yeti Leaking Panoramic Roof - The Cause and the Cure

[Polypenko]

Tks. for your reply.

 

The easy and fastest fix is obviously applying Captain Tolley's sealant, is this does not do the job  than I will need to take

other measures to fix this problem of a faulty Panorama roof frame.

[chocki]

Do you think it would be advisable to put some Captains Tolleys's sealant in from above before the existing seal cracks?, I had my roof replaced a few months ago due to this exact leak under warranty and don't want it to happen again.

[rjp1958]

I have had a very bad experience with my 2014 Yeti 1.2 Elegance  with a panoramic roof . I experienced a wet driver`s footwell last Autumn . I took it to a local garage who cleared the drains and all was well for around 3 months  but  the problem recurred , the drains were  again cleared and the windscreen resealed as a belt and braces solution . Problem then recurred . I thought of  simply selling on the car but decided it would be unfair on an unsuspecting buyer so took it to the local main dealer. The car has had to be stripped drains replaced along with floor insulation and headlining  ( rotted over time ) net spend around a £1,000. The dealer when pressed admitted they had had `one or two like this ` and the part number for the drains had changed. 

I would be interested to know if this is a common experience , I suspect there was a design or manufacturing fault on the drains . 

[Martinb100]

2 hours ago, rjp1958 said:

I have had a very bad experience with my 2014 Yeti 1.2 Elegance  with a panoramic roof . I experienced a wet driver`s footwell last Autumn . I took it to a local garage who cleared the drains and all was well for around 3 months  but  the problem recurred , the drains were  again cleared and the windscreen resealed as a belt and braces solution . Problem then recurred . I thought of  simply selling on the car but decided it would be unfair on an unsuspecting buyer so took it to the local main dealer. The car has had to be stripped drains replaced along with floor insulation and headlining  ( rotted over time ) net spend around a £1,000. The dealer when pressed admitted they had had `one or two like this ` and the part number for the drains had changed. 

I would be interested to know if this is a common experience , I suspect there was a design or manufacturing fault on the drains . 

I have a late 2014 L&K. It had the same problem, when two and a half years old -  with water coming down the A Pillar into the drivers footwell. Fault was down to faulty seal/gasket on sunroof, not anything to do with drains design, specification/part change etc. My Yeti was not the only one my dealer had to sort with the same problem.

[rjp1958]

Many thanks that would make sense , I will check to make sure the seal has been checked .

[sir gar Vrs]

Yeti Full Sun Roof

Water leaking in on nearside, went in for complete replacement frame and reseal. We now have a leak now on driver side.

SHOCK  This week after heavy rain water was coming in via rear windscreen mirror mount. Its going in to main dealer in two weeks time so they can have another try to fix it !!

 

[rjp1958]

13 hours ago, sir gar Vrs said:

Yeti Full Sun Roof

Water leaking in on nearside, went in for complete replacement frame and reseal. We now have a leak now on driver side.

SHOCK  This week after heavy rain water was coming in via rear windscreen mirror mount. Its going in to main dealer in two weeks time so they can have another try to fix it !!

 

By way of update , I had the car stripped both drains and the seal replaced cost around £1,200 . So far it seems to be dry but I am debating whether to get rid of the car as I am nervous as to what will spring a leak next. Great shame as otherwise I love the car.

[sir gar Vrs]

As you say nice car BUT they can't all be Friday afternoon production cars !!! There must be something wrong on the production line. I wonder if the VW models have the same issue?

[sir gar Vrs]

As I reversed up the drive last week water came down from the rear view mirror fixing  so I wonder if the windscreen screen is leaking ?? We will see when the car goes in this week!!!!

[StuH78]

I have a Superb Estate with the panoramic roof and the drivers side rear corner leaks, it's really causing me distress now.  The drain tubes are one piece item and hold water when tested so no leaks.  I've sealed the tube on the drain and has improved things but the torrential rain today proved too much and back to a wet patch on the roof lining.  Really really getting frustrated.

 

I would like to remove the rear glass, the workshop manual shows it's pretty simple job with only four screws holding it in.  Anyone any experience of doing this? presume the OP must have done it? 

[Llanigraham]

38 minutes ago, StuH78 said:

I have a Superb Estate with the panoramic roof and the drivers side rear corner leaks, it's really causing me distress now.  The drain tubes are one piece item and hold water when tested so no leaks.  I've sealed the tube on the drain and has improved things but the torrential rain today proved too much and back to a wet patch on the roof lining.  Really really getting frustrated.

 

I would like to remove the rear glass, the workshop manual shows it's pretty simple job with only four screws holding it in.  Anyone any experience of doing this? presume the OP must have done it? 

 

You'd be better asking in the 'Burb section

[GPW]

Hello, first of all many thanks for the amazing information supplied. I wish I had found this article before stripping out our yeti interior and roof lining. This did however confirm that our car has exactly this problem. 

 

I currently have the car in the garage with the Tolleys drying. 

 

Will water test it tomorrow afternoon.

Fingers crossed. 

 

I am not suprised that these roofs end up leaking. The amount of flex in the frame when you close the roof huge and all that flex and pressure ends up on the failing joints. Totally a design issue. 

 

Oh well if this sorts it great if not the car is history. Love the car will replace it for a non sunroof model. 

 

Time will tell. 

[GPW]

Well extensive water test today and pleased to report no leaks.  Happy days. Thanks again for the excellent information. 

[moris]

Many thanks for very useful info, i have ordered Captain Tolley ....

 

Until i wait for Captain Tolley to arrive, What i can do to stop leaking or to use some other well accessible glue instead?

I dont have access to garage or to keep it at dry place, How to keep Captian Tolley not washed out after application?

 

Cheers

Moris

 

[JimFishboy]

Many thanks for this excellent post.

i recently discovereda swimming pool in my drivers side footwell. I have looked everywhere for the leak. I read about the sunroof issues but could not believe that amount of water could come from the sunroof without me seeing it, I had removed the a pillar trim but could not see anything. After reading your post I looked further, ah ha it's running under the roof lining, down inside the airbag , past the fuse box under the carpet, when it rains it's a constant drip.

now I just need to apply your fix.

many thanks it's saved me hours of work

[GPW]

On 09/12/2019 at 11:54, moris said:

Many thanks for very useful info, i have ordered Captain Tolley ....

 

Until i wait for Captain Tolley to arrive, What i can do to stop leaking or to use some other well accessible glue instead?

I dont have access to garage or to keep it at dry place, How to keep Captian Tolley not washed out after application?

 

Cheers

Moris

 

If you dont have access to a garage your only option would be a water proof tarp over the car. I ordered my Tolleys and it arrived the following day. 

Edited 15 December, 2019 by GPW

[moris]

Thanks @GPW,  will hope for no rain/snow.

 

It seems, it is design and construction issue not only for Yetis, but for VW/Skoda/Seat/Audi fitted with these , as well.

 

Some info from product ratings  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Captain-Tolleys-Creeping-Crack-sealer/dp/B003T6EJ9A/   there are comments in german, for the same problem as ours.

Follow google for "Panoramadach abdichten"  or "Mein Panoramadach am Passat war undicht. Mit diesem Wundermittel konnte ich es abdichten."  will lead you to  https://www.motor-talk.de/forum/panoramadach-undicht-rahmen-selbst-abdichten-t5968992.html  where you will find a lot of info /use copy/paste for translation for translate.google.com/.

Here you could see more details without dissembling anything + nice comments  in german  

 

Cheers

George

 

 

Edited 18 December, 2019 by john999boy
Added video at OP's request

[Dunkf]

Hi All

I’ve had My old 2009 tdi170 Yeti (pan roof) for nearly a year. I thought there may be a damp problem, but it was never too bad.

now however when it rains heavily I have water running out of the interior c pillar covers and down the rear seat belts. I’ve partially removes the headlining at the rear to have a look and both rear drain pipes seem to be in good shape and attached.

Do You think it is the pan roof or maybe the roof bars that are leaking?

any help will be VERY gratefully received 

cheers

Dunk

[ClimbingPaul]

Thanks for this great report.

My yeti has been suffering from a leak into the drivers footwell from the sunroof for over a year. It was still just within warranty when I discovered it, but the local main dealer, with technical support from Skoda UK, have been pretty hopeless at fixing it. I’ve just sent them a copy of the report because I think they have run out of ideas!

[elisetype25]

Does anyone have a link to the repair guide, it shows as unavailable.

 

Having spent the last 2.5 years "aquavacuuming" the passenger footwell, the leak has now evolved into dumping copious amounts of water from roof console when braking or descending hills. Desperate to find a solution without dismantling the car.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Regards, Neil

[JimFishboy]

I will try to upload it, i have found the following, remove the wind deflector (6 screws and just pop out the plastic snap ins, you will see a join line  where the plastic meets the aluminium runners, tis is the seal that perishes.

But some Captain Tolleys, this is the liquid silicon, make sure everything is dry, now this is what i found works best. Put 2 beads of silicon either side of the joint to form a well, let this set then you can fill the well with captain Tolleys and it will capilliary int the joint,

a little at a time and let it dry, then repeat until it stops being sucked in, maybe 10 or 12 trys to build it up, then you can remove the silicon well.

hope that helps, i am part way thru and it has reduced the leak to a few drips, so im hopefull it will cure it with a few more trys

good luck.

Yeti Panoramic Roof Leak.pdf

[Stubod]

10 hours ago, elisetype25 said:

Does anyone have a link to the repair guide, it shows as unavailable.

 

Having spent the last 2.5 years "aquavacuuming" the passenger footwell, the leak has now evolved into dumping copious amounts of water from roof console when braking or descending hills. Desperate to find a solution without dismantling the car.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Regards, Neil

 

If you are not bothered about opening the roof you could try clear Gorilla tape, NB stick across the glass and the rubber real, ie not onto the paintwork?

 

Mine does not leak at the mo but it is in at the local indy specialist today to have all the drain pipes "glued" in place just in case!

[elisetype25]

Thank you both for the replies. 

 

I want to resolve the issue rather than mitigate the impact. So I will hopefully attempt the fix Jim provided. Hats off to the OP, a man with a mission and patience to whom we should all be grateful.

 

Stu, as implied the drain holes probably won't be your problem. I have already smothered these in sealant to no avail. As per the previous posts this issue is a fundamental design flaw. 

 

Thanks again to all. I'm always impressed by the speed and quality of the replies on this forum.

 

Regards, Neil

[J.R.]

To all of you that have had the benefits and then the headaches of a pano-roof, if you were in the market for a Yeti again would you avoid any cars with one fitted like the plague or now you have the experience of the repair do you think the benefit to be gained is worth the inconvenience?

 

I ask as someone that said they would never again have a car without a sunshine roof, my latter vehicles culminating in an Octavia 1 all had aircon and a glass tilt & slide roof, I definitely used the roof a lot less, none of them ever leaked.

 

Then when I bought my MK2 I saw that the sunroof had been dropped as an austerity measure, I missed it but for all of a few days, now I question whether I would actually want one again if they are so leaky, would any benefit I get be worth the risk?

 

I have never been in a car with a pano roof, I have been in very few newish cars, the Mondeo Estate I recently was a passenger in felt so claustrophobic, high door line and narrow slits of glass like most modern vehicles, huge intrusive A & B pillars, a roofline so low that you had to release the seatbelt and lean forward to look up and see whether the sky was cloudy and I banged my head getting in every time.

[ClimbingPaul]

JR

Personally I will never buy another car with a pano sunroof if I can possibly avoid it. To add insult to injury, mine developed an annoying clunk about 6 months into the leak saga. Plus they weigh a lot , and I never open it anyway!

The trouble nowadays is that any similar replacement cars above the basic spec all seem to have them. And what I’ve learned in the last year is that a warranty gives you very little useful protection. You are at the mercy of your local main dealer, and if like mine they are fairly incompetent, you can end up driving a courtesy car for weeks/months on end, with endless hassle. 

Incidentally I sent them a copy of the report last week, and they are attempting the sealant repair, so possibly my personal saga might be coming to an end. But I’m trying not to build up my hopes too much.

End of rant!!!