Water Leak (1 Viewer)

[ScottG]

I have a leak on both passenger and drivers side on the upper supports. Not sure what the piece is called but on both sides it's between the front quarter panel and the roof. In the interior you can see the seam for the headliner and that's where the leak seems to be at on both sides.
I've searched the forum and it could be the gasket sealing the windshield. But I'm not sure. Just thought I'd see in anyone can lend some advice?
Thanks!

 

[MACFJ60]

I had a similar issue on both the A pillars on my FJ60. Replacing the windshield gasket fixed the passenger side however I still have a small leak on the driver's side. I believe I need to refresh the sealant in the gutters that run on the outside of the A pillar.

 

[Wallygator]

It's the gutters. I used 3M body sealant. No more leaks

 

[sbelinge]

I just had the same issue fixed two days ago (I hope) with a new windshield and gasket for $300 at my local shop, Landcruiser Northwest. I haven't had a chance to test it yet but my windshield was cracked and terribly pitted so I went this route first. I'll have to check the gutters thanks Wallygator.
I will say that a new windshield is really nice. It's so clear I keep thinking it's not there.

 

[ScottG]

Thanks! I'll try the gutters first.

 

[liltimmy]

I've got the same issue(s)*. Noticed dampness/trickle last week on my drive home on the A Pillar / "Oh sh!t" Handle. Wetness shorted my parking lights relay, took the fuse out and noticed significant wetness on the inside of the paneling there as well as under the mat. I picked up some silicone sealant and slapped that in the Driver's side gutter. I put some sealant on the windshield seal where I thought the problem might exist. It has slowed the leak considerably but it's still present just at a slower rate.

*I went out to the rig at coffee hour (10am) to check the leak, figured I'd check the passenger side and there is a small bead forming on the inside @ the A Pillars as well. Popped the panel off, the padding is wet and there is a slow stream from a leak on the inside there as well.

Next logical step is to reseal the windshield I guess as well as fully seal all the rain gutters...

Anyone have any experience with leaks elsewhere that could cause this?

@sbelinge - I'm in PDX as well. How's your fix working with the current weather we're having?

 

[CruiserHappy]

The leak I had was from the seam seal behind the fender. If it is raining, or someone using a hose, i was able to lay upside down and see where the leak came from. See here

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/found-why-my-truck-stinks-leak.186059/page-2#post-9073420

 

[liltimmy]

Well I definitely have two leaks at the identical location on the A Pillars. Funny you link that thread, I thought maybe somehow I've got a leak in that same area on both sides...Did you end up fixing it / how big of a PITA was this to fix?

 

[CruiserHappy]

I did fix it very easily and the leak stopped. I got some 3m seam sealer from autozone and removed the outer fender from the car. Took a couple of hours per side.

 

[gregnash]

Things to be aware of....
- there is a special way to install the Cruiser windshield gasket. There is a thread or two out there (@Spike Strip) that show what is needed by your installer to ensure a good seal
- Definitely check your gutter seals to ensure they are good and if not look at some new seam sealer.
- when the windshield is pulled take a good look at the seam around the windshield itself to ensure that there is no rust spots. If so, that needs to be taken care of.
- There is a specific "Precision Gaskets" gasket that must be used, all others (aside from OEM) are imposters and will cause leaks.

 

[sbelinge]

I've got the same issue(s)*. Noticed dampness/trickle last week on my drive home on the A Pillar / "Oh sh!t" Handle. Wetness shorted my parking lights relay, took the fuse out and noticed significant wetness on the inside of the paneling there as well as under the mat. I picked up some silicone sealant and slapped that in the Driver's side gutter. I put some sealant on the windshield seal where I thought the problem might exist. It has slowed the leak considerably but it's still present just at a slower rate.

*I went out to the rig at coffee hour (10am) to check the leak, figured I'd check the passenger side and there is a small bead forming on the inside @ the A Pillars as well. Popped the panel off, the padding is wet and there is a slow stream from a leak on the inside there as well.

Next logical step is to reseal the windshield I guess as well as fully seal all the rain gutters...

Anyone have any experience with leaks elsewhere that could cause this?

@sbelinge - I'm in PDX as well. How's your fix working with the current weather we're having?

2
@liltimmy- Well, not so good. The leak on the passenger side is still there and I think I may have an issue with the driver side too! Nothing like a nice Portland rain to bring out the leaks. When the windshield and gasket were done they used OEM parts (except the glass) they were pretty adamint about it being the best way to do the job. I'm hoping it's just coincidental that it's still leaking. I pulled the ss trim from the driver side gutter (took about a minute to do) and it dosen't look bad but I plan on getting some sealant tomorrow and hitting both sides.
By the way I'm in Camas whereabouts in Ptown are you? I'll have to hit up the O'Reillys on Sandy to get the sealant. I should hit up Laurelwood for a growler to make me feel better.

 

[CruiserHappy]

2
@liltimmy- Well, not so good. The leak on the passenger side is still there and I think I may have an issue with the driver side too! Nothing like a nice Portland rain to bring out the leaks. When the windshield and gasket were done they used OEM parts (except the glass) they were pretty adamint about it being the best way to do the job. I'm hoping it's just coincidental that it's still leaking. I pulled the ss trim from the driver side gutter (took about a minute to do) and it dosen't look bad but I plan on getting some sealant tomorrow and hitting both sides.
By the way I'm in Camas whereabouts in Ptown are you? I'll have to hit up the O'Reillys on Sandy to get the sealant. I should hit up Laurelwood for a growler to make me feel better.

Is it coming in from the roof for sure? Up here a little north of you I found my issue behind the fender...

 

[liltimmy]

Well I cleared out my crap in the garage last night and barely got 'er inside (only down side to having a nice lift and over-sized tires!) to dry off in order to attack the issue outside of the rain (and with a cold beer in hand)

@CruiserHappy - It's definitely coming in from up top - somewhere. I put another application all the way around the windshield and in the rain gutters last night. It has slowed down the leak but not solved it. There's still a consistent stream/dampness on both sides of windshield next to and under the gasket on the headliner. There's definitely a seam somewhere that is allowing water thru on both sides - the mirror problem is leading me towards this being a windshield problem...which is both good and bad. Good in that hopefully I've found the problem, bad in that I am not competent enough to do the work to get this done properly without future issues. If that works for the leak/dampness on A-pillars but not for the slower trickle under the panels I'll have to pop the fenders off and put sealant on there next.

@Sblinge - I live in Southwest. I hit up my local Napa for ish to help with this and other projects. I've definitely been needing a few IPAs while dealing with this headache. I called the guys at LCNW, said they could do a reseal but said to budget $320 for the job and materials as they'd more than likely crack the windshield popping it off...I gotta figure out if I'll have them do it, or go somewhere else. I'm gonna call around get some quotes. This is not a project I budgeted for, I'd rather be focusing on my other projects!

 

[WHG423]

In the same boat. I resealed my gutters but I am still getting water in the driver's floorboard. I have not removed the fender, but doubtful that is the issue. I am leaning towards the windshield as well. My windshield is scratched and pitted, so I would like to replace it anyway. Not in the budget right now. My cruiser does lives in the garage so I'm not too worried. I am going to do a good hose leak check and see if I can find my leak. Best of luck with yours. I will bee watching to see what you find!

 

[sbelinge]

@ScottG, have you had any luck tracking down your leak?

 

[sbelinge]

I finally got the chance to add a bit of sealant (3M 8300 Auto body Seam Sealer) to my A-Pillars and so far so good. I haven't had a really good chance to drive in heavy rain yet. I removed all the chrome from the gutters and found only one spot of rust on a spot weld. I'll fix that soon. I was also tempted to remove all the old sealer and reseal the whole thing but ultimately decided to only patch the known leaks, for now. The space along the A-Pillar is pretty tight so I filled a large syringe with sealer and was able to easily get it where I needed it.

 

[ScottG]

@sbelinge I ordered the 3M product but haven't applied it yet. I'm lucky because it's dry here in Colorado and my FJ is in the Garage. I'll let you know what happens but it's snowing now so I likely won't see enough moisture until spring.

 

[liltimmy]

I've got 3M urethane I'm using around the windshield gasket (although I took the rig to my body shop they said it's more than likely NOT the windshield and/or gasket). They suggested I seal off the OEM roof rack screws w/ the 3M Urethane and some rubber disc seals. Of course it's A) freezing cold up here and B) even though I'm in the Northwest we're now experiencing a mini-dry spell so I can't test out my seal. All in good time I guess and hopefully this solves the A-Pillar leak.

I'm also going to pop the hood and flush out any debris and hopefully unclog $h!t there that might be causing the leak into the front quarter panels - this was also the suggestion of the body shop. They said more than likely the build up of crap near and under the cowl was forcing water into the cab. Fingers crossed or else it's off with the front quarter panels and seam sealing up front which will be a PITA.

@sbelinge - did your sealing the gutters work?