2009 M3 GT Sunroof leaking / touchless carwash

[AOF]

Hello all, this is my first post...I have been reading the boards ever since I had a crappy experience at Orangeville Mazda and googled "orangeville mazda reviews" and found this board. Subsequent searching led me to Jeff at MOT and I now have a brand new 2009 Mazda 3 GT. :)

Anyways, I took it through its first touchless carwash at Esso yesterday. The sunroof was fully closed but when the hoses were spraying the roof, I got splashed by a few drops of water!!?? Is this normal?? The seal looks fine but I've never gotten wet going through car washes in my civic.... :whoa

I can't even see where it would have come in and with this being my first "new" car I am perhaps a bit overly paranoid....but still.

[JadeButterfly]

definitely not normal... should take it back to the dealer and get it checked.

[Karen Lee-McNair]

If there is a problem with your sunroof, this will definitely be part of your manufacturer's warranty.

just a side note, was there already a lot of water in the drain area prior to you closing the sunroof to enter into the car wash?

[cwp_sedan]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. I have the same thing. What do you expect the when you spray a high pressured flow of water at the sunroof? The seal isn't like a window.

Do some tests. Get a bucket of water and pour it on the sunroof. Also spray a lt of water onto it using a hose. It it leaks than worry about it. Otherwise I wouldn't worry at all and just close the privacy shade when you go through.

[-cj-]

I've gone through touchless car washes in the wife's 07 Sedan and never had it leak (knocks on wood).. This doesn't sound normal.

[aris]

That is NOT normal..during the winter months i take my car throw touchless car wash all the time and i never had my sunroof leak water at all...Go get it checked!

[Noisy Crow]

It depends on the touchless car wash.. and likely on the sunroof type.

On my car ('08 GT Sedan) the sun roof tilts up for "tilt", and tilts down to slide under the roof for "open". I have also seen a version that tilts up and slides over the roof for "open".

Now... for the version on my car the only thing keeping water out is the edge of the sun-roof lining up with the rubber seal around the edge of the opening. So: Pushing down on the sunroof while it is closed hard enough will flex the mechanism enough to allow a bit of water in if the water is under pressure. Since some car washes have water jets with enough pressure to flex the mechanism, water can force its way in. I solve the problem by supporting the rear edge of the roof with my hands when I go through that part of the car wash. :)

[Zoom Zoom Boy]

It depends on the touchless car wash.. and likely on the sunroof type.

On my car ('08 GT Sedan) the sun roof tilts up for "tilt", and tilts down to slide under the roof for "open". I have also seen a version that tilts up and slides over the roof for "open".

Now... for the version on my car the only thing keeping water out is the edge of the sun-roof lining up with the rubber seal around the edge of the opening. So: Pushing down on the sunroof while it is closed hard enough will flex the mechanism enough to allow a bit of water in if the water is under pressure. Since some car washes have water jets with enough pressure to flex the mechanism, water can force its way in. I solve the problem by supporting the rear edge of the roof with my hands when I go through that part of the car wash. :)

+1. It truly depends on the touchless car wash. On really powerful car washes, a few drops leaking is not abnormal. However, if you have lots of water coming in, than that is definitely not normal.

My 2005 3 hatch had the same problem when new. It leaked a lot and I'm talking a lot and not just a few drops. Turned out it wasn't seated properly at the factory and a trip to the dealer fixed it. Yours might be the same, so take it to them and have them look at it to make sure it is seated and aligned properly. You should note the problem on your service record in any case...

[omalak]

Sounds normal to me... I use the touchless at petro can up at kennedy and highway 7.. those water canons blast like no tomorrow!

I always get a few drops that come through.. I attribute it to the high pressure water jets.

I dont see any leaks during a rain storm. I'd just kep an eye on it when it rains, if it leaks hit up the dealer

[mit-gee-mui]

Same stuff below.

http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=14354&highlight=leak%2A+%2Awash

http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=20311&highlight=leak%2A+%2Awash

http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=11419&highlight=leak%2A+%2Awash

http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=10669&highlight=leak%2A+%2Awash

http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=8549&highlight=leak%2A+%2Awash

[mazda lover]

Sounds normal to me... I use the touchless at petro can up at kennedy and highway 7.. those water canons blast like no tomorrow!

I always get a few drops that come through.. I attribute it to the high pressure water jets.

I dont see any leaks during a rain storm. I'd just kep an eye on it when it rains, if it leaks hit up the dealer

watch when those water canons hit the car, it will peel the weak paint off our car

[AOF]

Thanks everyone, I feel a bit better and it was literally only like 4 drops. It has rained 24/7 since I bought it and I haven't had any problems with leaking.

The water pressure in the carwash was intense...after reading about issues with the Mazda paint I decided to use the touchless (I usually just wash it myself or go through the non-touchless but I didn't have time this week). However, I was sitting in there cringing about the crazy water pressure - surely the 'touch' washes must be better because they don't blast as hard?? How much can they really damage the paint? I have CWP paint if that matters.

Also........my car was still dirty when I came out. The road crap was gone but it still had a thin layer of dust that I only noticed when I streaked my finger across the hood. The white paint suddently got much whiter!! Definitely not sold on the whole touchless carwash idea. :)

[aris]

Thanks everyone, I feel a bit better and it was literally only like 4 drops. It has rained 24/7 since I bought it and I haven't had any problems with leaking.

The water pressure in the carwash was intense...after reading about issues with the Mazda paint I decided to use the touchless (I usually just wash it myself or go through the non-touchless but I didn't have time this week). However, I was sitting in there cringing about the crazy water pressure - surely the 'touch' washes must be better because they don't blast as hard?? How much can they really damage the paint? I have CWP paint if that matters.

Also........my car was still dirty when I came out. The road crap was gone but it still had a thin layer of dust that I only noticed when I streaked my finger across the hood. The white paint suddently got much whiter!! Definitely not sold on the whole touchless carwash idea. :)

A touchless car wash is not going to get the car clean..you will need to wash it by hand if you want it clean...To me a touchless car wash is only good during winter months cause i can't wash my car during winter by hand.

[fini]

Pushing down on the sunroof while it is closed hard enough will flex the mechanism enough to allow a bit of water in if the water is under pressure. Since some car washes have water jets with enough pressure to flex the mechanism, water can force its way in. I solve the problem by supporting the rear edge of the roof with my hands when I go through that part of the car wash. :)

I just checked my sunroof and it takes relatively low force for me to push down on the sunroof and it literally just caves in about a centimeter and stays there...... this is not normal right?

[Noisy Crow]

I just checked my sunroof and it takes relatively low force for me to push down on the sunroof and it literally just caves in about a centimeter and stays there...... this is not normal right?

Nope, that is definitely not normal!

[fini]

Nope, that is definitely not normal!

ughh.. i knew it. i guess it's back to the dealership again....

[rab33]

That's hilarious, I went to a touchless esso yesterday (for the first time) and the exact same thing happened. I felt water drops on my face and I was like WTF. I figured it was because of the water pressure as I've never had a water leak during rain. I'll test it tonight!