Hi folks i have a wet patch in front of the storage area on the off side of the boot .I have with the hatch open run a deluge of water into the hinge areas and down the channels and no water ingress .....but with the boot closed if i pour water from in front of the aerial and onto the window area then open the boot you can see the water coming out from behind the metal panel that the speaker housing and moulding mounts to and then dripping down directly in front of the netted storage area . now this i would think points to the aerial seal but this seems to be intact and tight . so question is would you remove the aerial and reseal underneath and if so how do you remove it or would you seal around the base of the aerial with silicone which can end up looking a bit crappy ???

Cheers guys

Dave:eek:

Edited 9 March, 200917 yr by Fastkwak
schoolboy typo error

anybody ?????

The roof aerial is sealed by means of an o-ring. I've just fitted a new aerial. You need to remove the plastic trim x3 at the back; remove the grab handles & the upper trim behind the rear doors & pull the roof-lining out of the door surround trims to just in front of the rear doors to allow it to drop a bit. You then need a 22mm spanner to undo the nut.

I would make sure it is the aerial leaking before you do all this. In the case of my car (similar symptoms) it was soaking through the foam by the boot lid hinges where a small piece of sealant was missing.

I'll try to post a picture of the aerial base later if I can find it.

Cheers mate but as i said in my OP with the door open i filled the hinge housing and poured a flood of water down the channels with no effect whatsoever but with the hatch closed i poured the water over the roof towards the hatch and the aerial and then opened the boot and you could see the water dribbling down for a couple of seconds before it stopped now surely if it was soaking through the foam it would have ..A. dribbled through for longer or B. dribbled through when the hatch was open also ????

Try this:

Get some plasticene or similar & build a small 'dam' on your roof, around the aerial & fill it with water. Does it run away?

I found with my leak the majority was coming in through a hole in the rear panel behind the bumper but some was seeping in through the sponge by the hinges. This was then running down the inside face of the outer C pillar inner panel. The leak was at it's worst when my car was facing downwards on my (steep) drive.

Others have reported leaks from blocked/separated sunroof drains; round the aerial & from broken/rusted roof rail studs (under the black trims that run down each side of your roof).

My experience is that tracing leaks is tedious & time consuming.

Good luck

Removing the ariel can be a bit of a pain. Removing the plastic side pillar trim is ok. The top roof trim that you need to remove to expose the lining and ariel nut is held in by very tight metal clips that slot into the plastic runners at the back. I neally took my knuckles off trying to remove this and then ended up using a long flat screwdriver to push the metal clips in to release the trim. Be sure that it is the ariel leaking to save this hassle.

rgds Mark.

Also, just thought, most people with leaking aerials have noticed because their roof lining is getting wet.

There is no double skin under the aerial fitment, so check your roof lining to see if it's wet.

Can't seem to upload any images at the moment. I'll try later.

AHH HAA ....God i sounded like Alan Partridge then ......I have tried the dam round the aerial and nothing at all came through ...bonus .I then once again filled the hinge housings and nothing .... I then closed the hatch and poured water through the gap at the top opened the boot and bingo water drips .All i can surmise is that the hinge when closed is putting pressure on a seal somewhere. I got my fingers into the hinge housing (awkward with my big hands) and the seal at the far outside and nearest to the back feels all squidgy and loose ....checked the passenger side hinge (which isnt leaking and that one feels much firmer sooo da daaaaa by jove i think ive got it .... Hmmmn all that remains now is to find some way of sealing it when we have a couple of dry warm days !!!!!! :eek:

By the way Mr The Ors thanks for the dam tip a bloooming good idea that was

Cheers

Dave

Edited 10 March, 200917 yr by Fastkwak
Yet another schoolboy typo

Well a bottle of Captain Tolleys creeping crack cure is on its its way so will let you know what its like ...when we get a couple of dry days that is

Cheers

Dave

I must admit i am not a lover of fixing leaks with sealant as the real issue is probably going to resurface at some point again. I would tend to replace the boot seal, but appreciate that sealant may do the trick.

check the chanels where the boot dtruts mount, theres 2 spot welds, make sure they havnt broken off, and also check the ball for the boot strut is tight

I must admit i am not a lover of fixing leaks with sealant as the real issue is probably going to resurface at some point again. I would tend to replace the boot seal, but appreciate that sealant may do the trick.

Cheers for the input mate but if you had read the post it has nothing to do with the boot seal as it is coming in somewhere inside the hinge housing which recesses into the roof hence needing to be sealed as the water is ingressing down inside the C pillar not the seal

Cheers

Dave

check the chanels where the boot dtruts mount, theres 2 spot welds, make sure they havnt broken off, and also check the ball for the boot strut is tight

Thanks mate but as i said in earlier posts the water is not ingressing from the channel at all ...I have totally eliminated this area with constant testing but thanks anyway

Cheers

Dave:thumbup:

check the chanels where the boot dtruts mount, theres 2 spot welds, make sure they havnt broken off, and also check the ball for the boot strut is tight

You were right mate i had poured loads of water down the channels with no ingress but when pouring it down with the hatch down in it came ....... so i had a close look at the spot welds and they looked okay but seeing as i had capt tolleys creeping crack cure to hand i stuck a blob in the spot weld (if it sits its ok if the capillary action kicks in ....its a leak) the weld above the strut mount leached straight away ... so five applications later and sorted water tight car YYYAAAAAYYYYYYY so thank you for the help and info you are all stars

PS i think with the boot down the strut made a bit of a dam slowing the waterflow down enough to let it penetrate into the suspect weld when the boot was open the water flowed fast enough to not get in .

Cheers

Dave

Cheers for the input mate but if you had read the post it has nothing to do with the boot seal as it is coming in somewhere inside the hinge housing which recesses into the roof hence needing to be sealed as the water is ingressing down inside the C pillar not the seal

Cheers

Dave

Fair point Dave, Hopefully you have now isolated the area, so good luck on fixing it.