this is the thread he's referring to:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/281666-2-minute-fix-sunroof-noise.html

 

[80t0ylc]

I think this is the thread he's referring to:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/281666-2-minute-fix-sunroof-noise.html

This thread is for wind noise, not sealing it up for a leak. You can only put this fix on the front edge of the sun roof.

 

[monster80]

Thanks Guys,

Currently I have taped it off using duct tape, however it disintegrates over a period of time due to heat and water, so I suppose silicone is the answer.

Also the tape has helped get rid of the rattle, I just want to seal it off and be done with it, its so annoying to have wet seatbelts and a cold wet cabbin, esp in stormy cold weather.

I would be interested to know if the sunroof has its own fuse so it can be disconnected.

 

[thestunts]

If you open up the "control panel", you can disconnect the switches.

 

[phatairman]

Replace the sunroof glass. That permanently fix my wind noise issue and water leaking in.

 

[OGBeno]

If you are really serious about permanently getting rid of the sunroof, I would take out all of the sunroof parts, sell them and get some money for them (they are really expensive new OEM from Toyota), and then go to a body shop and have them throw in some metal and weld it shut.

Or, just throw a .50cal in there.

 

[LittleRock80]

Have you tried the trick by feeding electrical wire in the rubber gasket to make it expand and seal? This worked like a champ for me.

This worked for me as well. It's time consuming, and your hands and fingers are sore afterwards, but it does the trick.

Jwp

 

[B Legit]

If you are really serious about permanently getting rid of the sunroof, I would take out all of the sunroof parts, sell them and get some money for them (they are really expensive new OEM from Toyota), and then go to a body shop and have them throw in some metal and weld it shut.


There are multiple threads about this as an option and I just don't get the logic. You're talking about at least a grand worth of work to make this happen: metal and welding, new headliner, labor ect.... would be cheaper to just buy oem stuff wouldn't it? No one would be better equipped to answer that question than you right Beno? Maybe the new parts are more than I am expecting, but I doubt the guy is going to be able to sell his admittedly leaky sunroof assembly. The purchaser could just pay his buddy to come over and pour water on the seats and floorboard every evening and get the same effect.

 

[B Legit]

I do like the idea of mounting a Barrett M82 on top though.