Roof rack leaking?

[DEF4Runner]

Rained like hell last night...jumped in the ole T4R this morning, pulled the seat belt over and noticed it was wet...real wet. Looked over at the side, under what would be the forward roof rack mount, and noticed..well...water coming out of the belt housing and also soaking through the roof liner.

Common sense might suggest it is, in fact, the roof rack mount but wanted to ask those who know the anatomy of these rigs better than me, is there any other place to check? The rig was parked nose down on a 30 degee slope over night so I guess the water could have leaked in somewhere else and rolled down????

 

[lewdog998]

OEM roof rack or aftermarket?

Also, if you have a sunroof, occasionally those drains can get clogged and back up, (at least that was the case in my sons Land Cruiser) not sure if the 4runner has same drain system.

 

[DEF4Runner]

It's a port installed pro rack. No sunroof...

 

[ahtoxa11]

Likely a poor install job at the port, in that case. If that were me, I'm not sure whether I'd take to the dealer or not for fear that they'd make it worse. But, I'd also be pretty upset because water could discolor the headliner.

I'd probably let the dealer fix the leak as well as the headliner if it stains.

 

[A10MileHusker]

Yep, looks like a poor install on the OEM rack. Take it to the dealer and have them deal with it.

 

[AgentKooper]

Sorry to hear that, man. I’d be curious to hear your updates regarding getting this fixed. I have the same rack on a 2021.


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[Teamoatmealpie]

As I have experienced myself and also said on other posts regarding this topic - many times the leak is not so pronounced, but rather very subtle. They way you'll you know is by pulling your seat belts all the way out to the stops and see if they are wet or damp. Mine had just a hint of dampness, signifying a small leak that may have never been noticed. As water never leaked/ran down the pillar or into the ceiling panel.

Hope yours is under warranty and they fix it for you. If not pull it and inspect to see if the factory parts/gaskets are there. DIf you use any sealant, don't use silicone or RVT, use the a proper product like SikaFlex 221. RVT has acetic acid in it to help it cure, that etches paint and can cause rust.

 

[fkheath]

Since you are still under warranty, just have the dealer fix it.

Otherwise it is an easy repair. There are sealing washers between the rack and the holes in the roof where the screws go in. You may have to remove the whole rack, but just put some high quality sealant (silicone) around each mounting bolt and reinstall.

 

[Thirty4]

Wow....so sorry to hear that. I remember on the FJ’s that there were issues with the seals sometimes on the factory racks. Maybe it’s something similar, not sure. But I was shocked to see it occur to a newer model year. I am curious to see what the resolution is. On my FJ, it was a deformed seal. It was installed improperly and clearly was not suitable to seal out water. Good luck man!