LR3 Leaking sunroof/wet floors, after drain plugs into side body have been replaced

amcjen

Member
Hey there-

So we are getting hit with major wet snow in the west right now, and I noticed my driver and passenger side floors are wet this morning when I got in the rover.

Last summer I replaced the sunroof drains as they had both deteriorated and had fallen out of their body holes. I used the method described elsewhere on this forum, where you cut the bad elbow off, use a quick-connect coupler, and reattach an OEM drain elbow. All seemed to be fine upon repair, even poured water on the sunroof and saw the water coming out the correct spots with no wetness on the floor. I then used a leaf blower to dry out the floors with the carpets lifted up for several hours to get everything back in order.

(Also repaired the broken ground wire on passenger side wire channel that was preventing my keyless entry from working—soldered that sucka so it won’t break again!)

So coming into a wet LR3 today was pretty disheartening. Anyone seen something similar, and found that it was perhaps another cause—maybe a bad sunroof seal or something?

Once the snow subsides I may just take the whole thing apart again and install new drains with no couplers. They should be working, but something’s amiss. I can check that the elbows haven’t fallen out of their body holes first—hoping it’s something as simple as that.

Any guidance or advice would be appreciated!

- Allison
 

amcjen

Member
Interesting--I didn't know about the C pillar drains. I assume C pillars are in the very back, next to the rear tailgate. I don't see any dampness back there.

Hoping they just fell out or something, but doubt that both would fall out, made pretty certain they were fully seated when I had everything apart.

I'll post back and see what I find.
 

esa31.8t

New member
You may need a new cowl (large plastic part that your wipers sit over. My LR4 had similar leaks and it was the cowl (old and warped) - I literally just put a new one on my LR3 yesterday as well. Also, there is an AC drain plug for condensation that can get clogged up and leak onto your floors. It sits up behind the center console near the floor.
 

amcjen

Member
Ah interesting. This could be it. Did you find the floor of both the driver and passenger side wet due to the cowl issue?

And good point on the A/C issue. I’ll look into it when I have the dash out this spring (have some other projects like installing an iPad to replace the crappy GPS and a Traxide dual
battery controller.
 

esa31.8t

New member
If I remember correctly both sides were wet but I do believe the passenger side was much more so. Also, if you replace the cowl you'll need new clips for the A pillar trim that go over each side of the windshield - those have to be removed to replace the cowl. I think there are 5 clips on each side. The cowl should come with new clips if you buy genuine Land Rover. I went with genuine LR for the cowl and clips and paid about $105 shipped from Lucky 8.
 

amcjen

Member
Perfect, really appreciate the assistance. I think I'll replace the cowl anyway and purchase from Lucky 8, as I absolutely don't want this water damage to total the car (as I've heard from my indie LR mechanic saying he's seen often in our area).
 

DiscoDavis

Explorer
You do not have to remove the A pillar trim. The cowl is easy to do. Think very hard about putting a piece of flashing over the HVAC intake when you have access to it OR using sealant on the cowl itself. They all warp over time.
 

amcjen

Member
You do not have to remove the A pillar trim. The cowl is easy to do. Think very hard about putting a piece of flashing over the HVAC intake when you have access to it OR using sealant on the cowl itself. They all warp over time.

Excellent to know. Any pointers/links on doing this particular sealant, or where the HVAC intake is located?
 

amcjen

Member
Excellent to know. Any pointers/links on doing this particular sealant, or where the HVAC intake is located?

Replying to my own post--looks like a good way to determine if the cowl is indeed leaking, instead of the sunroof vents, you can check by seeing if the cabin air filter is wet or not. If it is, likely the cowl is leaking. If not, it's probably the sunroof drains. (Posting this in case others come across this thread and have a similar issue.)

When I get back from this work trip this week, I'll check the cabin filter to confirm.
 

DiscoDavis

Explorer
HVAC intake is a flat opening covered by the windshield cowl. Can't recall much about it other than it will be clear to you what it is when you see it, and you will see how there is potential for water ingress there IF the cowl does warp in that spot.

https://expeditionportal.com/forum/...-discovery-3-build-thread.154622/post-2030354
(Passenger side opening in the photo with the cowl off)

What people have done (and I would do if I was there again and knew in another 10 or so years I would need to fit a new cowl) was make a piece of flashing (essentially a sheet metal shield roughly the size of the hvac opening), and sort of place it right above the opening between where the windshield ends. Imagine you want to create a little roof over that area so that if the cowl warps again and water sheets down into that area you have coverage over the opening and it will just continue to run down into the drainage areas and not trickle into the hvac intake. You could use sealant, you could use pop rivets on the bit of sheet metal below the windshield etc.

Alternatively, now that you know where the area is, you could also use sealant between the cowl and the glass in that area and make sure they stay stuck together (not foolproof but people do it).

Hope this helps.
 

amcjen

Member
What people have done (and I would do if I was there again and knew in another 10 or so years I would need to fit a new cowl) was make a piece of flashing (essentially a sheet metal shield roughly the size of the hvac opening), and sort of place it right above the opening between where the windshield ends. Imagine you want to create a little roof over that area so that if the cowl warps again and water sheets down into that area you have coverage over the opening and it will just continue to run down into the drainage areas and not trickle into the hvac intake. You could use sealant, you could use pop rivets on the bit of sheet metal below the windshield etc.

Ah, this makes perfect sense now. Just saw the Youtube vid link posted above and I now see exactly what you're saying. Seems like a simple thing to do--will just need to ensure that the cowling sits flush (and seals again) with the cover made for the HVAC intake.

Alternatively, now that you know where the area is, you could also use sealant between the cowl and the glass in that area and make sure they stay stuck together (not foolproof but people do it).

Not a bad idea either. As mentioned, we get a ton of snow here, and when it's wet snow (Sierra Cement, they call it), the wipers have a hard time pushing it down when swinging back towards the cowl, it will build up there. I can imagine it's probably packing the snow right between the cowl and windshield... This is appearing to be the main culprit.

Again, I really appreciate your help! Thank you so much for the clarification.
 

Ryan...

Member
Another +1 for the cowl, helped my water issue quite a bit.

Also check to make sure the plastic trim on the exterior of the A pillar is secured properly. Underneath that trim are multiple holes that can allow water to drain inside the vehicle. Over time those plastic washers became very frail on my RRS, so I'd imagine the LR3 could suffer a similar fate.
 

amcjen

Member
Another +1 for the cowl, helped my water issue quite a bit.

Also check to make sure the plastic trim on the exterior of the A pillar is secured properly. Underneath that trim are multiple holes that can allow water to drain inside the vehicle. Over time those plastic washers became very frail on my RRS, so I'd imagine the LR3 could suffer a similar fate.

Awesome, thank you for this. I'll check when I'm in there with the cowl replacement. It just arrived this week and expecting some warmish dry weather this weekend.

Thank you all again!
 

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