# Water Leak thru Roof Console



## WalkerStewart (Jan 25, 2004)

I have an early 2004 V6 that has had a litany of minor problems, all of which have been remedied by the dealer after one or more trips; now, however, I have experienced a pretty high volume of water leaking thru the roof -- evidenced on the interior near the overhead console. 
I did a search and noticed only one other post for this problem on the forum, so I am a bit unsure what to make of it. I took the Egg to the dealer (the first time) and they intimated that my having let leaves build up at the foot of the windshield caused the problem. They cleaned it out (under warranty) and the leaking stopped, for a time. A couple of days ago it returned but has not leaked again since then. I have not yet taken the car in again but am going to call today. 
I must say that if they do not fix this permanently, this is the one thing that I will raise hell over; one would think that VW would know how to make a watertight car. And I'm sure as hell not going to hang on to a car that leaks.
Has anyone else experienced this? Are there any TSBs on it? 
How does the lemon law read regarding repeated attempts to fix a problem? I believe it is written that the Manufacturer gets three attempts to repair a defect before their obligation to buy back the car begins. What exactly is the case? 
Thanks,
Walker


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## Fla Dub'r (May 15, 2007)

*Re: Water Leak thru Roof Console (WalkerStewart)*

I had a similar issue with a leaky roof. I was getting water in the rear hatch on the left side on the cloth-like trim. 1st shop visit they told me it was a clogged drain line. Apprently VW decided to drain water from the roof rack channel through the vehicle via tubing. And this tubing can get backed up with debris and cause leaks. Severe enough to short out my radio amp. We'll in this case is turned out it wasnt the drain tube but the gasket between the roof rack channel and the roof was bad. And to make matters worse they didnt consider this a warranty issue but a maintenance one, makig me resposnsible for the $700 bill.
Thanks again VW


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## wrh3 (Mar 18, 2004)

I had this issue in my '04 and the dealership added silicone sealant between the sunroof motor and mounting point on the top and the screws that attached it and this seemed to fix the issue? No problems yet with the '05....


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## DicknNancy (Nov 6, 2004)

Same thing on our 2004 V10, leaking only during a heavy driving rain. Water dripping from either side of the console.
They ended up replacing the sunroof tub and so far no leaks at all for nearly 12 months. Seems to me that silicone is a lazy fix although it seems to be doing the job.


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## TREGinginCO (Jan 4, 2004)

*Re: (DicknNancy)*

There was fairly large group of '04's that had this problem... most ended up having the sunroof cartridge replaced and the problem was solved.


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## RvDUB (Apr 25, 2002)

*Re: (TREGinginCO)*

Had our sunroof replaced no questions asked.Fixed the issue.


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## WalkerStewart (Jan 25, 2004)

*Re: (RvDUB)*

Thanks for all the replies. I don't take it in until next Thursday, and this will provide some ammunition. So far this dealer is very good, but every once in a while, I have to sort of show my stuff and threaten to make a fuss. 
The interesting thing here is that there is no way that the drain lines could have become clogged in such a short period of time, so it's clear that this is a 'part' problem and not a 'maintenance' issue -- as they intimated the first time.
Are the sunroof "tub" and the sunroof "cartridge" one and the same? I assume that these are just one element of a larger sunroof assembly. Any color there would be great. I will be sure to bring this up when I drop the car off so that they know in which direction I expect them to go.


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## FullTmeDad (Nov 16, 2006)

*Re: (WalkerStewart)*

I had the same problem with my '06. The factory service rep was there when I brought it in and he said that there were problems with a blockage. It was repaired under warranty and it no longer leaks but the repair took four days.
Rick T.


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## WalkerStewart (Jan 25, 2004)

*Re: (TREGinginCO)*

Took the Egg in a few days ago and they performed a TSB on the sunroof, which involved resealing some areas in the sunroof 'tub.' So far no indication as to whether this has remedied the problem, though the opportunity to learn will no doubt present itself, since it's been raining almost every day here for the past two months. If the roof continues to leak, we will just have to have another little chat. The dealer (Rod East Volkswagen in San Antonio) has been, in all fairness, outstanding -- and does excellent work, so I have no reason to complain.


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## BV2Treg (Oct 17, 2006)

*Re: (WalkerStewart)*

My 06 has this problem now and is pending the "sealant" fix that is mentioned by others. Problem is that the leaks in the roof console seem to have shorted out all interior lights. Even replacing the fuse didnt remedy this. Was there a TSB regarding this for recent models??


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## C'sTDI (Feb 13, 2007)

did you really mean all interior lights? are you getting a MIL?


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## BV2Treg (Oct 17, 2006)

*Re: (C'sTDI)*

Actually, the lights on the dash, radio are fine - but the center console lights, the door lights (on the headliner), the footwell lights (front/rear) are all out!


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## DicknNancy (Nov 6, 2004)

*Re: (DicknNancy)*

Spoke too soon








It rained hard on and off most of the day here. Had a leak like a faucet when I made a right turn out of my parking place while leaving work tonight. Water hit the center consule and into the cup holder. Luckily I keep a super absorbant cotton towel in the drivers door so water was sopped up immediately.
I drove straight to the dealership and the overhead consule had dried up and stopped dripping by the time I made the turn off the highway. Luckily it was another right hand turn and up a slight incline. Got another few drips, enough to show the service writer when I arrived.
It was 9/11/06 that I was in there last for the same problem. I though they had replaced the whole cartridge but alas, the computer said they only replaced a rear hose that was leaking.
I also had them check the VIN for any campaign items and it came up with five (M9, N5, N6, Q1, Q5)
As I look these up in my E-Bahn subscription I don't have any problems that these address so I am a bit apprehensive to let them perform them.
We'll see on Monday when I drop it off.


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## DicknNancy (Nov 6, 2004)

*Re: (DicknNancy)*

Well, car has been in the dealership since Monday (4 complete days now). This time they were able to replicate the water leak by running a garden hose over the sunroof for 30 minutes or so. Previously they had used a pressure washer and run it through the carwash to try and get it to leak but I'm sure that was not enough volume to get it to leak all the way through the mechanism. This time they did what I suggested and got it to leak.
They believe they have isolated the problem to the seam between the outer roof skin and the metal flange that is attached from the bottom for the sunroof mechanism to bolt to.
I stopped by on Wednesday morning to see where things were at. Of course the headliner has to come out which means the whole upper part of the interior had to be removed (i.e. all door post moldings, windshield post moldings, rear hatch moldings, etc.) You can get a real good look at all the side curtain airbag units, electrical harnesses, sunroof drain tubes, etc. 
I took several pictures but their quality is poor due to the lighting in the shop. I may try again tomorrow to get better pictures.
The service writer has kept me appraised of the progress with a call each afternoon around 4PM (quitting time for the tech?) except for the day I stopped in. Today's update was that a VoA rep was there looking at it and he mentioned some type of a brand new service advisory or TSB (I asked for the number and a copy of it) that references a leak in this very location and a specific procedure to follow to fix it. We'll see.
So far the idea hs been to use some seam sealer between the inside of the roof skin and the mating surface of the mental flange but the quarters are too close to get the seam sealer caulking gun up in there I'm told.
Supposedly this brand new bulletin has specific instructions on what to do so that is their next move. I'll be stopping in to visit in person again tomorrow to have a chat with the service manager and see what the plans are.
There were several TSB's that needed to get done (should be about a half days work I was told) and apparently those are getting done as the seam sealer dries. 
I feel like I have had a good experience so far. They appear to be attempting to making a good effort to communicate with me and get the thing fixed. I have had a loaner Jetta from the start, no questions asked (although today the airbag warning light came on so I had to stop by and get a different loaner). 
One irrataing thing though is that twice now I have had to ask them to put the car INSIDE the shop overnight. We have been having monsoon like rain storms almost daily and you would think that a car that is in because of a leak in the sunroof would be automatically left inside somewhere, but no








I'll post an update when I have more news.
Happy Friday everyone!


_Modified by DicknNancy at 11:35 PM 9-28-2007_


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## DicknNancy (Nov 6, 2004)

*Re: (DicknNancy)*

After a week in the shop it appears as though the roof leak has finally been solved. VW issued a TSB in April (TSB 2014044) that referenced the same thing the tech found on our car.
I have posted a link to the TSB here
http://www.precisionframe.com/...4.pdf
They also got the campaign items done during the week and there were no issues there.
I did have to bring the car back on Monday because the seatbelts were not retracting properly into the pillars. The tech took care of it within 30 minutes and I was on my way.
Other than the whole thing taking so long, this latest visit to Schmelz Countryside VW was overall a good experience.


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