TJ leaking water despite hardtop

Russ Mullen

Russ Mullen

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Joined
Oct 18, 2018
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Location
Northern VA
Well, my new (to me) Rubicon seems to enjoy accumulating water inside despite the hardtop. Mostly driver's side rear seat footwell and trunk. I noticed the following:

1. driver's side door seal was a bit out of place, I put it back the way it belonged. Seal seemed in good shape otherwise
2. hard top only has 4 bolts, the two front bolts are missing (one on either side)
3. the rear hatch molding between the glass and hatch is a bit old but not obviously damaged

Beyond getting two more bolts and sitting in the back seat during a rain storm, removing hardtop, replace all top/body seals, re-mounting, is there anything else in particular I should be looking for? Replace door and hatch seals? Where to buy?

Thanks,

Russ
 
First find where it is actually leaking for sure is my suggestion. You might be surprised where the water is actually coming in from.
 
ac_ said:
First find where it is actually leaking for sure is my suggestion. You might be surprised where the water is actually coming in from.
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X2. If you can, sit inside it while it's raining and look to see where the water is coming from. If it's not raining, have someone hose it down with a hose while you're inside of it. This is the best way to spot where the leaks are coming from, as it can differ from vehicle to vehicle.

The most common leak area seems to be the cowl.
 
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I am having almost an identical problem. I have front, rear and one middle bolt on each side of the top. I don't believe the water is coming in there. I have eliminated the cowl I believe because I sprayed into the vent a pretty decent amount of water and there was nothing in the front foot wells.
It rained last night and I was parked on a downward slope facing front. I found water behind the driver's seat. I have adjusted the rear window so that the bottom window gasket makes a better seat but I believe there is still water getting in, just not as much.
@Chris Are there any tricks to adding weather stripping, etc down at the bottom of the rear window on the corners?
 
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I have a hard top and water accumulates in the passenger side rear foot well. I have taken out all the carpet and back seat to try to trace the water path. Rained all day Friday and no water. Drove home and it was soaked. I believe it is coming from underneath around the roll bar. Still looking.
 
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Stevie TJ said:
I have a hard top and water accumulates in the passenger side rear foot well. I have taken out all the carpet and back seat to try to trace the water path. Rained all day Friday and no water. Drove home and it was soaked. I believe it is coming from underneath around the roll bar. Still looking.
Click to expand...
I had the same issue with my YJ back in the day and it ended up coming from under the windshield. Where it breaks contact from the tub. I had to remove the windshield frame and replace the gasket.

You should dry everything up, and simulate a rain storm with a sprinkler see if you can trace it.
 
Rainwater is softer and shows leaks better, just a tip.
 
Open your passenger door, preferably while it is raining, and look right at the end of the hard top. I found that is drips down behind the roll bar, runs down the sheet metal and pools at the bottom of the roll bar. From there it goes wherever is easiest based on the angle of the Jeep.
It gives the impression that it is coming up from the roll bar. Since I had a little dust on the inside metal I could see the water trails as well once I knew where to look. One idea would be to splash a little talcum powder around there and see where the water leaves a mark on it.
 
Have a friend had the same issue. Cowling duct in front of windshield was plugged causing the water to overflow in to the passenger side floor area. But can flow to drivers side also. Take a hose and run the water in the slots in the cowling and then see if it's leaking in the inside or if the plastic duct if filling faster than draining. If so simply remove the cowling cover and clear the drain holes.
 
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