Sunroof leak...Repair or replace sunroof
 

I just pulled my rear sunroof out because of water pouring in. I found that the left guide assembly was not docking in the fully closed position and did not allow the sunroof glass to pull tight enough against the gasket to keep the water from seeping in. Here is the question....do I buy the sunroof guide assembly or dig deep into the wallet and buy the whole sunroof assembly???? If I buy both rt and left guide assemblies and the gasket, that should be a total sunroof rebuild...right???

The RAVE manual makes no reference to rebuilding or replacing sunroof parts. Has anyone out ther tackled this project and if so, how successful were you at actually stopping the Niagra Falls type leak that occurs when these sunroofs go bad.

It took me all day to get that headliner out and broke all kinds of clips and trim pieces in the process. Saying that..I only want to have to put this thing back together once.:eek:

Leaking or not, Land Rover Discoverys rock!!!! I just love that Rover!!!

Getting redy to put it all back together. I got on eBay and purchased the sunroof gasket (EEQ500010)from the Discovery II which I have been told is an exact fit for the electric sunroof on my '98 Discovery I. I also bought the left and rt guide assemblies(from Atlantic British). I did notice that the rear drain tubes were smashed a bit where they pass between the headliner and roof subframe. Although they were not completely blocked, I made it a point to open them up by hand squeezing them back to a perfectly round shape and putting a few big tie wraps around the place that was smashed(just tight enough to maintain the shape, but not too tight as to smash the tube).

I installed the guide assemblies and that took care of the leak in the rear sunroof. I flooded the roof with plenty water and not a drop got past the gasket on the REAR sunroof. I did notice that a few drops got past the gasket in the front sunroof and made it into the clear plastic drain tubes. I will install the new gasket in the front sunroof and hopefully that will take care of the small leak inthe front sunroof. The new gasket appears to me to be an exact match, but I will find out when I go to install it.

;) I will post how it all turns out.

anytime you have the headliner out you should check all 4 sunroof drains just to make sure they are clear. you don't want to have to go back and take the headliner out again if you dont have to.

Also one quick thing to do to ensure absolutely no leaks is to tighten down the bolts for the stock roof rack rails. The worst leak I ever had came from one of them being loose!

You did the right thing by not replacing the entire unit. There are only about 3 different failure points inside of the discovery sunroof:

-The small square plastic guides inside of the tracks tend to crack and brake over time. These simply need to be replaced.
-The metal triangular shaped guides upon which the plastic squares sit bend due to lack of grease and torque from the motor. This is the piece that is visible when the sunroof is assembled. These you can occasionally bend back into place however they can brake as well and may need to be replaced.
-The molded plastic on the end of the guide cables in which the aforementioned metal triangular piece is pushed/pulled up and down the tracks. This tends to crack and brake off over time. If one brakes, this will cause your sunroof to jam because its only pushing/pulling one side. The only solution is replacement which can be done from a donor sunroof or replacement track assembly from the dealer for $180 last time I checked.

The best possible way to avoid any of these problems is to constantly keep the tracks and moving parts of your sunroof greased!! ;)

-Adam

Does anyone sell new replacement metal sliders. Mine are bent too. Applied heat and straightened but dont know how long that will last. Should have been made of steel, not aluminium.
Cheers