Leak in 2003 4Runner on both passenger / driver footwells. With picture

[DeuceRunners]

Hey guys I know leaks have been covered multiple times... Just trying to confirm my issue. My wife's 03 4Runner leaks whenever it rains..both the driver and passenger side get pooled water in the footwells..also it seems it's leaking out of the sunglasses holder? Because if you make a turn after driving the water falls on your head.

The sunroof frame is rusty and I'm not sure it ever securely closes.

Here's my question, should I bring it to a body shop to have them fix this? I'm admittedly not great at doing mechanical work. MY 04 T4R had its sunroof sealed and disabled before i purchased it, I'm assuming due to leaking too. Just trying to figure out my wife's issue. I can't afford a new sunroof frame/labor right now.

Thanks!

 

[gm350reratliff]

Definitely looks like the sunroof is leaking excessively. The seals around the glass seem to shrink over time which allows a lot of water in even if the sunroof closes all the way. The other part of this is sometimes the drain tubes become clogged and/or disconnected which allows the water to drain inside. I would pop off the A-pillar trim and drop the headliner a bit to see if the tubes are even connected. Open the sunroof and inspect the drain channel where the tubes connect, for cracks and/or debris. If all that checks out, your best bet may be to seal the sunroof shut permanently.

I have the sunroof on my 4th gen semi-permanently shut but not sealed because it rattled so bad. If it starts leaking excessively, I wouldn't hesitate to seal it as well. I never use it anyway.

 

[mizak82]

I had a drain tube for a sunroof fall off on my nissan.. must of been like that for months.. just standing water that was soaking into the carpet..

had to pull the carpet and gut the interior basically to get all the water out..


then obviously put the tube back on..

 

[CruzadoBlanco]

I'd check the drain tubes first. They might be clogged. My dad's 5th gen had clogged tubes and it did the same thing. I keep mine clean so never any leaks that weren't my fault (leaving window or roof open). If they aren't clogged then I'd take it some where since getting to the under side of the sunroof requires dropping the headliner. So I'm assuming you would not want to undertake that.

 

[NinjaOne]

Replacement seals available for the sunroof? Or is the sunroof/seal sold as a complete assembly.

 

[CruzadoBlanco]

Replacement seals available for the sunroof? Or is the sunroof/seal sold as a complete assembly.

SUNROOF for 2003 Toyota 4Runner

no, only sold as glass, trim, frame, switch/motor

 

[DeuceRunners]

Definitely looks like the sunroof is leaking excessively. The seals around the glass seem to shrink over time which allows a lot of water in even if the sunroof closes all the way. The other part of this is sometimes the drain tubes become clogged and/or disconnected which allows the water to drain inside. I would pop off the A-pillar trim and drop the headliner a bit to see if the tubes are even connected. Open the sunroof and inspect the drain channel where the tubes connect, for cracks and/or debris. If all that checks out, your best bet may be to seal the sunroof shut permanently.

I have the sunroof on my 4th gen semi-permanently shut but not sealed because it rattled so bad. If it starts leaking excessively, I wouldn't hesitate to seal it as well. I never use it anyway.

Thanks guys for all the input ... My loves sunroofs but hates a wet car in the morning haha and I'd DEFINITELY prefer to seal it all up tight as opposed to spending apparently THOUSANDS of dollars to repair with a complete new unit.

 

[DeuceRunners]

I'd check the drain tubes first. They might be clogged. My dad's 5th gen had clogged tubes and it did the same thing. I keep mine clean so never any leaks that weren't my fault (leaving window or roof open). If they aren't clogged then I'd take it some where since getting to the under side of the sunroof requires dropping the headliner. So I'm assuming you would not want to undertake that.

You are 100% correct on that one! Haha I know it's not "real man" to take my vehicles for repair for anything more than an oil change, break job or radio install -- but I just don't enjoy it and would probably mess it up worse.

Thank you for your input -- I'm going to check the drains tomorrow afternoon.

 

[CruzadoBlanco]

You are 100% correct on that one! Haha I know it's not "real man" to take my vehicles for repair for anything more than an oil change, break job or radio install -- but I just don't enjoy it and would probably mess it up worse.

Thank you for your input -- I'm going to check the drains tomorrow afternoon.

theres a full parts diagram in the second post i made, should make it easier to see whats what when you get to it. there is a lot of moving parts up there.

 

[DeuceRunners]

Here's a picture of the standing water.. Great

 

[DeuceRunners]

If I'm lazy and just take some silicon around the rubber seal to seal it all in, would I be good to go??

 

[CruzadoBlanco]

id just run a cloths hanger down the drain tubes and see if you can clear them. looks like they are clogged. not all sunroof seal water tight, hence why the drains are there. it think it would also be worth your time to clear the drains to allow you to do the sunroof tsb to allow it to continue to work correctly, its very simple and straight forward.

 

[gm350reratliff]

I would at least try to get that water out of the drain tray before you seal it shut.

 

[Clifford 2.0]

Step 1: clean all that crap out of the sunroof tray.

I had this same problem when I first purchased my T4R. If you close the sunroof and pour water around the sunroof seal you'll be able to see where the water is leaking into the truck.

As others have mentioned clear the sunroof drains of any debris. The drains are located at all four corners of the sunroof tray, however, the front two are the only ones that are easily accessible. If you open the sunroof and stick your head out the hole (looking towards the front) you'll see two small holes in the left and right corners of the tray.

Heres how I fixed mine: Run something rigid (i used some old speaker wire) down the holes to try and clear the tubes. Don't use anything sharp as you don't want to puncture the tubes. You'll also want to clear the drains in the rocker panels. The rocker panel drains are about 6 inches behind the front wheels. I took a garden hose and sprayed the crap outta the rocker drains to clear them out. Just keep repeating this process until the drains are cleared (to check if it was cleared I poured water in the sunroof tray to see if it was draining out the rockers).

My tubes were full of pine needles and dirt from the 4Runner being parked under trees its whole life by the previous owner. If yours are full of rusty metal bits you may be SOL.

With regards to the carpet it may be salvageable, I pulled up the carpet on the drivers side (only side that was getting wet in my rig) and used a blow dryer and a box fan to dry everything out. If its moldy you may have to replace the carpet.

Sorry you have to deal with this, its a major pain in the ass and water leaks just plain suck! I was ready to permanently seal mine until i did the above process and while it still leaks a little bit everything drains down the tubes and my floors have been dry ever since.