Sunroof Silicone Sealant Mess

[HantsHog]

A previous owner of my 02 Terrano obviously had a leaky glass sunroof and decided to poorly silicone seal the outside and disable the button rather than successfully unblock the two drains (I assume).

The silicone seal has failed as water is now dripping from above the reading light cluster. I can see water squishing through the silicone.

I read that these factory fitted sunroofs of most cars are not 100% water tight hence the drains. My question is what sort of seal do these things have (I cant see as there is so much silicone) and if I attempt to remove the silicone am I likely to need new seals ready before I start this job?

Also am I correct in thinking that I need to open the roof to get to the drains rather than work from the inside?

Ta

 

[panelbeater]

the drains are in the corners and go down pillers into sills,not good but clear able.the seal i think is a furry robber all around glass.get some silicon eater to clean it all out then clear drains.

 

[HantsHog]

the drains are in the corners and go down pillers into sills,not good but clear able.the seal i think is a furry robber all around glass.get some silicon eater to clean it all out then clear drains.

Thanks.

Doesn't sound good having water exiting in to the sills. I can just see those sill rusting away!

Sounds like an all day job just to get rid of the silicone sealant. Not sure what effect it might have on the rubber or painted surface though!

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

To get to the drains, there are 4, is doable with the roof open. The front 2 are easy, but the rear are harder to get to, as they are right at the back, where the roof slides back too.

The pipes only push on, so I think if I was in your shoes, I would start out by dropping the head lining and going in from there..

Dropping the head lining is not as bad as it sounds, you don't have to take it all out, just remove enough bits to allow you to do the one side, the then other.
You need to remover the
front Sun Visor, flip off the oval cover and there are 2 screws under.
Over door handles, again, 2 screws, one under the cover at each end. The cover is attached with a flexible bit of plastic on the outside ends, there is a small slot for a screw driver on the top of each cover.
Door surround rubber. Only along the top of the door surround.
Top "B" pillar trim, I find you need to remove the bottom trim first.
Possibly the top trim at the rear as well to make it easier.

Have a look in the workshop download, it does show an exploded view of the sunroof.

The seal, for want of a better word, is a fluffy edge seal. The problem is, the glass is held to a metal carrier by the seal, and the metal carrier rusts on the edge. this lifts the seal, allowing water to track through. I took the glass roof part out, and cleaned it up, rust proofed it, and then put the seal back on with a thin bead of sealant to "Help" things along.

 

[Lazy-Ferret]

Sorry, meant to add... because of the rust, the leak is not normally from round the edges, where the roof opens, as you would think, but from the glass side of the seal, round the edge of the glass, between the glass and metal frame, and then down the inside of that, to the section of sunroof mounting frame on the inside, that has no drainage holes, as technically, it's inside the car.