# Has anyone had a water leak actually fixed? My 3rd VW in a row is leaking!



## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

I’ve searched the forums and read multiple threads about water leaks but can’t seem to find anyone stating that they had one fixed for good. Here’s my story: I had a 2017 Golf Sportwagen SE that started leaking from the sunnroof in May at 20k miles, after over a month in the shop VW agreed to replace it with an 18 SEL in August, that one started leaking a week in and while in the shop had the drain tube flaps removed and yet still leaked so it was then replaced just last week with a 2019 Tiguan SEL (figured I’d change models for better luck and had to wait a bit for the 2019 in the color I wanted). I would’ve gone down to an SE without a sunroof but I’d already been upgraded to the SEL and am enjoying all the features like ACC and the digital cockpit. Welp, I picked up the car last Tuesday and on Friday there was water coming in from around the dome lights, grip handle, and A column. I heard about Golf sunroof welds being too high and interfering with the seals and also the drain tube flaps, but the thing is they told me when I picked up the Tiguan that the drain flaps had been removed, in hopes of preventing this issue. So, has anyone had a leak and had it completely resolved? I’m desperate and beyond frustrated and just want to enjoy my car. I’m happy to take a new one every 4 months but this is getting ridiculous.


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## Crappie man (Nov 22, 2018)

Well just got mine yesterday and hope this isn't issue


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## southpawboston (Feb 3, 2018)

VW seems to not be able to get sunroofs right. At least not on the Puebla-built models. The ones made in EU don't seem to have unfixable leak problems.

The number of leaks cannot be overstated. The last time I was at the dealer, there were two Golf Sportwagens in the repair bay with their headliners removed-- presumably because of leaks. The woman behind me waiting to talk to a service writer had brought her Tiguan in for a sunroof leak. And while I was puttering around the showroom waiting for my oil change, I sat in a new Sportwagen SEL, and saw... wait for it... stains on the headliner. So this has GOT to be a widespread problem.

I'm so glad I have a slick roof Sportwagen.


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## lgbalfa (Nov 18, 2018)

Never had a leak in my Tiguan or any sunroof for that matter.


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## christophe15 (Nov 12, 2018)

lgbalfa said:


> Never had a leak in my Tiguan or any sunroof for that matter.


 +1... never one vw I have owned in 30+ years has very leaked. 

Now, My 2012 xc70 leaked really bad only if parked with the car facing downhill, tried everything to stop, just came to decision to never park it facing downhill... screwy right.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

christophe15 said:


> +1... never one vw I have owned in 30+ years has very leaked.
> 
> Now, My 2012 xc70 leaked really bad only if parked with the car facing downhill, tried everything to stop, just came to decision to never park it facing downhill... screwy right.


I do park slightly downhill, but it cannot believe that a 10 degree incline will make a sunroof leak where otherwise it never would.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

lgbalfa said:


> Never had a leak in my Tiguan or any sunroof for that matter.


Well at least there’s at least one out there that doesn’t


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## christophe15 (Nov 12, 2018)

> I do park slightly downhill, but it cannot believe that a 10 degree incline will make a sunroof leak where otherwise it never would.


Worth a shot, not sure it would be a fix, but at least worth to see if it stops... all I could think on my volvo is that channels and tubes to catch it and funnel away from car just could not keep up with the volume and of course that volume is more when car is pointed downhill directly at the sunroof. I had tubes cleaned, sunroof resealed, replaced the debris catcher as it was quite dirty and may have been bunching up... nope nothing solved, just changing how I parked it.. worked for me.. but dumb to have to do that on a modern car... with that said, I have owned vws made in Germany and Mexico and none have ever leaked. Sorry to hear of your troubles, that has got to be really discouraging.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

christophe15 said:


> Worth a shot, not sure it would be a fix, but at least worth to see if it stops... all I could think on my volvo is that channels and tubes to catch it and funnel away from car just could not keep up with the volume and of course that volume is more when car is pointed downhill directly at the sunroof. I had tubes cleaned, sunroof resealed, replaced the debris catcher as it was quite dirty and may have been bunching up... nope nothing solved, just changing how I parked it.. worked for me.. but dumb to have to do that on a modern car... with that said, I have owned vws made in Germany and Mexico and none have ever leaked. Sorry to hear of your troubles, that has got to be really discouraging.


Thanks. My street only has parking on one side, so I’d have to park around the block unfortunately. Also, on the first car I told VW what angle I parked at and they never mentioned that being all too important.


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## theACN (Oct 20, 2017)

This is my third VW, second being an EOS, none of them leaked. I would get it checked.


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## MisterF (Jul 26, 2018)

The sunroof on my '18 SEL leaked due to a pinched gasket around the front sunroof glass. I had only had the car for a week when this started happening. Looking at the sunroof from above you could clearly see where it was pinched. They replaced the whole front glass portion due to the seal being kinked permanently. 

After they replaced the glass I have not had any more issues.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

MisterF said:


> The sunroof on my '18 SEL leaked due to a pinched gasket around the front sunroof glass. I had only had the car for a week when this started happening. Looking at the sunroof from above you could clearly see where it was pinched. They replaced the whole front glass portion due to the seal being kinked permanently.
> 
> After they replaced the glass I have not had any more issues.


Thanks.


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## andreiB (May 13, 2019)

*Tiguan 2018 SEL water leak and smell*

My 2018 Tiguan was leaking from the sunroof clogged drains. I unclogged the 2 in the front of the sunroof, and they were draining, but i think it still leaked somewhere else. I took it to the dealer, they put it under rain shower and said they couldn't find any issue. Car was at the dealer for 1 week. 2 days after i get it home the car stinks. I realize that under the rubber mats there's a pool of water. I tried to dry it by leaving doors open etc for like 1o days, still stinks. It's been raining in DC a lot lately. I'm taking it to the dealer again tomorrow morning. Everything i wear in the car i need to wash when i get home because of the smell. The cars has like 15 miles...  They said they did a recall to prevent water flowing in the car also...
I had the previous model of the Tiguan before with sunroof, no issues there...


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

This is such a mixed bag- I hear so many issues with the SWs and Tigs. However, you rarely hear of issues with Atlases or Touaregs- All use the same setup. I had a T2 and an Atlas- neither ever had a leak of any kind. I also had a 13' Cayenne with the same pano, and again no leaks. 

I should add that I have always lived in places with relatively low rain. Maybe if you live in a place like Portland or Seattle, this is a bigger issue? Three in a row is just plain bad luck my man.


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## appleman (Jul 8, 2003)

before it was purchased back for a myraid of other reasons, my 2018 tiguan filled the overhead console up with water and once we drove it the next morning, proceeded to cover the radio and shifter. It was quite an impressive amount of water. Needless to say the buyback solved that issue and many others the tiguan had.


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## 14thVW (Jul 13, 2018)

I feel some of your pain. Our '18 Alltrack's pano roof leaked and after the third failed attempt to fix it VW bought it back. They treated us very well with the buyback and we purchased our '19 Tiguan SEL. I had researched all available forums to see if leaking panos in Tigs was common. There were a few reports (one actually due to a faulty windshield seal) of them but considering there are 10X the number of Tiguans sold vs Golf Sportwagens/Alltracks, the number seemed acceptable to me. We only have 2500 miles on ours and has been through a few good rains and washes with no leaks. The first leak on our Alltrack showed up after 250 miles in the first rain it experienced.


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## noka648 (Sep 3, 2001)

Having only about 700 mi on my '19 SEL-P, I'm a bit nervous about even opening the sunroof once given what I'm hearing about leaks. Has anyone had a leak without ever having opened the sunroof before? Does anyone know the scope of the problem (e.g. what % of vehicles with panoramic roof are affected)?


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

Before picking up my 3rd replacement a month ago (second Tiguan) a Quality Technical Manager went over it. So far lots of rain and no leaks. This is what I was told he did: 

“I have concluded the inspection of the new replacement vehicle for, and addressed all areas that I am aware of that may cause a water leak into the vehicle.

1. Verified the body seal for the sunroof is 100% fully adhered to the body.
2. Taped upper portion of cowl with Eos water tape (vs the factory suggested repair of taping the underside of the panel)
3. Removed the “red-discs” at the ends of the sunroof drains
4. Had dealer remove the headliner to inspect vehicle during water leak testing
5. Inspected sunroof drain hoses to verify no kinks/pinched areas.
6. Water leak tested vehicle over 3 days
7. Drove vehicle immediately after water leak test, making tight turns and applying the brakes.”


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## phlegm (Apr 24, 2019)

Houdinize said:


> ...
> 
> 
> 3. Removed the “red-discs” at the ends of the sunroof drains
> ...


Anyone know what this is about?


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

phlegm said:


> Anyone know that this is about?


Those, I am assuming, are the drain flaps at the bottom the drain hoses. The dealer I used removes them from all new cars and is a big source of leaks as they get stuck closed and water backs up. I had them removed from 2 of my replacements and they still leaked so not the only solution by far. 


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## phlegm (Apr 24, 2019)

Houdinize said:


> Those, I am assuming, are the drain flaps at the bottom the drain hoses. The dealer I used removes them from all new cars and is a big source of leaks as they get stuck closed and water backs up. I had them removed from 2 of my replacements and they still leaked so not the only solution by far.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks, that's interesting. Makes we wonder what function VW thinks they serve, and if the dealership is causing a different problem by removing them.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

phlegm said:


> Thanks, that's interesting. Makes we wonder what function VW thinks they serve, and if the dealership is causing a different problem by removing them.


I’ve heard only that it prevents spiders from crawling up into the hoses and building webs that clog them - so same problem. I asked about concerns related to their removal and was told to ask to have the drain tubes cleaned during services - which they can do you just have to ask (according to the VW corporate person I asked). 


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## D3Audi (Feb 18, 2016)

I'm convinced every VAG pano sunroof leaks. Best to just stay away all together. 

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## TiggySUV (Dec 29, 2018)

Houdinize said:


> I’ve searched the forums and read multiple threads about water leaks but can’t seem to find anyone stating that they had one fixed for good. Here’s my story: I had a 2017 Golf Sportwagen SE that started leaking from the sunnroof in May at 20k miles, after over a month in the shop VW agreed to replace it with an 18 SEL in August, that one started leaking a week in and while in the shop had the drain tube flaps removed and yet still leaked so it was then replaced just last week with a 2019 Tiguan SEL (figured I’d change models for better luck and had to wait a bit for the 2019 in the color I wanted). I would’ve gone down to an SE without a sunroof but I’d already been upgraded to the SEL and am enjoying all the features like ACC and the digital cockpit. Welp, I picked up the car last Tuesday and on Friday there was water coming in from around the dome lights, grip handle, and A column. I heard about Golf sunroof welds being too high and interfering with the seals and also the drain tube flaps, but the thing is they told me when I picked up the Tiguan that the drain flaps had been removed, in hopes of preventing this issue. So, has anyone had a leak and had it completely resolved? I’m desperate and beyond frustrated and just want to enjoy my car. I’m happy to take a new one every 4 months but this is getting ridiculous.


Like you, I also had a Golf Sportwagen SE (which I absolutely loved driving) that developed a nasty sunroof leak. After several attempted fixes, VW agreed to replace with another Sportwagen. I decided instead to push for a Tiguan, because I could get an SE WITHOUT a sunroof (but still wanted everything else that comes in the SE trim). If I had stuck with a Sportwagen, I would have been forced into an S, and wasn't ok with that. I would not recommend any VW at this point that has a sunroof... I'm quite happy to be in one that doesn't have one now. Every other car I've had has had a sunroof, and while I miss it, I wasn't willing to roll the dice again.

It sucks, but I'd push for a buyout and go to a different brand, or move into a Tiguan SE.


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## Houdinize (Nov 16, 2018)

TiggySUV said:


> Like you, I also had a Golf Sportwagen SE (which I absolutely loved driving) that developed a nasty sunroof leak. After several attempted fixes, VW agreed to replace with another Sportwagen. I decided instead to push for a Tiguan, because I could get an SE WITHOUT a sunroof (but still wanted everything else that comes in the SE trim). If I had stuck with a Sportwagen, I would have been forced into an S, and wasn't ok with that. I would not recommend any VW at this point that has a sunroof... I'm quite happy to be in one that doesn't have one now. Every other car I've had has had a sunroof, and while I miss it, I wasn't willing to roll the dice again.
> 
> It sucks, but I'd push for a buyout and go to a different brand, or move into a Tiguan SE.


So far so good with my sunroof. There’s been lots of heavy rain and I’m all dry. (See my above comment regarding the QTM’s inspection) I have just been unwilling to compromise - I paid for a sunroof so I’m getting one and I refuse to believe they can’t solve this. I would also have lost money by downgrading as a buyout would only give me what I paid where at this point I’m in a more expensive car - went from an SE wagon to an SEL 4Motion Tiguan. Good luck. 


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## passat911 (Jan 13, 2007)

2020 Tiguan. The problem with my headliner leak is the drain tubes by the rear hatch being too long causing a “kink” and water not draining properly. The dealer had to fix the tube (probably shortening it) to allow adequate water flow. They had to replace the headliner and carpeting. Still waiting to pick up the car. 


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