Odd sunroof leak issue, advise please

[mark holliday]

Have been fighting sunroof leak issue for a while now and found the issue but not sure what the "fix" is. Maybe someone here has experience.

2015 Crew cab Laramie.

Had leaks at the front and rear areas of sunroof (Most heavy in the front, just stains in back)
All the drains are clean and clear, no broken hoses etc.
It is not the third brake light as many have pointed to as issue.

Leak At front - down A pillars and across the front edge of headliner.
I found the fix for this. Via search found a Youtube video that showed leak point where the spring for the front wind defector goes thru the sunroof frame. This hole allows water to leak through sunroof aluminum frame. Little black RTV and I sealed that up.
This solved the issue in front. See picture)

All was good for a while and thought I had solved the the leak.
Recent heavy rains and saw some staining at back of headliner (Front is good).

Leak at rear - staining around midpoint of headliner near the small speakers.
Dropped the headliner so I could see where the issue was. Water is dripping at rear area of sunroof where the motor cable housing attaches to the plastic end cap. Pictures attached. Not sure how this water crosses over from the drain channel to the section that has the drive.

Anyone have ideas

Thanks for the advise.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Looking at the pictures, what is the 'white piece' where the white tube attaches to? Is that a retainer clip, or a part of the nipple (where water could leak around)?

How does your sunroof gasket look? Have you tried to adjust the sunroof itself? If you loosen the bolts the glass should almost 'center' itself.

Ultimately, the tubes are there for back-up drainage should water leak past the sunroof. Which it can if you get into a real hard driving rain, or sunroof wasn't fully closed (raised in the rear). Any little bug or insect can clogg up a drain tube on some of these vehicle with small tubes (or restrictors at the molded bottom firewall outlet). So, yeah, you're on the right track to get them sealed up and draining. Unfortunately I haven't dealt with leaks like yours. Let us know what you find.

Does your truck have roof 'rails' or any other location where water could intrude? Or a seam where seam sealer might have cracked? (I've had that before)

I recently went through something like this on my Hummer's sunroof. The original gasket didn't look too bad and seemed to seal, but I guess it wasn't. You'd be surprised how much water can pool up on the roof during a long rain. Ultimately, after chasing down the leaks and getting the tubes cleared open, a new OEM gasket was the answer. Seals much better, no leaks after that. Any little water that does come through will drain out the tubes. And I raised the sunroof a little too from its original mounting level (I thought it seemed a tad low). But before you get into changing the gasket, double check that there aren't any paint chips or built up dirt around where the gasket seating area is against the roof. Or paint overspray from a 'quickie' paint job. I also try to park the vehicle level as much as I can so water won't pool up like if I had it parked nose-down hill.

I know how frustrating it can be. Lift your truck's carpet too and make sure it isn't wet. You might have to remove it to dry it out. My Hummer's carpet foam backing can hold more water than you can imagine. There must have been gallons of water trapped in that foam! It took over a week sitting in my truck bed (in hot summer sun) to dry out! Otherwise you could end up with a prematurely rotted floor downsteam.

 

[oldguy2]

Have you tried having someone put water on different spots to try to locate the actual entry point. you have to go slowly and start at the LOWEST point and work up. Every vehicle I have ever owned with a sun roof leaked. In fact the last was a new Charger that was bought back under the "Lemon Law". I swore I would never own another. Good luck.

 

[tron67j]

I had a sunroof leak (why I never will have one again) and the fix was once I shut it, to bump the switch to have it start going back up for vent. That fixed it for me. Good luck!

 

[kazeej]

I know this is kind of an old post, but I'm having the exact same problem. Took forever to track it down, but the leak is coming from the same place as yours.
Have you had any luck with this?

Thanks,
Jack

 

[Bwlambert]

I think I just discovered I am having this same leak. What was the outcome on this as I am going to dealership Monday and may make mention. Thanks.

 

[nismodrifter6686]

Hello,

So after searching and searching and reading all the info about the various leaks on our trucks, this is the exact problem I was / am having... I had a heavy leak at the drivers side grab handle and at the rear drivers side ceiling speaker... After sealing the hole on the track (as pictured above), the front leak stopped, however it seemed to make the leak in the back worse... After verifying that all (4) drains where clear and functioning and doing the calibration procedure; I pulled the head liner down, I found the exact same second leak coming from the center / back part of the sunroof (as pictured above). I don't see a way to stop the leak and my only thought is my truck has a 3" lift and its just ever so slightly higher in the front and I believe it contributes to the water draining in this direction and its not necessarily designed for that... Regardless it should not leak at all PERIOD when closed, so since this leak still continues today, I order the sunroof glass seal... The dealer is going to tell you that you have to replace the whole glass ($600) and that's a lie, if your out of warranty or don't want to deal with the "stealership'" you can order just the seal ($65) and the glass can more or less be easily removed to work on it. When you reinstall the glass you can then adjust the fitment for a better seal.

MOPAR # 68049128AA

Going to do this work over the weekend and we have a good amount of rain coming next week, fingers crossed this fixes this issue, I will let you guys know.

Wondering if you any of you found any other solutions.

 

[nismodrifter6686]

Okay so reporting back here, installation of the glass seal was a success however not as strait forward as I had hoped, most likely special tools (for trimming) required for a factory fit & finish, but I took my time and managed. Also kind of tedious to re-alight and the glass once re-installed, glass is removed entirely for this install, held in by 4 torx screws, relatively easy to remove. We just had about 3 days of heavy rain and finally NO LEAK completely dry, this appeared to resolve the roof leak for me, but was not all the steps I took, just the last... The conclusion we should draw is that not that much water should be getting into the cab to start with and the glass seal is likely the biggest overlooked contributor to most drain or directly related to sunroof leaks. My old seal had signs of rust and when I pulled it off the glass, water came pouring out of it. Here is a quick and comprehensive list of known leaks, what I addressed and issues I have read otherwise:

Pro Tip: The sunroof track is very greasy, easy to muck up your interior, be mindful; use gloves and keep plenty of rags on hand.

Check / Clear (2) sunroof front drains (easy)
Check / Clear (2) sunroof rear drains (difficult)
Sunroof Glass Seal (or replace entire assembly)
Seal holes in aluminum sunroof track
Reseal "shark-fin" satellite antenna
Replace 3rd brake light (seal)

Note: The aluminum track was the main contributor to the grab handle leak as far as I could tell, did all the other steps and the leak from the liner mounted speaker didn't stop until I replaced the sunroof glass seal last... However I feel if the was my first step all the other issues would have been non-existent, I am not convinced my 3rd brake like was leaking but for $20 you can get a Dorman one and I just replaced the whole unit. My shark fin was 100% leaking, just cant tell what part for this story it was contributing too, I sealed it up with clear silicone in my second pass.

Other known leaking issues with these trucks:

Windshield Glass Seal (4th/5th Gen)
Rear Window Glass Seal (5th Gen)
Read Cabin Vents Leaking (5th Gen)

The issues above tend to manifest in a wet/damp floor, I did not have these problems; any of the water that leaked from my liner pooled on my Weathertech mats thankfully.

I hope this helps someone, I have been chasing this leak over a year, 4 passes. GOOD LUCK!

2014 RAM 1500 5.7L Hemi Laramie Crew Cab 4x4

 

[Diesel-USMC]

Okay so reporting back here, installation of the glass seal was a success however not as strait forward as I had hoped, most likely special tools (for trimming) required for a factory fit & finish, but I took my time and managed. Also kind of tedious to re-alight and the glass once re-installed, glass is removed entirely for this install, held in by 4 torx screws, relatively easy to remove. We just had about 3 days of heavy rain and finally NO LEAK completely dry, this appeared to resolve the roof leak for me, but was not all the steps I took, just the last... The conclusion we should draw is that not that much water should be getting into the cab to start with and the glass seal is likely the biggest overlooked contributor to most drain or directly related to sunroof leaks. My old seal had signs of rust and when I pulled it off the glass, water came pouring out of it. Here is a quick and comprehensive list of known leaks, what I addressed and issues I have read otherwise:

Pro Tip: The sunroof track is very greasy, easy to muck up your interior, be mindful; use gloves and keep plenty of rags on hand.

Check / Clear (2) sunroof front drains (easy)
Check / Clear (2) sunroof rear drains (difficult)
Sunroof Glass Seal (or replace entire assembly)
Seal holes in aluminum sunroof track
Reseal "shark-fin" satellite antenna
Replace 3rd brake light (seal)

Note: The aluminum track was the main contributor to the grab handle leak as far as I could tell, did all the other steps and the leak from the liner mounted speaker didn't stop until I replaced the sunroof glass seal last... However I feel if the was my first step all the other issues would have been non-existent, I am not convinced my 3rd brake like was leaking but for $20 you can get a Dorman one and I just replaced the whole unit. My shark fin was 100% leaking, just cant tell what part for this story it was contributing too, I sealed it up with clear silicone in my second pass.

Other known leaking issues with these trucks:

Windshield Glass Seal (4th/5th Gen)
Rear Window Glass Seal (5th Gen)
Read Cabin Vents Leaking (5th Gen)

The issues above tend to manifest in a wet/damp floor, I did not have these problems; any of the water that leaked from my liner pooled on my Weathertech mats thankfully.

I hope this helps someone, I have been chasing this leak over a year, 4 passes. GOOD LUCK!

2014 RAM 1500 5.7L Hemi Laramie Crew Cab 4x4

Thanks for this. I've aggravated myself so much over this bullsh*t. I also purchased the sunroof glass seal but have not replaced it yet as I was told it can be difficult. I am starting from the beginning again with my 2019. I suppose the only neat thing about an $80k truck is the sweet in vehicle shower you get at no cost.