The usual sunroof leak

[vRSG60]

After 2 weeks of ownership the sunroof is leaking wetting the headlining and draining into the footwell on the passenger side.

It's not the drain pipe. I've checked that by securing  a hose onto it to eliminate the standard connection. No, the water is dripping inboard of that, see below.

 

Can anyone guide me in the right direction of the likely cause of the leak..

No I'm not going to replace the whole sunroof at £2400, no I'm not going to tape it up etc.

 

Constructive comments only please.

 

 

[Nick P]

The absolute best advice I can give you is get them to take it back and get your money back. Call the dealer tomorrow. Don't delay.

 

It's virtually certain to be leaking at the interface between the aluminium and plastic. See Yeti_Panoramic_Roof_Leak.pdf (yetiownersclub.co.uk) . Seriously, don't entertain trying to fix it. It will fail again. Get your money back.

[Nick P]

I'm curious as to why you didn't reject the car immediately when you noticed the carpet was wet the day after you got it?

[muppix]

In my case the first leak was from a deteriorating drain hose connection, and once I'd fixed that I noticed a new leak from between the two parts which make up the cassette tray. The body workshop manual (extract attached) speaks of a Butyl Sealing Cord which I'm guessing is the part that's failed.

 

 

Interestingly enough, on each side there's a blob of what looks like RTV / Windscreen Sealant underneath that very area, which tells me that somebody's been here before, either at the factory or just before I bought the car when it was 2 years old.

 

[vRSG60]

18 hours ago, Nick P said:

I'm curious as to why you didn't reject the car immediately when you noticed the carpet was wet the day after you got it?

I didn’t get it from a main dealer and at the time the sunroof was least on my  causes. I suspected a window ajar for a while and I’d have expected the dealer to see the wet floor when they cleaned it ready for me to collect.

In hindsight  I should have gone back to them. I have a 3 month warranty but no mention of water ingress. 

Edited 14 December, 2021 by vRSG60

[notyeti]

Return the car sounds right.

 

I took my yeti in to a local independent garage twice to get the leak fixed.  Flooded passenger floor. First time they replaced the door trim (???} And charged me £100. I told them it was probably the roof..,. Pressure tested - no leak... Got home, and nature got in without any trouble. Took it back. Second time they spent three days taking the roof apart, couldn't find any leak, put it all back together, pressure test negative again. Surprisingly, it got through 18 months with no leaking. Goodness knows why. Now it is leaking loads again. I am going to try sealing the roof with insulating tape during the training season. Meanwhile I put a large towel on the floor, and change it after every downpour. It's the pits. 

 

[J.R.]

What is this pressure test that they claim to have done?

[muppix]

1 hour ago, notyeti said:

Pressure tested - no leak

 

I think it's down to volume rather than pressure. Mine's fine in regular rain, which just finds its way out of the drain holes as per design, but when there's a proper deluge I get water seeping through the join between the aluminium sides of the sunroof cassette and the plastic drain tray at the front. Come to think of it, my worst leaks were when I was parked facing down a slight slope, so that may be a factor, i.e. more pressure on the front drains rather than the rear.

[speedsport]

My 2016 car seems to be able to handle any amount of rain or hosing down when pointing uphill or is level, but when pointing downhill by a reasonable amount, then water leaks into the footwell on both sides. I suspect water is simply running forwards and collecting in the channel to the point that it gets deep enough to leak out through a join or something that's normally ok when there's little water present. But, I've tried adding water to the channel at home, making a dam to get it to collect, and have totally failed to reproduce the problem. Weird!

So, I just don't park facing downhill.

[TruckbusUK]

Have you checked the door seals?

Dry and dust with talc, then as you state, park the car pointing downhill and give it a good drenching with a hose .... wait an hour or so then check the footwells for dampness and the door seals for missing talc (the point of ingress.)

If all is dry at least its one thing off the list as a potential cause.

[speedsport]

36 minutes ago, TruckbusUK said:

Have you checked the door seals?

Dry and dust with talc, then as you state, park the car pointing downhill and give it a good drenching with a hose .... wait an hour or so then check the footwells for dampness and the door seals for missing talc (the point of ingress.)

If all is dry at least its one thing off the list as a potential cause.

In my case, I ncould actually see droplets of water dripping down from inside the bottom lip of the dashboard onto the wheelarch carpet, which suggests it's coming down the inside of the A pillar. But door seals are still worth checking as water can travel in odd directons!

[Nick P]

One thing I'd say to people who are living with sunroof leaks on these. Pop the covers off each side of the dashboard and see how rusty it is inside. Also take a look at the bottom of your steering column, near the pedals.

[Nick P]

On 14/12/2021 at 18:36, vRSG60 said:

I should have gone back to them.

 

You should STILL go back to them. Irrespective of the terms of the 3 month warranty.

[rohanks]

Hi vRSG60,

 

You can skip to my recommendation if you dont need the backstory.

 

Backstory:

 

I bought my L&K 2.0 TDI 4x4 (65 Reg) from a Non-Skoda Network Dealer based in Birmingham on 11 December 2021. Good Service History, Well looked after, 1 previous owner etc....mechanically a 'good beast'.  And fun to drive!! Used to get a tingle each time I drove my SAAB 900i and that was a long time ago.

 

5 January 2022 a routine refit (stonechip damage) by Autoglass revealed a sodden DS Footwell. After researching I came across this forum and developed an understanding of the potential causes. There was clearly a significant problem with the vehicles's sunroof. A design and implmentation issue disputed by the Manufacturer. Felt the pain of a lot of people on this forum.

 

So, what next?

 

Dealer refused a refund which is a breach of my rights under Consumer Rights Act 2015. I sent a formal complaint using the terms of the act within 30 days.Dealer replied with a self-medicating stock legal letter (spelling not his strong suit)  - the bronze package of a Rent-a-Paralegal Online firm. They offered inspection and repair only. 

 

I have legal experience and the 'chops' through taking two ne'er do-wells and to court and recovering over 100K in Assets.  I know where the levers are and how they work. No fear on that front. 

 

However, I rationalised as follows:

 

 -  Did I want to spend the next x months ferrying my vehicle (Still no V5C from DVLA, btw) to Birmingham and back whilst my depreciating asset idles in some random service centre car park cold and wet gathering mildew under the pretence of 'remedial action' taking place? In terms of my time.

 - the cost of employing a barrister to prosecute the case. In terms of my time. 

 - I applied the benefit of the doubt that the vehicle was sold back to trade without the Dealer knowing there was an issue. That was the hardest thing to do.

 

Thanks to Briskoda.Net I learnt a great deal about the possible causes of this problem.

 

What Happened Next...

 

Despite some reluctance from my local, trusted garage they were reluctant to investigate a leak problem. I can understand why. To their credit they accepted the car, blew out the lines and cleared the drains. Charged me 60 quid. Owner was quite clear when handing back the keys. He was not confident he had isolated the issue.

 

He was right.

 

Further ingress, internal condensation, wet carpets in PS Footwell, mounting anxiety. Morally conflicted to dry out and sell back to Trade. To some other poor bugger who had sunk their hard-earned into their 'drem car'. Did I mention I am still waiting for my V5C?

 

Pond Liner secured with Bunjee Cords over the roof. Sponge out, Hand vac, Newspaper...Rinse Repeat.

 

I rationalised that taking the vehicle to a 'standard garage', even if they chose to accept it,  is just throwing good money after bad. I needed a specialist. 

 

I found one.

 

Recommendation:

 

Just to note as we live in cynical times, I am not the specialist, nor am I related to the specialist. I was not paid for this recommendation. Just a.n.other punter paying full price & VAT. I have not posted the price as my problem may differ from your problem. Though I doubt it. Either its a problem with the drains and lines, or it is torsion and separation of the plastic part of your sunroof from the aliminium body of the car or crack(s) in the collector tray.

 

You can expect to pay beteen 200-500 quid (Apple Mac, no pound sign) inc. VAT. 3 Month Guarantee on the Repair

 

https://www.thevehiclerepairspecialist.co.uk/

 

Andy has worked in the Trade for a number of years and has diagnosed and fixed mechanical and seal problems on a number of makes and models inc VW, BMW, Audi etc. This was his first Yeti. Hence my main reason for posting here.

 

My opinion, not fact: When it actually comes down to it, the Make/Model is not really the consideration. It is the type of sunroof fitted and the lack of a 'duty of care' wrt Design and Implementation on behalf of the Manufacturer.

 

An honest broker, know's his stuff, safe pair of hands, pleasant to deal with. If you are at your wits end, book an appointment and get it done.

 

Made peace with my Yeti and am starting to move on. I'll let Karma resolve the rest. Meanwhile, it's pouring down outside and I want to drive : )

Good Luck, you are not on your own. Your are part of a community.
 

 

[muppix]

Interesting to hear your experience, thanks for sharing.

 

My L&K is sitting outside right now, minus the roof liner, with a tray on the driver's seat to catch the ingress which was strong enough the other day to trigger the interior alarm sensors. I'm hoping for a couple of dry weeks in summer during which to deploy Cpt. Tolley's Creeping Crack Sealer, and if that doesn't work I'll fettle some kind of secondary tray to go underneath the whole sunroof cassette.

 

Never a dull moment ...

[pkyyyy]

On 13/02/2022 at 16:17, muppix said:

Interesting to hear your experience, thanks for sharing.

 

My L&K is sitting outside right now, minus the roof liner, with a tray on the driver's seat to catch the ingress which was strong enough the other day to trigger the interior alarm sensors. I'm hoping for a couple of dry weeks in summer during which to deploy Cpt. Tolley's Creeping Crack Sealer, and if that doesn't work I'll fettle some kind of secondary tray to go underneath the whole sunroof cassette.

 

Never a dull moment ...

On our 2017 L&K it was leaking both sides front in 2019.Damp carpets etc I've highlighted where I applied sealant with a needle and syringe. Like in the guide, in small amounts over days and days and weeks in the dry warmer periods.

 

I found Captain Tolley's was too runny. I used Burgess Marine Creepy Crackseal and since summer 2020 no more leaks.

[muppix]

12 hours ago, pkyyyy said:

Like in the guide, in small amounts over days and days and weeks in the dry warmer periods.

I found Captain Tolley's was too runny. I used Burgess Marine Creepy Crackseal and since summer 2020 no more leaks

 

Thanks for the vote of confidence with regards to liquid sealant. I've got Cpt. Tolley on standby here but I know that it'll only work if the crack is 100% dry all the way through, and that's going to take a fairly long time, even in dry summer conditions, because the overlap between the metal and plastic components is so large.

 

 

There was another user on this forum who reported lack of success after using liquid sealant for about a week at the start of winter, and I'm fairly sure that I'd have the same experience were I to try it right now. So I'm waiting for summer.

[vRSG60]

On 15/02/2022 at 10:52, muppix said:

 

Thanks for the vote of confidence with regards to liquid sealant. I've got Cpt. Tolley on standby here but I know that it'll only work if the crack is 100% dry all the way through, and that's going to take a fairly long time, even in dry summer conditions, because the overlap between the metal and plastic components is so large.

 

 

There was another user on this forum who reported lack of success after using liquid sealant for about a week at the start of winter, and I'm fairly sure that I'd have the same experience were I to try it right now. So I'm waiting for summer.

 

 

Yes I agree. I've tried windscreen sealant & waterproof Gorilla glue brushed over the outside joint, but it's difficule to get to one part of it. I've taken the headlining out and the water ingress is now minimal, but I don't want any. I'll try again when the weather improves.

[vRSG60]

One thing I have noticed is that the mesh fly net folds back on itself sometimes when the sunroof is shut. It gets soaking wet when it rains and I believe water soaks into the corner piece where there is a 1-2mm gap enabling water to drip on the inside.