Went to the carwash with my sunroof cover open and as I looked up, I saw drops of water accumulate near the back edge by the seal and saw a drop on the handrest. After looking online, I understand there is a drainage for that purpose but does not seem normal. Anybody aware of this or notice the same thing?

No water


Water coming in from behind the seal!

Also, after a wash wiping down the seal on the outside of the sunroof the black pigment seems to rub off on the cloth. Seems like this must be replaced??

 

Thats really odd but sometimes seals do wear out with friction, heat, general aging. Lots of members (including myself) have changed the sunroof seal as rattling noise and excessive wind noise from older seals were the culprit. I personally have never seen any water coming through or build up in that area.

Not entirely sure if a new seal will do the trick, but its around $50 bucks and the DIY isn't bad at all. See this thread: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...ml#post9927387

 

My 2013 GS 350 still has the original sunroof seal and it doesn't leak or cause it to rattle. It's garaged and not driven much except to play golf as I mostly use one of the other vehicles.

Did the carwash use a strong fan blowing at times almost directly downward to blow off excess water as you exited the carwash? If so, maybe that would have driven water past the seal and caused it to penetrate to the inside of the cabin.

 

This is honestly the first post that I'm seeing of a water leak make it past the seal. Luckily it's just a few drops you're noticing, otherwise it could turn into a much bigger problem.

Was this after a carwash? After a heavy rainstorm/downpour? Or does this even occur if your car sits outside due to condensation buildup?

I would do what @AJLex19 suggested and start by replacing the seal to see if that fixes the issue - cheap and very DIY-able (lots of people have done it on this forum so can offer help/guidance if needed).

~ Im2bz2p345

 

If it was me. I would clean the rubber and put some lubricant on it, and clean the the metal body where it meets. I also agree with one here who asked if the carwash blower could have pushed the Glass down. I have been through car washes where I saw it push my Glass so hard I put my hand up there to support it.

At the end of the day though I would replace the rubber trim as we know its a problem for the GS either now or later.

 

Thanks fellas and apologies for the delay!

The only car washing that's been done for past year or so is a self wash which of course takes time. I found this touch free wash that looked quite nice and convenient for a quick rinse. After reading the above posts, I realized the touch free wash had water spraying downwards and at various angles with perhaps 2x the pressure at the self wash stations including the drying blowers. Finally, when I had time and went to the self wash and sprayed the sunroof seal area in a reasonable manner and angles and continued to wash the car. Once completed, I checked on the inside and there was no water!! Felt it with my fingers and still no water. The touch free wash sprayers were definitely pushing the water through the seal and forcing it. I will check one last time after doing another self wash and spraying the seal directly and checking immediately this time. Does anybody know where the water comes out from if passed through? I'd like to make sure it is clean and free of debris.

I live in CA and the car is usually parked directly under the sun most days. This may be the reason I feel the seal is deteriorating and the black pigment actually rubs off and looks faded which aggravates me. I'm going to look up the post referenced in changing the seal but normally I do not like to do this type of work especially if it means removing it which is obvious. Just don't want to mess anything up along the way.

 

It's one of these although the brand may be different..

 

I use the touchless car wash also. We have really bad hardwater in my area that leaves water spots so this is the easiest and fastest way to wash for me. I didn't see any leaks in my vehicle but it's only a 2020 model though.

 

That’s normal.
I have this ‘problem’ on my GS.
Those drops are leaking onto a tray, which then leads to the front pillars to an exit drain.
Condition will better if you replace the seal, no biggie