Notices
 
 

  

User Tag List

Thread: A4 B7 Cabriolet Rain Leak from front seal / top of windscreen area

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 12
  1. A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Woking, Surrey
    Posts
    65
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    3 Post(s)
    Hi
    Thought I'd post an update on my efforts to try and rectify a occasional rain/water leak in my A4 2007 Cab which drips from the area at the top front of the front side windows, very close to the complex seal arrangement where the roof meets the top of the windscreen. The leak manifests its self as a load of drips on both seats / door armrests etc... seems to be only in torrential downpours and could happen either side. Parking downhill may make it worse.. not sure..

    It seems to me the seal arrangement is getting 'overloaded' with large volumes of water.

    Searching this and other forums I suspect I am not alone here so this summary may help others.

    Firstly open the roof and you will see 4 front drain holes which you will need to check are clear and not blocked with dirt etc.... I used an airline with fine nozzle attachment to get the tip of the nozzle into the drain holes. However (sadly), mine were 100% clear hence my earlier post here. For reference I attach two images (with 2 skewers showing the drain hole locations at the top, and me pointing to the drain exits with the doors open).

    I am 100% sure both channels are clear but am now paranoid there every time it rains I'll wake to find another load of drips on both seats / door armrests etc...



    My action plan right now (after trawling the web / forums etc) are:

    1) Bought AutoGlym roof cleaner & treatment today from Halfords which is drying on the car as we speak

    2) Next step will buy seal lubricant to oil all the seals to see if that re-juvinates them (Krytox GPL 105 - see How To Krytox Purchasing Details - UK .... not sure if there is an Audi equivalent). If the seals are dry (not lubricated), they will be quite hard, not pliable and will not tightly conform to the window / roof edge when the window is rolled up / roof closed. To lubricate seals, put the lubricant on your finger, then rub it in. If a seal looks deformed, rub lots of lubricant on it, and keep rubbing the seal until it ‘rehydrates’.
    If my forum-searching is correct this should be done as general maintenance to keep the seals supple... if this does work I shall be doing mine at least once a year, or sooner if the seals appear to harden again.

    3) If it still leaks will replace front seal and (probably) get Audi to adjust roof / front catches to spec. The seal between the roof and the windscreen needs to sit flush apparently (mine is 2-3mm tighter on one side than the other). There is an adjustment procedure on the workshop manual but I have attached the procedure and copied info from another source here:



    "Finally got round to doing this after another small drip incident over the xmas holidays. I was nervous about removing the rubber seal but it wasn't difficult to do once all the screws holding the black metal retaining plate were loosened.

    Instructions attached do not explain how to loosen the plastic trim that hides the "gubbins" which is held on by 4 typically audi super strength clips which need a lot of force to loosen.

    Once the mechanism was exposed, it seemed clear to me that I shouldn't touch the adjustable rods that control the latches as these are clearly marked with red paint to show correct adjustment. I was trying to get the roof to sit further forward on the driver's side when shut, so I loosened the allen key bolts holding the black latch plate to the rest of the roof and pushed the plate backwards on its slots relative to the front edge of the roof.

    Re-assembly was straight forward except for the fact that while doing a a minor re-adjustment of the replaced rubber something I did something with the roof that caused the whole electric mechanism to stop working (along with the central locking to the boot). Luckily it was just a roof sensor that I was able to re-set thanks to the excellent Matthew Brenengen instructions here- How to Manually Operate 2005 B6 Audi S4 Convertible Top - YouTube"





    Hope this helps and pulls various bits of info together in one place.

    Would appreciate any comments on this topic (specifically regarding the top front seal rather than other leak issues) and more advice!!! (I write this during the wettest winter in 130-ish years so with a bit of luck the sun may be out soon!)

    Cheers

    James
    Attached Images
    Attached Files
    Last edited by JLBmatic; 10-02-2014 at 08:22 PM.
     
    1 0 0
     

  2. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Posts
    8
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    0 Post(s)
    hi JLB, any chance you could pm me details of the workshop manual you have from "another cource". thanks!
     
    0 0 0
     

  3. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Woking, Surrey
    Posts
    65
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    3 Post(s)
    hi, i dont have a workshop manual... i just copied the text above from another source.... i found the above from google searches. you got a leak?
     
    0 0 0
     

  4. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    somerset
    Posts
    825
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    8 Post(s)
    Hi JLB, did you manage to cure the leaking, I have just bought a cabby and have drips on the drivers seat bolster area after heavyish rain. How much was the new seal from Audi? Did you end up taking the car in to Audi for them to adjust the roof, and how much did they charge you??

    regards, Rhen.
     
    0 0 0
     

  5. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    Woking, Surrey
    Posts
    65
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    3 Post(s)
    hi Rhen
    I neither changed the seal or adjusted the roof in the end.... the Krytox oil seems to have done the trick although there is still a tiny leak in the heaviest rain / wind. I can live with that persoanlly.
    Cheers
    James
     
    0 0 0
     

  6. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2015
    Location
    manchester england
    Posts
    2
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    0 Post(s)
    cant praise Krytox oil enough, wifes tigra my eos, all saved from a slow death with this, and now use it twice a year on my A3 cab just to be sure.
     
    0 0 0
     

  7. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Location
    Vienna, Austria
    Posts
    1
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    0 Post(s)
    Hi. Would you happen to have a link on where to buy the Krytox oil, since I have had a hard time finding the correct one.
    Thanks.
     
    0 0 0
     

  8. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Posts
    471
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    2 Post(s)
    As an FYI, Cabriolet's leak (though not too much, check the rear drains regularly!) - nature of the beast!!!
     
    0 0 0
     

  9. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    birmingham uk
    Posts
    2
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    1 Post(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by JLBmatic View Post
    Hi
    Thought I'd post an update on my efforts to try and rectify a occasional rain/water leak in my A4 2007 Cab which drips from the area at the top front of the front side windows, very close to the complex seal arrangement where the roof meets the top of the windscreen. The leak manifests its self as a load of drips on both seats / door armrests etc... seems to be only in torrential downpours and could happen either side. Parking downhill may make it worse.. not sure..

    It seems to me the seal arrangement is getting 'overloaded' with large volumes of water.

    Searching this and other forums I suspect I am not alone here so this summary may help others.

    Firstly open the roof and you will see 4 front drain holes which you will need to check are clear and not blocked with dirt etc.... I used an airline with fine nozzle attachment to get the tip of the nozzle into the drain holes. However (sadly), mine were 100% clear hence my earlier post here. For reference I attach two images (with 2 skewers showing the drain hole locations at the top, and me pointing to the drain exits with the doors open).

    I am 100% sure both channels are clear but am now paranoid there every time it rains I'll wake to find another load of drips on both seats / door armrests etc...



    My action plan right now (after trawling the web / forums etc) are:

    1) Bought AutoGlym roof cleaner & treatment today from Halfords which is drying on the car as we speak

    2) Next step will buy seal lubricant to oil all the seals to see if that re-juvinates them (Krytox GPL 105 - see How To Krytox Purchasing Details - UK .... not sure if there is an Audi equivalent). If the seals are dry (not lubricated), they will be quite hard, not pliable and will not tightly conform to the window / roof edge when the window is rolled up / roof closed. To lubricate seals, put the lubricant on your finger, then rub it in. If a seal looks deformed, rub lots of lubricant on it, and keep rubbing the seal until it ‘rehydrates’.
    If my forum-searching is correct this should be done as general maintenance to keep the seals supple... if this does work I shall be doing mine at least once a year, or sooner if the seals appear to harden again.

    3) If it still leaks will replace front seal and (probably) get Audi to adjust roof / front catches to spec. The seal between the roof and the windscreen needs to sit flush apparently (mine is 2-3mm tighter on one side than the other). There is an adjustment procedure on the workshop manual but I have attached the procedure and copied info from another source here:



    "Finally got round to doing this after another small drip incident over the xmas holidays. I was nervous about removing the rubber seal but it wasn't difficult to do once all the screws holding the black metal retaining plate were loosened.

    Instructions attached do not explain how to loosen the plastic trim that hides the "gubbins" which is held on by 4 typically audi super strength clips which need a lot of force to loosen.

    Once the mechanism was exposed, it seemed clear to me that I shouldn't touch the adjustable rods that control the latches as these are clearly marked with red paint to show correct adjustment. I was trying to get the roof to sit further forward on the driver's side when shut, so I loosened the allen key bolts holding the black latch plate to the rest of the roof and pushed the plate backwards on its slots relative to the front edge of the roof.

    Re-assembly was straight forward except for the fact that while doing a a minor re-adjustment of the replaced rubber something I did something with the roof that caused the whole electric mechanism to stop working (along with the central locking to the boot). Luckily it was just a roof sensor that I was able to re-set thanks to the excellent Matthew Brenengen instructions here- How to Manually Operate 2005 B6 Audi S4 Convertible Top - YouTube"





    Hope this helps and pulls various bits of info together in one place.

    Would appreciate any comments on this topic (specifically regarding the top front seal rather than other leak issues) and more advice!!! (I write this during the wettest winter in 130-ish years so with a bit of luck the sun may be out soon!)

    Cheers

    James
    Hi I had this problem with my cab I found my leak was coming from the rubber seal that goes around the part that the claw hook goes into a part of the seal became unbounded from the edge of the polished aluminium a little line of black (what I had)silicone sealant underneath the edge of the rubber seal pushed the seal down till sealant started to oze out of the edge with a cloth carefully wiped the excess away whilst not pressing the rubber seal down any further closed the roof and left it to cure
    The roof or anything else concerning the roof doesn't make contact with this seal and it is very easy to miss it
     
    0 0 0
     

  10. Re: A4 B7 Cabriolet Water/Rain Leak from front roof seal / top of windscreen area 
    #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    U.K.
    Posts
    2
    Post Thanks / Like
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quoted
    0 Post(s)
    Can you possibly repost the images? I think I have the same issue with my 2006 B7 Cabriolet.
    Drivers footwell was flooded. Dried it out, and just went to get car washed while I was in the drivers seat. Could see water coming in through rubber seal at bottom of the door when (can only see the seal when door is open), if I follow the seal up towards the pillar and pull it back, I can see it’s all wet inside there
     
    0 0 0
     

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. Windscreen seal
    By kimi in forum Audi A3 - 8L - 1996 - 2003
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 26-10-2009, 09:53 AM
  2. Windscreen seal is not great
    By Emgee in forum Audi Cabrio - Coupe - Quattro's - UR Quattro
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 07-10-2009, 07:26 PM
  3. VW Caravelle Rain Leak
    By Andy Weaver in forum Touran - Sharan - Caravelle
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 18-08-2008, 02:52 PM
  4. rain sensor after windscreen replacement
    By sathound in forum Passat - B6 Forum - 2005 - 2010
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: 21-11-2007, 07:24 PM
  5. Rain sensitive windscreen
    By Rogg in forum Passat - Archive Topics
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 22-11-2006, 10:14 PM
Tags for this Thread

View Tag Cloud

Bookmarks
Bookmarks
Posting Permissions
  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  


 



  


Disclaimer: VW Audi Forum is an "independant enthusiast website", administered in line with guidelines supplied by VAG in the UK, and is in no way related to any of the Worldwide Volkswagen,Audi,Seat,Skoda,Bentley,Bugatti,Porsche or Lamborghini group of Companies. For official up to date information on any of there vehicles, please visit the official websites. Any comments made throughout this website, are the views of the respective poster, and in no way represent the views of the VW Audi Forum Administration, or the worldwide Volkswagen & Audi Group of companies.


VW Audi Forum do not vet and are not responsible for any information which is posted in this forum. All content is viewed and used by you at your own risk and we do not warrant the accuracy or reliability of any of the information.


Copyright: Certain "words", "phrases" and "Images" used on this website by the Administration are "Copyright" of Volkswagen GB, Volkswagen AG (Germany), Audi GB, Audi AG (Germany), Volkswagen Motorsport GB, Volkswagen Motorsport AG (Germany), Audi Motorsport AG (Germany), Volkswagen Racing GB, Bentley, Bugatti, Porsche and Lamborghini. No image can be replicated by anyone WITHOUT the relevant Companies written permission.


All trademarks and copyrights remain property of their respective owners.

No part of the VW Audi Forum website or forum may be reproduced without written permission from the site administration


PLEASE NOTE - PERSONAL ABUSE, ABUSE AGAINST THIS OR ANY OTHER WEBSITE OR ANY COMPANY WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. OFFENDERS WILL BE MODERATED OR EVEN BANNED.


This website and forum are best viewed at a minimum resolution of 1024 by 768.



  



- VW AUDI Forum - The #1 Volkswagen (VW) Group Forum - Volkswagen (VW) - Audi - Seat - Skoda - Bentley - Bugatti - Lamborghini - Porsche - Scania - MAN - Ducatti - VW Audi Forum -


- www.vwaudiforum.co.uk - www.vwaudiforum.co.uk -