Water leaking out of headliner - Sunroof ?

[TRD 4RNR]

I've got water leaking from the headliner of my 1999 4Runner

I got a little compressor today and blew back up the drain lines that run from the sunroof - and all that blew out was dust.

So I'm thinking the drain lines on the sunroof may have come loose from the plug.

Is it possible to just drop the front of the headliner?

Thanks
-mk


FOLLOW UP LINKS:

Video: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/54845-where-do-sunroof-drains-exit-2.html#post1480393

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/54845-where-do-sunroof-drains-exit.html

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/100285-moonroof-leak-2.html#post1641796

Where mine is leaking from: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/100285-moonroof-leak.html#post897468

 

[packweco]

I've got water leaking from the headliner of my 1999 4Runner

I got a little compressor today and blew back up the drain lines that run from the sunroof - and all that blew out was dust.

So I'm thinking the drain lines on the sunroof may have come loose from the plug.

Is it possible to just drop the front of the headliner?

Thanks
-mk

I removed a few of the screws from my roof rails when I installed my roof rack, and left them out because I'm dumb. Ended up having water come through those screw holes and soaking the headliner. Maybe yours are loose or no longer sealed?

Just something else to check.

 

[TRD 4RNR]

I removed a few of the screws from my roof rails when I installed my roof rack, and left them out because I'm dumb. Ended up having water come through those screw holes and soaking the headliner. Maybe yours are loose or no longer sealed?
Just something else to check.

Perhaps - it's the worst when the truck in parked. My sun visors are getting soaked - and they're a long way from the roof rails.

 

[BrianSD_42]

On some of these older trucks the seal around the sunroof leaks.

The only solution that has worked for me is putting blue painters tape around the sunroof during the rainy months.

 

[nor_cal51501]

Sun roofs are designed to leak, not be water tight. You either have a clogged drain(there's 4) or one of your drain lines have come loose. I had to drop my headliner to fix this in my 4Runner also. It isn't that hard, wort part is taking off the oh sh*t handles on the pilars cause they strip almost every time. Mine had a tiny leaf covered in a tiny glob of mud. But I had to drop the entire headliner to get it all squared away.

 

[shootmymime]

Sun roofs are designed to leak, not be water tight. You either have a clogged drain(there's 4) or one of your drain lines have come loose. I had to drop my headliner to fix this in my 4Runner also. It isn't that hard, wort part is taking off the oh sh*t handles on the pilars cause they strip almost every time. Mine had a tiny leaf covered in a tiny glob of mud. But I had to drop the entire headliner to get it all squared away.

I agree. Check ur drains. I cleaned mine out 2 years ago. Open the sunroof and 2 are in the front side corners. It drains I between the truck and front fenders. You can see it when the front doors are open.

 

[Scirocco84]

Mine leaked and the drains were clear. Turned out there was a crack in the front center of the plastic bezel that goes around the sunroof glass. I tested it by taping it for a recent storm and it was dry as a bone.

However, my leak was also centered in between the two sunvisors. So maybe your mileage will vary...

Edited for typos...

 

[cipstinger]

I had a similar problem and was convinced it was my sunroof but it turned out to be a bad seal on the windshield. I had the windshield replaced $225 installed because the previous owner must have had a windshield problem and they use a crap windshield and sure enough I have't had a leak now in 3 years

 

[TRD 4RNR]

Mine leaked and the drains were clear. Turned out there was a crack in the front center of the plastic bezel that goes around the sunroof glass. I tested it by taping it for a recent storm and it was dry as a bone.

However, my leak was also centered in between the two sunvisors. So maybe your mileage will vary...

Edited for typos...

Turns out there's a little crack in the front center of the plastic bezel that goes around the sunroof glass on mine as well.

Have you tried to fix - other than the painters tape?

I'm thinking about getting it dry and then some black silicone.

-mk

 

[Scirocco84]

Have you tried to fix - other than the painters tape?

I'm thinking about getting it dry and then some black silicone.

I have not tried yet, but somehow you'd have to get a pretty good fill on the small crack. I was thinking black silicon would be the best, but I don't know how I'd apply it cleanly, maybe some kind of mini syringe?

I've heard people using superglue and I thought that some kind of thin epoxy would work well...

If I come up with something I'll let you know. Let me know if you figure something out in the meantime, I'm all ears.

 

[blizz86]

I have not tried yet, but somehow you'd have to get a pretty good fill on the small crack. I was thinking black silicon would be the best, but I don't know how I'd apply it cleanly, maybe some kind of mini syringe?

I've heard people using superglue and I thought that some kind of thin epoxy would work well...

If I come up with something I'll let you know. Let me know if you figure something out in the meantime, I'm all ears.

Used JB Kwik 2 years ago, sun and cold cycles made it loosen.. i just redid it again 2 days ago.

Next time i'll probably use a flexible weater resistant silicon.

 

[thezentree]

Sorry to dredge up an old thread, but I guess I don't have enough bona fides to start my own thread..

Anyway, I just bought my sister's old 2001 SR5 and the sunroof leaks and has apparently stopped working. She says it worked last summer, but has leaked for a couple years. From reading some "my sunroof leaks" threads, it sounds like the drains are probably clogged, but I can't get the thing open to clean them. Is there a way to manually get the sunroof open, or even just access the drains?

Also, should the sunroof even let that much water in when it's shut? I've got to tape the perimeter of the sunroof to keep water from dripping on my head when it rains hard. Could there be a gasket going bad somewhere too?

 

[baja1]

mine just started leaking....not getting past the rubber seal but where the glass goes into the frame, aquarium sealant maybe?

 

[LookAtThatDog]

Sorry to dredge up an old thread, but I guess I don't have enough bona fides to start my own thread..

Anyway, I just bought my sister's old 2001 SR5 and the sunroof leaks and has apparently stopped working. She says it worked last summer, but has leaked for a couple years. From reading some "my sunroof leaks" threads, it sounds like the drains are probably clogged, but I can't get the thing open to clean them. Is there a way to manually get the sunroof open, or even just access the drains?

Also, should the sunroof even let that much water in when it's shut? I've got to tape the perimeter of the sunroof to keep water from dripping on my head when it rains hard. Could there be a gasket going bad somewhere too?

If I remember correctly, there's a manual crank option. Up in the overhead compartment/light thing theres a square peg that you gotta turn. I've never tried

 

[AntleredRuin]

If I remember correctly, there's a manual crank option. Up in the overhead compartment/light thing theres a square peg that you gotta turn. I've never tried

I think that's only on the 96-98 models. Mine's a 99 and doesn't have it. My roof is stuck shut too, and the drains are cleared, so I just put some RTV gasket maker around the perimeter to seal it. I always laugh when I see people with duct tape around their windshields. The gasket maker will seal better and you can't even tell it's there. Costs less than a roll of duct tape too.

 

[TRD 4RNR]

Sorry to dredge up an old thread, but I guess I don't have enough bona fides to start my own thread..

Anyway, I just bought my sister's old 2001 SR5 and the sunroof leaks and has apparently stopped working. She says it worked last summer, but has leaked for a couple years. From reading some "my sunroof leaks" threads, it sounds like the drains are probably clogged, but I can't get the thing open to clean them. Is there a way to manually get the sunroof open, or even just access the drains?

Also, should the sunroof even let that much water in when it's shut? I've got to tape the perimeter of the sunroof to keep water from dripping on my head when it rains hard. Could there be a gasket going bad somewhere too?

I wish I had taken some pictures of how easy it was to remove the moonroof. From inside the 4Runner I popped off the plastic "trim" from the left and right side and removed the 4 nuts - then the moonroof can be removed. That gave me enough room to access the front drain holes (which turned out to be clear of any debris).

In my case there's a gap (or seam) where the plastic meets in the middle/front of the moonroof - water is finding its way in via this gap. I tried some sealant but that hasn't done the trick. Picture of gap/seam: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/100285-moonroof-leak.html#post897468

*** UPDATE BELOW ***
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[jgd99]

Yeah mine does this as well, especially when I take it through a car wash. But it sucks because my sunroof doesn't open so I can't try to clean out the drains.

 

[JohnMc]

Mine leaked and the drains were clear. Turned out there was a crack in the front center of the plastic bezel that goes around the sunroof glass. I tested it by taping it for a recent storm and it was dry as a bone.

However, my leak was also centered in between the two sunvisors. So maybe your mileage will vary...

Edited for typos...

Mine started doing this exact thing about a year ago, then it accelerated rapidly this spring. It's a seam in the plastic surrounding the glass, my wife's 96 has the same seam, but it is still closed on hers, and she doesn't have leaks. On mine it was gapped open by a small amount, allowing water to flow in there, into the plastic trim around the sunroof, and then out around in random places in the headliner area. If the sunshade was open, it could drip straight down into the center console. I think this was made worse on mine by a sunroof wind deflector, I think it let water pile up when pointed downhill, until you had standing water flowing into that gap.

I put a little bit of black RTV sealer in the gap and it's been dry since.

 

[TonyB66]

Shopping for a T4R and saw a stain on a '98 Limited's fabric slider, covering about a third of it. The owner has no idea, and says he was not aware.

Good info in this thread. Thanks.

 

[kolelt]

Hey guys. I highly recommend extending the 2 sunroof drains directly to outside. If you remove the passenger and driver kick panels. And remove the yellow sponge. You'll a large clear tube. That's where the water drains out. And it drains into your rocker panels. Inside ! If you go wheeling a lot, or did rust preventative inside the rocker panels. You could have clogged up the pinch welds drains. And water will sit there longer then usual. Probably one of the main reasons why our rocker panels rust up front.

I did a write up. But extending these tubes directly to the outside is the best idea in a long run. Why would you want water inside your rocker panels ??