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rubber seal around winshield

T

Tyler_06

New member
hey guys every time i take my car to the car wash it leaks a little water into my car from the front windshield right above the steering wheel. now i can just stop it with a towl but its anoying and from the outside in on the corner of the windshield the little rubber seal is sticking up on the corners is there any cost efective way to fix this. im guising there is like a seal cocking or something like tht but wouldnt it leak out and show? thx guys
 


The corner seals of my front windshield are sticking up a little. I inquired about this a couple years ago. Most people said if it doesn't leak, don't worry about it. But since yours leaks, I would worry about it. If I am not mistaken, I the rubber seals are not sealed to the body. Might be, not sure. But since it leaks, I would make sure to seal it. I would use 3M window sealant and lift the seal around the top edge of the windshield, and seal it up. That should work...
 
The rubber "seal" is not a seal at all. It is only a molding for cosmetic purposes to hide the edge of the glass and the gap between the glass and the body. The corners sticking up is a fairly common problem because as the molding ages, it shrinks and pulls up in the corners. Glue it down with windshield urethane adhesive, clean off the excess and tape it down overnight.

The actual seal of the windshield is the windshield adhesive itself. It is a bead of glue under the black frit band on the glass's outer edge. If this adhesive was done correctly, you could technically rip out the rubber molding completley and still have no leaks. As a matter of fact, a lot of new cars no longer have moldings at all. If you are leaking water through there, then there is a hole through the adhesive. If it's in the top corner, I suggest pulling off your a-pillar trim and pulling the headliner down a bit. You will see the glue when you look up in there and should be able to smear enough over the suspect spot to stop it. Just let it dry overnight before you high pressure wash it. Also, do not get the windshield adhesive on your headliner, seats, clothes etc., it is nearly impossible to get out of fabric.
 


I was going to say the same thing. The molding doesn't keep the water out, so make sure you find the spot where it is leaking and plug the hole. Might want to put a light coat all the way around just to make sure there are no other leaks.
 
I just purchased a used 05 GT with 120K on it. The previous owner failed to mention that the windshield leaks. Must have slipped his mind…

When it rains or when I wash it water comes out of the interior overhead light. I read that the external seal around the windshield is cosmetic. Can that simply be removed (I’m guessing just pry it up and pull on it)? Can I then check the seal around it and add some more windshield sealant to it? Then replace the seal? Anyone done this? Or do I have to do something in the car (pull headliner down, etc.)?

Or am I being cheap and need to take it to a windshield shop???
 
I would take it to a Windshield shop, most can do service calls at your home or work. Water leaks lead to rust.
 
drmurdoc said:
I just purchased a used 05 GT with 120K on it. The previous owner failed to mention that the windshield leaks. Must have slipped his mind…

When it rains or when I wash it water comes out of the interior overhead light. I read that the external seal around the windshield is cosmetic. Can that simply be removed (I’m guessing just pry it up and pull on it)? Can I then check the seal around it and add some more windshield sealant to it? Then replace the seal? Anyone done this? Or do I have to do something in the car (pull headliner down, etc.)?

Or am I being cheap and need to take it to a windshield shop???
Click to expand...



I had the same problem on mine... it leaked when ever i took off after a good rain... What i did was pulled up all of the seal on the windshield and used 3m windshield sealer/ adhesive and i put a nice bead all the way around and pushed the seal back into place and put some tape on it to keep it down for the night. Basically what someone else said on this thread already... GL hope no more leaks for you!:th_thumbsup-wink:
 
Abrasive said:
The rubber "seal" is not a seal at all. It is only a molding for cosmetic purposes to hide the edge of the glass and the gap between the glass and the body. The corners sticking up is a fairly common problem because as the molding ages, it shrinks and pulls up in the corners. Glue it down with windshield urethane adhesive, clean off the excess and tape it down overnight.

The actual seal of the windshield is the windshield adhesive itself. It is a bead of glue under the black frit band on the glass's outer edge. If this adhesive was done correctly, you could technically rip out the rubber molding completley and still have no leaks. As a matter of fact, a lot of new cars no longer have moldings at all. If you are leaking water through there, then there is a hole through the adhesive. If it's in the top corner, I suggest pulling off your a-pillar trim and pulling the headliner down a bit. You will see the glue when you look up in there and should be able to smear enough over the suspect spot to stop it. Just let it dry overnight before you high pressure wash it. Also, do not get the windshield adhesive on your headliner, seats, clothes etc., it is nearly impossible to get out of fabric.
Click to expand...


DAMN this should be stickied for leak repair! Nice to have people post the correct way to do it... And i know about the adhesive on my seats... there is still a slight mark :(
 


If you are going to seal it with Caulking, do not use silicon based caulking since the change in temperatures expands an shrinks the beads and you'd have a leak again soon, use a Butyl based since the temperature doesn't affect it as much.
 
Ok, I think I have my leak fixed. I have an 05 GT and I was getting water from the overhead light. I took off the molding from around the window and could not see where it leaked. I then removed the interior overhead light. See here:

ClubGP Message Forum troubleshooting


I sprayed water on the windshield and Onstar antenna and sure enough, the mount for the Onstar antenna was leaking. Seems this is a known issue for '04 and up GPs. Seemed to leak, not from the blolt that holds the antenna on that you can see once the interior light is removed, but from the small metal nipple that helps hold is straight. After removing the bolt, you will see that the antenna lifts up about 1/4 inch from the roof. I then took and squirted silicone adhesive under it. The tube of silicone came with a screw on extension that tapers down and could get under it. Once I tightened up the bolt I could see silicone oozing from the "nipple". I think it should not leak anymore.
 
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