Malcolm, Please help with SL roof leak

[television]

I now have all the info that you need

 

[Philedge]

Theres no need to dismantle the roof to straighten the bottom- if that's what the problem is.

If the seal isn't damaged then just remove the seal around the bottom of the pillar, straighten the bent bit and refit the seal.

If the seal is damaged then replacement is a bit more involved but principle is the same- remove seal, straighten bent bit and refit seal

 

[television]

Theres no need to dismantle the roof to straighten the bottom- if that's what the problem is.

If the seal isn't damaged then just remove the seal around the bottom of the pillar, straighten the bent bit and refit the seal.

If the seal is damaged then replacement is a bit more involved but principle is the same- remove seal, straighten bent bit and refit seal

Yes I have just got the info to remove and replace the seal and how to set the rear window up if need be

 

[Philedge]

Top service as always

 

[television]

Top service as always

Between us all will get solved thank you

 

[davidsl350]

Malcolm/Philedge

Many thanks to you both, the support on this forum is tremendous.
My email address is

Many thanks

David

 

[television]

3 papers sent its thanks to Philedge for this one, a new one on me

You can edit out your address if you are quick

 

[television]

The roof intermediate position is all up in the DIY section

 

[Aitch55]

And if you need any C pillar seals, there's a part set for sale here:

http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/showthread.php?t=128525

 

[davidsl350]

An update and Philedge wins the cigar!

Both an Indie and main Dealer are of the view that a previous owner left something in the boot that got in the way of the C pillar closing mechanism, which then bent the roof rod etc

Interestingly, the Indie said that a main dealer would have to do the work as they had all the "check dims". However, the main dealer said that a good lever bar would be needed and that they would mastic a small tear in the seal rather than expensive seal replacement. Probably two hours work.

Now I need to seek a contribution from the garage who sold the car

Thanks to all

David

 

[Philedge]

Glad you seem to be getting to the bottom of it, but the "bent roof rod" sounds ominous. I didn't make any adjustment to anything other than the corner of the pillar which is just a bit of sheet metal.

If the gaps all around the C pillar are all parallel and flush then I don't see how you can have a bent rod as that would push something out of place- is it all straight with the lid open and closed? If the only thing out of position is the window corner than I guess its just the pillar corner that's bent??

Looking at the pillar bottom from the boot with the lid fully up the first 6-8" from the rear window join should be straight before it curves forward towards the front of the car. The seal might distort things a little but the metal underneath should be straight. If this looks turned up in anyway at the corner by the rear window join, then I'd be sure its just the tin that's bent. Another check is to compare the seals either side- if the window seal is sitting high where it overlaps the C pillar then that also points to the tin work being bent- that's how I first noticed mine.

Although I replaced the whole seal due to a small split, I think I was being a bit OTT with all the talk over water leaks etc. In hind sight I think now I would just have pulled the bottom of the seal off, bent the corner straight again and refitted the seal.

I have photo of another pillar without the seal fitted so you can see how the pillar should look in an unbent form but its too big for the site. If you want it then PM me your email address.

 

[television]

I agree completely in that something just bent the metal on C pillar without bending any other part of the roof.
If the seal is damaged then one for sale on the forum.

Thank you Philedge

 

[davidsl350]

I think "bent roof rod" is my sloppy terminology The seal channel on the offside is also distorted. I took two more piccies in between the rain - these show what I mean
At least the MB dealer was keen to help me manage down the cost

 

[davidsl350]

An update. The MB Main Dealer today sorted out the roof. The side panel was indeed bent - they suggested the roof had been closed onto something in the boot (well done Philedge).

They managed to bend it straight and it now aligns almost perfectly. They water tested it and then applied mastic to the near side C pillar seals where the double sided tape had failed.

Total cost £302, a result in my book. Thanks to all for their help.

 

[norfolk-boy]

Hopefully Malcom (Television) will see this post. I have just got a SL55 and it has the dreaded boot leak. I'm about to tackle this with your excellent DIY thread. However there appears to be a number of pictures missing from the guide and the ones I wanted to see are the hose location photos. Is there any way they can be added again as Im not to sure how far they need to be inserted in to the channel.

 

[television]

That thread all go into a mess some how, I will try and re do it all within a few days.

 

[norfolk-boy]

Thanks Malcolm

 

[Brotherjenks]

I have an interesting question regarding water ingress into my r230 SL (2002)
I have fettled around the boot of my car for 2 wet winters now and the water stopped for a few months and then came back. However - I am loading towels and absorbent tissue onto the sides of inside boot under c pillars and now see that the top of towels stays bone dry whilst the bottom of them get soaked. It's like it's trickling down the carpet and runs underneath the towels and down into the boot.
I refuse to sell and / or give up.
I WiLL fix it !!!!!

 

[television]

I have an interesting question regarding water ingress into my r230 SL (2002)
I have fettled around the boot of my car for 2 wet winters now and the water stopped for a few months and then came back. However - I am loading towels and absorbent tissue onto the sides of inside boot under c pillars and now see that the top of towels stays bone dry whilst the bottom of them get soaked. It's like it's trickling down the carpet and runs underneath the towels and down into the boot.
I refuse to sell and / or give up.
I WiLL fix it !!!!!

Did you ever fix the seals properly ???

 

[drmw]

I have an interesting question regarding water ingress into my r230 SL (2002)
I have fettled around the boot of my car for 2 wet winters now and the water stopped for a few months and then came back. However - I am loading towels and absorbent tissue onto the sides of inside boot under c pillars and now see that the top of towels stays bone dry whilst the bottom of them get soaked. It's like it's trickling down the carpet and runs underneath the towels and down into the boot.
I refuse to sell and / or give up.
I WiLL fix it !!!!!

Most likely drips off the pointed ends of the boot lid - they drip down missing the rubber "gutter" and as the carpet is scotch guarded, it just trickles down exactly as you say. There are odd shaped plastic fittings that should be present under the pointed ends of the boot lid to ensure as much water as possible goes where it should, but they fall off with monotonous regularity however are cheap to buy from MB - I'll wager yours are gone.