[old&indaway]

I own a 2014 Rav 4 limited and the sunroof has leaked for the second time. Water stain on headliner soaked rear seat and carpet of the passenger side.. SO.. I removed the two rear seats, trim pieces and got the carpet folded forward as much as possible. Then out came the wet vac and fans to dry things out. This all took a couple days to get rid of the musty smell. I should add that I was able to get the water stain out of the headliner using a Dupray steam cleaner with distilled water and microfiber towels. I opened the interior sliding cover for the sunroof and had my wife run some water from the hose. Bad leak visible in the right rear corner.

(I found out later this was due to dirt, pollen, and debris from trees causing the sunroof to not seal adequately, thus causing the leak and a drain tube to become partially plugged. All this came out later...)

At this point I called the dealership and they explained they do not repair leaking sunroofs and wanted to refer me to an outside subcontractor. I told them I wanted Toyota to fix it and they refused. I contacted Toyota USA and registered a complaint. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND ANYONE WITH A LEAKING SUNROOF TO DO THIS.. It could make a difference and force a recall someday, you never know. Anyway Toyota USA just wanted to send me to another dealership which I could simply do on my own. So I called several and none of them were very interested in my issue, telling me to call a collision repair shop was a popular comment from them.

At this point I decided to call back the original dealership and demand some real answers. I got a service manger named Brian, apparently they have lots of service managers. I managed to obtain the name of the company that they had sent me to two years ago when it leaked the first time. This proved to be really helpful in the end. I asked Brian why Toyota and the dealership he worked for would not fix the leak? He did not like my question and got rather testy at this point. I pressed on and then he came out with this little gem and I quote. "Sunroofs are designed to leak." I thought WTF did he just say? I realized at this point I was just getting the run around and had wasted enough time and money with this dealership. I had done business with them since 1998. Bye Bye to them!

My next step was to clean the sunroof as much as possible myself which I did. Then I called the company that had repaired it two years ago. He showed up this morning and opened up the sunroof. He used a pump sprayer to force water down the drain tubes, The front tubes were completely clear as was the drivers side tube in the rear. The passenger side was draining very slowly if at all which turned out to be the reason for the flooding into the interior. Using compressed air and water he got it clear and was satisfied it was draining properly. He then went around the entire sunroof gasket to make certain it was clean and then applied dielectric grease and said he was done. Assuring me it would not leak as long as it remained clean and greased occasionally.

The upshot of all this is the dealership could very easily do everything this guy did, it only took him 30 minutes at best.. Hell I can do everything the guy did and plan on doing so annually going forward...

So why did the dealerships not want to touch this issue?? I can only think of one thing... Liability to the possibility of mold growing inside the vehicle after it getting wet.. Hope this helps others going forward, its a PITA getting your car dried out after it gets wet!!!

 

[old&indaway]

Sounds like the person who serviced the sun roof knew what they were doing. The dealer probably did not have a mechanic that had the skill set to do it correctly, did not want the liability if it still leaked after the repair, and/or though that most customers would balk at the five-hour repair bill. Much more profit in a low level mechanic changing air filters and brakes all day.

You can park away from trees if possible in the future. Also, research a product called Gummipfleger. Its what most European car manufactures recommend to lubricate rubber gaskets,
Amazon.com: Sonax 03401000 Rubber Protectant GummiPfleger, 3.38 fl. oz. , black : Automotive

Another company to consider

https://www.krytox.com/en/-/media/files/krytox/krytox-nvh-noise-vibration-harshness.pdf?rev=ad92b328ef674812b6595e8481892798

Impossible for us we live in a forest of large old growth trees and love it here. Our property stays 5 - 7 degrees cooler than the street at the end of our driveway. I am just going to be more diligent on maintenance and not use it very often. My wife has already nixxed the gorilla duct tape I would put on it...

Krytox shows three different lubricants for sunroofs and the weather striping and seals.
GPL 205
GPL 105
AUT U14
The 105 is an oil not a grease so might not be the best option for the gaskets or slides. My wife is a retired formulations chemist and is going to look into it when she gets motivated.. She can be a handful once she gets going!

Thanks for the links and info!!

 

[old&indaway]

One of the reasons I bought the Rav4 LE. No sun roof.

We had to get the limited model. My wife insisted. It has been a blessing and a curse. The sensors for all the technology are expensive and aligning them after any accident can be quite an issue. Been there done that!

HOWEVER, This will be our last sunroof in all likelihood. Sadly they are almost standard on all high end vehicles. Our daughter just bought a loaded Kia EV6 GT. Got a big panoramic glass roof. Time will tell how that works out for her. Does 0-65 in 3.5 seconds!

 

[old&indaway]

IMHO if the sunroof was 100% sealed then it wouldn't need the drain hoses. If the door windows were 100% sealed you wouldn't need door drains at the bottom. But they aren't so the drains exist. It would be nice for the manual to mention this and how to clean them - maybe it does but I haven't read it to that point.

Amen to this! I have not found much info on cleaning a clogged line anywhere.. I know one thing, damaging the drain lines by trying to snake them out can be a real headache..

 

[old&indaway]

A sunroof "leaking" is no more the fault on the manufacturer than an open window leaking. They are not designed to seal perfectly when closed which is the reason they have a water tough in the roof around the edges of the glass. And drains on each corner.

They only "leak" when the owner allows debris to clog the drains. In my case I was doing that by parking under trees and then opening the roof with tree droppings on the glass. Driving a short distance blew the debris off the top of the glass and into the drains. Of course nothing happened at first because I only opened it on nice days. Then when it rained some water got past the closed roof built up in the trough and greeted me by dumping down my back the next time I drove either with the roof open or closed.

The fix is pretty simple. Keep the drains clear by driving far enough for the wind to blow any debris off the roof before opening it.

I Have to ask. Why won't Toyota Dealerships repair them? Why cant they design them to not leak? Since they have apparently designed them to leak??? Assuming this is true why won't they clear the drain tubes when they get plugged?

The leak is what allows the debris into the drain tubes. Debris is being deposited in the drain tubes until they are plugged. Then the overflow has nowhere to go but into the interior of the vehicle The owner is not responsible for that Toyota is by designing them to, as you said, leak.

I worked on the North Atlantic for ten years all year long. When a vessel is leaking we fix the leak... Or else...

 

[old&indaway]

Ask the Toyota dealership. However, this "issue" is not solely contained to Toyota. Any manufacturer that builds a vehicle with a factory sun/moon roof will have drain hoses.

Did you read my first post??

I did ask the Toyota dealer to perform the repair. No was the answer. I called several in my area they all refused to repair them and referred me to outside subcontractors. I am not concerned with other brands.

My Toyota leaked for the second time in a span of two years. It is an enormous headache to get the carpets dry, especially the rectangular pads under the carpet. I went to a collision center here and that was one of the issues they said was the most difficult. They did get quite a chuckle out of the line the sunroofs are designed to leak... They are not designed to leak. The drains are designed to remove any water that may get in for whatever reason, but to say they are specifically designed to leak is absurd...