roof leak

[neberly]

I have a 2002 XLT Explorer. Bought used. Has a moon roof and roof rack
Soon after I had it I noticed that after a long rain I get a wet spot on the head liner just behind the drivers head and above the seat belt retractor. It doesn't get wet enough to drip on me but there is enough to make it really wet. A fan on it overnight is enough to dry it right out

I thought it might be the moon roof but I made doubly sure that is all the way down and sealed. There doesn't appear to be any leak around the seal that I can tell.

The roof rack mount just above my head seems to be just a bit loose. I'm wondering if that is where it is coming in. Anyone know how to get in and tighten up the mounting screws? Is there a removable cover on the rack mount or is it attached under the head liner from inside?

Thanks for any assistance

edit. Funny how a search didn't find any related threads but while reading for pleasure I came acrosse threads referring to roof leaks. Now I have something to go look for. There may be a clogged drain channel if I can find it.

 

[tcore83]

There are four drain hoses, one on each corner of the sun roof. I had one come loose once while at the automatic car wash and it poured in. I took the rubber seal off around the opening in the headliner and look the plastic cover of the driver side pillar and was able to lower the headliner down far enough that I was able reattach the hose with a little glue.

 

[BustedRichie]

I have got the same leak. I put water into the drain channel of the moonroof and all seems well, but it rained today and I've got a wet headliner on the driver's side right by the seatbelt pulley, so I started looking into the roof rack. I shook it and it was pretty loose, so I decided to check the Serious Explorations threads and ran across this one.

Come to find out that all was not well with my roof rack. I pulled the covers off and the front (2) screws on both sides were loose, rusty and wet. The rest of the screws seemed ok, but here is how I got it apart and what I have done so far.

There are 2 plastic pins in each cover that seat into metal retainers on the 3 attachment points of the roof rack. Gently pry the top of the covers back with a small screwdriver until you can get a prying tool (i used a Stanley nail head puller) under about half way. Keep continuing to work each end of the cover, about an inch in from the edges until the cover comes off. (Note! The covers attach at approximately a 45 degree downward angle from the side, so don't get too aggressive prying on them, or you will break the plastic pins!) Once I got all the covers off there were (6) T25 torx screws per side holding the rails on. I removed them all and the rails themselves.

When I did some cleanup to get the grime that had accumulated under the gaskets off the paint I noticed that the some of the metal inserts that are in the stamped holes in the roof of the truck to hold the rack were rusty, while some were even a little loose. Well with the poor fit of the roof rack rails, there is an "in" for the water right there.

Using Automotive Windshield & Hatch Sealant, I ran a circular bead around each of the inserts to keep the water out and set the rack back on top of them. When I put the screws back in the rack to hold it down, I did two things. First I coated the higher threads of the screw with TFE pipe compound to coat and seal the threads with something that will never dry or crack under environmental changes. This looks very much like the stuff Ford used on the threads when the put the rails on. Then just before assembly, I put a dab of Windshield Sealant right on the tip threads of the screws and drove them in from front to back.

Hopefully this is will fix the issue and I won't have to drop the headliner for further inspection into the moonroof drains, but something tells me I will....

Remember those who died for your freedom this weekend and thank a veteran when you see one.

 

[neberly]

you did everything I did and it fixed my problem. More than likely it will fix your leak as well. Here's hoping anyway