Poor fitting,loose,leaking Moon Roof (1 Viewer)

[JerseyCruiser]

I have a 1993 TLC with a poor fitting moon roof it does not go flush with the roof (about 1/2 inch too low) and the glass is loose on the tracks allowing me to push the glass up about a 1/2 inch when its closed. Its leaking right above the DS "Oh S**T handle" on the A pillar then down the molding behind the dash onto the floor. All the drain tubes and rocker drain slits are completly open, been there done that. I got in it today in a heavy rain with the trim removed from the bottom of the glass i can see the water flowing in at a fast rate from the rear of the seal. Then I can hear the front drain tubes make a sucking sound when they become overwhemled with the high flow of water. I want to know if my tracks might be worn out or bent could the PO have stood on it or put a large load on the roof. I have adjusted the glass as per FSM to center it in the opening but still can't repair the looseness and the leak. Can I adjust this or do I need new parts i.e. tracks arms, and glass? Is the seal that old that it has shrunk so much that the seal is shot?

Thanx
George

 

[Beowulf]

... and the glass is loose on the tracks allowing me to push the glass up about a 1/2 inch when its closed.[/quote]

I've never had to work on a moonroof but I can tell you that this is not normal and is likely your root problem. Fix this "looseness" and you'll probably fix the leak along with wind noise, etc.

-B-

 

[NorCal Cruiser]

George- Have you had a chance to work on your sun roof yet? If so what did you do and did it stop the water leak?

(Sorry about the Hijack)

I just bought a '83 FJZ80 last week- there's some wind noise which goes away if I raise the roof just a little bit. When I went through a car wash today there were no leaks during the high pressure wash but during the rinse water started leaking just above the DS grab bar. It looks like there's a drain hole in the front corner of the sun roof- should I start by making sure this is clean?

Thanks for the help!

 

[carsonmac]

I'm having the exact same problem with my 97 40th, post up what you did if you had any luck fixing it, I'm gonna fool with mine this weekend and see what I can get done.

 

[Beowulf]

NorCal Cruiser and carsonmac,

We have covered leaking moonroofs a dozen times so you should have plenty of posts to read in the archives.

In summary, the drains are sufficiently large enough to flow water from a hurricane if they are working correctly. The roof will not leak if sealed correctly. The rockers have large enough slits to drain water if they are cleaned out and properly flowing.

Ya just gotta find where the issue is and fix it.

-B-

 

[CodyRx7]

I've found that my roof when open so the back of it is venting up, will not close 100% when I just use the close vent button.

I have to back it out a few inches with the slide open button, and then close it with the slide closed button for a good seal.

 

[Darwood]

Has anyone figured out how to fix the looseness? I can press up on mine a bit and it moves about 1/4 inch. With the turbulence of the roof rack that things gets noisy.

 

[Rookie2]

Mines developed an annoying a$$ rattle here lately, so if any of you figure that out... post it up!


Rookie2

 

[aim]

Worn out rubber gasket around the glass? Replacing the glass fixed my noise and water leaks. Six nuts and 5 minutes - and some dog food. Mine leaked despite clear drains and made noise unless I fussed with the tilt/close.

 

[NorCal Cruiser]

What was the dog food for?

 

[Rich]

What was the dog food for?

danpay

 

[Rookie2]

Worn out rubber gasket around the glass? Replacing the glass fixed my noise and water leaks. Six nuts and 5 minutes - and some dog food. Mine leaked despite clear drains and made noise unless I fussed with the tilt/close.

This sounds like me. What do you mean you replaced the glass? The whole thing? Why do you think that would get rid of the noise... new gaskets on the new glass?

 

[IdahoDoug]

I seem to recall looking at one with a loose sunroof and there were some round guide pins with a plastic bushing that slid in the tracks. On this particular truck they were worn - flat spotted I think. When I got home, I cleaned and lubed the track where these run on my truck. I've never had trouble with mine, was done as PM, but this wear would directly translate into sunroof movement when closed. Seems like I recall the guides hit a ramp of some sort as the roof closed, which raised the roof and placed proper pressure on the seals to keep water out.

DougM

 

[Rookie2]

I searched the archieves on it a while back but didn't really get anywhere on it. Mine is a pretty fast rattle and sounds like hard rubber/soft plastic tapping against another hard surface. The sound goes away when I put slight upward pressure on the rear PS side of the sunroof. I can also work the height slightly with the open/close button, and that will make it go away. I'll check into your slide pin theory.

Did I mention I hate rattles and noises? Just haven't been able to figure this one out.

Thanks,
Rookie2

 

[aim]

This sounds like me. What do you mean you replaced the glass? The whole thing? Why do you think that would get rid of the noise... new gaskets on the new glass?

Yes. The new glass comes with a new gasket. It also comes with metal brackets, which you screw to the rest of the mechanism. Pry off the trim and you are done in about five muinutes. Playing with the nuts that hold the glass on (without actually replacing the glass) made no difference, replacing the glass (and the gasket) made things perfect. Your mileage may vary.

The dog food refers to the actual cost of the glass - I do not remember it, but it was a lot less than I feared. In fact, I remember being shocked at how much cheaper it was than what I feared and ordering it from CDan on the spot.

 

[JerseyCruiser]

I'm about to break down and order the sunroof glass from Cdan and hope that will be the end of the leak so I can pull out the carpet and wash it before it gets cold here in the NE. The drain holes are fine but the seal is hard when compared to the wife's Rav4 which is much softer. I'll also check out those roller pins this weekend perhaps that my looseness problem hopfully they might be able to be replaced let you know. Good luck!

George

 

[GXO]

My seals are noisy because i have discovered some rather LONG bolts used to seal the roof rack nutserts...the seal his the bolts.

Oh, and I think I may have fixed that sunroof only going back 5 inches thing...cutting some bolts in the next week or so

 

[JerseyCruiser]

I have finally fixed my leaking sun roof 100% and the looseness. I must beat a dead horse but before anything is adjusted or replaced at the sun roof your drain tubes and rocker slits must be completely clear. I snaked all the drain tubes with plastic weed trimmer line its stiff but not to much as to make a hole in the tube. make sure you clear the rocker slit with only a zip tie in the narrow drain, anything else will scratch the paint and the galvanized coating and begin to rust. I poured dish detergent down the tubes from the sun roof and than ran warm water down them until the suds were gone. With the tubes clear the next thing was to replace the sun roof. Unfortunately there is no way to get that old, hardened gasket on the glass to seal. The roof is not that expensive Cdan's smart shopper price is $282.00 IMO a fair price for a mildew free interior! I discovered that the loose upward play in the glass is first caused by the poor fitting sun roof seal the other is two round rubber bumpers that the roof closes against. In my roof mechanism they had been flattened out from years of the roof being closed against them. I was able to spin them with my finger to put the flat spot on the bottom side so the roof doesn't close on the flat spot otherwise it will have that upward play. The best thing would be to replace these bumpers due to the fact that one of them on mine ends up spinning and exposing the flat side when the roof is operated a few times. I have to check with Cdan to see if they are available and not part of the entire sun roof mechanism. The last thing I replaced was the damaged corner pieces that cover the sunroof cables, they will prevent any drips from the roof being opened from going into the headliner. I sealed the underside with silicone just to be sure. If you are having leaks after all these repairs you more than likely have a leaking windshield gasket. My windshield had water pooling up on the bottom left and right sides of the seal and would run behind the dash then under the carpet ( more mold!) Your seal will need to be replaced because it will be useless once removed and if its old there is no way to properly seal it again. If your windshield is old, chipped, and getting cloudy like mine just replace it. I got a PPG with the blue tint at the top, its very nice. Make sure the installer is sealing the seal to the body and the seal to the glass with urethane otherwise it will still leak. Mine was done by A-1 Auto Glass in Passaic NJ (ask Ron the owner to install it) if anyone needs one in North Jersey. The price with the glass and labor was $230.00 plus $29.00 to Cdan for the seal. Other than that, thats about it!

 

[JerseyCruiser]

Update:

The roof still rattles on one side because the rubber bumpers keep spinning back to the flattened side up. I checked with Dan and those rubber bumpers are not sold separately and are replaced with other sun roof mechanism components. There is got to be a way to repair or replace them?

 

[gray]

?? put a squirt of Shoe Goo on the flattened side and round it off with your finger?? Not sure if it will stick to the rubber part, however Shoe Goo is made to stick to the soles of running shoes.

Are you sure that when new that rubber part is supposed to be round and not have a flat side to it?