Snow melt and leaks?

[Mystic Rado 0]

Yeah, I know it's not topical in weather terms, but I'm wondering if anyone else finds they have problems with leaks which only happen when snow accumulations on the car thaw out. It's happened twice to me now and my theory is that maybe the sunroof drains freeze solid and when snow on the roof melts it then basically drains into the sunroof opening then spills into the car because the drain is still frozen.

 

Any other conditions, the car's fine, but where heavy snow's involved, all bets are off. I'm starting to think the solution is maybe a partial cover to be put on when snow's forecast and off once it's gone, but I kind of wanted to sanity check my thinking first. Anyone else have the same problem?

[fendervg 33]

Ha ha - no chance of snow at the moment! I'd always clear snow off the car regularly, even if not using it, during heavy snowfall. Certainly always before driving.

 

Have you checked that the drains are actually connected and working? There's two at the front and two on the back of the sunroof, at each corner, and the hoses clip onto a plastic channel with a spout, which are basically just stuck on the four corners of the metal frame. I've seen cases where the plastic is cracked, so the water just leaks out.

[Mystic Rado 0]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the pipes are in place - water drains just fine from the sunroof channels and comes out where it's supposed to. It really does just seem to be snow related, but I'll double check when I have time. No issues with normal, torrential, Peak District rain at all :-(

[1xshaunx1 27]

Do you get a damp roof lining around the sunroof or drips on the seat or both.

[Keyo 47]

Do you get a damp roof lining around the sunroof or drips on the seat or both.

 

I had this the other day after the heavy rain and assumed I had left the sunroof slighty left open, gave it a good water test afterwards and could not find any further water ingress.

[1xshaunx1 27]

If grab hold of the bit of roof lining that moves backwards and forwards with the sunroof, can you feel any movement if you push it forward slightly. If you can its not locked in properly and the bit that catches and channels the water away is not in position to do so.

[Mystic Rado 0]

Thanks for the feedback. It does genuinely only seem to happen under snow melt conditions - twice in the last couple of years. The last time water pooled under the rear seat squabs to the point where I had to take them out of the car to dry them. I've poured water into the sunroof channel and it all seems to drain out as per intended and comes out under the car. On the edge of the Peak here and we get proper rain, which doesn't seem to be an issue, just the bloody snow :-(

 

I'm thinking of getting the roof liner redone soon, so will have a proper poke around then.