New Recall for front sunroof drains

steelmb

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2009
Location
MB
TDI
2003 Jetta Wagon
Judging by the replies it has become apparent to me that owners north of the border do not have this problem. :rolleyes: Chalk another one up for customer care. VW is not going to do something unless they are pushed into it. :cool:
 

adamant628

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 20, 2009
Location
Columbus, OH
TDI
2003 Jetta Wagon GLS
So does the fix cut off the nipple providing a less restricted drain? Or does being shorter help in some way.
 

Dunno513

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2006
Location
Mirror Lake, NH
TDI
2006 NB PD-TDI DSG
My wife asked why I didn't want a sunroof in the car I ordered. hmmm......

Took a lawsuit for VW to see it's error.... SHOCKER :rolleyes:
 

04SlvrJetta

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2007
Location
Wheeling, WV
TDI
15 Passat SE DSG
dieselhoff said:
I love my sunroof, only time i get water inside is when i leave it open.
my car leaked last night. I had drips coming from the headliner, and all 4 doors were wet on top. :(

Thank God it didn't rain that much and there was no wind. I am such a jackass...left the roof popped and all 4 windows cracked.

Yes, I ran the A/C all the way to work today and will be doing the same on the way home.

Seriously, on the recall, though. I have not had problems, but will probably take it in to be sure I don't have any.
 

Surferchick2

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Joined
Apr 25, 2009
Location
Anacortes, WA
TDI
2003 Beetle, 2013 Golf
I'm going to swing by this reputable bodyshop and see if the tubes are clogged at all. The owner said not to have this done since my car has never leaked anyway, even in PNW pouring rain, and if they start digging in there, they could mess something up.

Is anyone not utilizing this service if their sunroof has had no problems, or are you taking it in as a precautionary measure? Originally that's what I was taking it in for, but now have second thoughts. Is the dealership required to do anything somewhat complicated here? If so, I'll most likely pass on my
NB.
 
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JB05

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 20, 2005
Location
Il.USA
TDI
Golf,2005,anthracite blue
This is the third recall that I just put aside; the other two are the window clips and the GP recalls. My windows are fine and my sunroof has never leaked yet. I'm tempted to pull the priviously mentioned rubber grommet to see what is inside, but I need more info before I damage something.
No cold starting issues either, but I did swap out the 7v ceramic GP's and am currently using the 11v steelies.
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
VW will follow their instruction sheet 60A-7 ? . They will put a small tube (tiny) inside the tubing to: clear clogs, pull the hose /hoses back into place, clip the duck bill off, and put a sticker on telling the service has been done. I doubt it being a long term fix. I just took mine home without letting them work on it. I will glue my tubing when we get someone who has written up a good article on this problem. My hose is detached at the door drain and needs more attention than just pulling them into place.

eddif
 
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ZipiTDi

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2008
Location
Colorado
TDI
Silver B5.5 GLS TDi Passat wagon w/ Tiptronic
I'm screwed on this. While looking at the required info to get any sort of reparations from VW, "2. The documentation you submit must show all of the following:
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
What I did

Well I got started on the 2004 Jetta leaks. The first one was in the driver side hood release area. The hose was evidently still attached at the roof area and only loose at the door jamb area. I ran a piece of weed eater filament through the tube (froom roof top down to door jamb, and fished the filament out the hole left by this black item. I tied the top of the filament to the roof parts to secure it, and let the door jamb end dangle.

Then I took a chance and tugged the hose to where I could see to get the orange spark plug boot end (Carquest EC SPP10 plug boot $1.10) threaded over the filament and started over the tube. I held the hose ? tube with needle nose plires till I got the plug end on the hose. I then threaded the black stock item back on the filament and onto the spark plug boot.

It is cramped quarters and talks easy but is not fun t do.

This is the spark plug boot pushed into the stock part. It just gives you an extra inch of hose length to work with. The downside is the hole in the boot is smaller than the stock hose, but hey the stock stuff did not work at all. I split the duck bill where it would open like a duck's bill. Now maybe the mud dauber can not get in but the water can get out.


This is just a start. I am open to better ideas.

eddif
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
It is better. Water now pours out the duck bill (did not even get wet before), but there is still a little dribble out the hood release area. I wonder if the dealership tried to clean out the hose, at some time?

Still looking for all of the leaks..

eddif
 

jimnms

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 19, 2005
Location
Vicksburg, MS
TDI
2005 Jetta GLS Wagon 5-speed Tiptronic
Back in October it rained non stop for 2 weeks straight. I was sick and didn't leave the house for several of those rainy days. When I recovered and went out to the car to go somewhere the drivers side floor had a puddle in it.

I've had the sunroof drain clog up before and it always dripped in from the light behind the sun visor, and this time the light was dry. I checked the sunroof drains and they were draining, so it was coming in from somewhere else. Our neighbors have pine trees which drop pine needles and those worm like things all over the place. I'm constantly cleaning them from behind the windshield wipers, so I figured that the pine tree crap had clogged up a drain down in the firewall area somewhere. Using a flashlight to look through the vent things under the windshield wipers I could see a ton of crud piled up in there.

I took the car and had the inside cleaned and detailed, it needed it anyway, and had them blast the tree crud out with a pressure washer. I didn't have any more leaking, but a day or two after it would rain I would always notice a wet carpet smell in the car even though everything was dry.

Then in March, after returning home from a trip up North in the snow, I took the car through a tunnel wash to get the road salt off, and I noticed water pouring in from behind the dash.

I broke down and took it to the dealer. I told them it was not the sunroof. They said there is a drain down in the area under the windshield wipers, but you can't get to it. They said they blew compressed air up into it from the exit, then hit it with a pressure washer from the top, and repeated until it was clear. They also trimmed the sunroof drains in the door.

I haven't had anymore leaks since then, and we have had quite a bit of rain recently. I still get that wet carpet smell after it rains though, so I'm still worried. The last time I got the smell after it rained, I felt the carpet up behind the dash and the insulation underneath and it was all dry, so I don't know where that wet smell is coming from.

I got my letter a few days ago. The letter does say that this service action is effective until December 31, 2011, so I think I'll just hold on to it and take it in if I start to have any leaks.
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
Smell

Jim

You have the problem hardest to prove. The smell has two areas to grow (?). The padding under the carpet may take years to dry out, but I would imagine there is a product in that to stop mold from growing. The carpet itself probably does not have a lot of chemical treatment because we can come in contact with it. All guesses.

Since we live in Mississippi the air gets so moist that you have to cut it with a knife. That moisture can re-activate any existing mold in the carpet. So the smell is active till the carpet dries again.

How to get VW to admit to the problem is the trick. Used car dealers have come up with treatments and cover up smells to deal with the problem. My guess is that you want the bad carpet and padding replaced (never allow the chemical treatment). My wife has an allergy to the chemicals. I would go from dealership to dealership in rainy stinking weather hoping you get someone to admit to the stench. VW will pay for the carpet it seems. That 9 million may run out and I would be first in line to get that carpet / padding replaced. Try another area where folks do not smell the funk all the time. Most of the people in our local area probably do not notice the smell. The cost to the dealership may hinder their ability to smell.

eddif
 

simmerda

Active member
Joined
Jun 23, 2009
Location
Scituate, MA
TDI
2004 Jetta Wagon GLS TDI
Just wanted to share my story, maybe help out someone else...

For the first time (as far as I know) the drivers side of my 2004 Jetta Wagon got soaked due to the sunroof drain issue...

I visited the dealer and they did the quick recall fix while I waited. I then when in to talk with the service manager who called VW N America on my behalf. They immediately approved replacing my carpet FREE of charge. I told the Service Manager that I wanted to check with my lawyer for his advice on how to proceed. They next day I called the service manager back and told him that my lawyer advised me to request new carpet and padding. The service manager went back to VW N America and a couple of hours later he said I was approved to get both new carpet ad padding FREE of charge!

Now I'm trying to get them to throw in some new floor mats and a complete detail :)
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
simmerda said:
Just wanted to share my story, maybe help out someone else...

For the first time (as far as I know) the drivers side of my 2004 Jetta Wagon got soaked due to the sunroof drain issue...

I visited the dealer and they did the quick recall fix while I waited. I then when in to talk with the service manager who called VW N America on my behalf. They immediately approved replacing my carpet FREE of charge. I told the Service Manager that I wanted to check with my lawyer for his advice on how to proceed. They next day I called the service manager back and told him that my lawyer advised me to request new carpet and padding. The service manager went back to VW N America and a couple of hours later he said I was approved to get both new carpet ad padding FREE of charge!

Now I'm trying to get them to throw in some new floor mats and a complete detail :)
Sounds encouraging. I wonder how long it will take to run through the 9 million?

Please test the drain yourself (agressively but not overly much). Will the fix work when the frozen fix stops up then thaws providing a gusher to test their repair? Provide any pictures you can.

We need a copy of the fix instructions from VW.

eddif
 

Tom Servo

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
Location
LA (Lower Alabama)
TDI
2005 Gol TDI, blue and falling apart
Hmm. Got the letter in the mail, too. I don't have any of the leaks you guys describe, but my driver's side seatbelt does get damp after hard rains. Is that part of the sunroof drainage issue?
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004


This was my issue. It doesn't rain much in WY but it has this year. My wife found a nice puddle of water in the rear pass floor. I opened the sunroof to find standing water. It felt like the drains weren't plugged at the duck bill but I took them out of the car to check and found my problem. Thankfully the hoses are still attached to the top sunroof part. It made it harder to put the duck bill (cut off of course) back in but I could almost put a garden hose on it now. I also clipped the rear duckbills off. The right rear one was easy as I pulled it out the tail light area but I couldn't find the left side going in the car so I had to reach around with a razor to get the duck bill of and not cut a wire near by. My VW dealer is 150 miles away and doesn't service on weekends so I have to do as much as I can by my self. Now if they would just fix the glow plug issue.
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
coalminer16

Are the two hose pieces kinks in the hose you have removed?
Were the kinks right at the duck bill black device?
Were these kinks at the front or rear of the car?
How did you get the hose down to cut off the pieces?
How did you re-attach the hose after you shortened it?

eddif
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
So?:
Some hoses are pulled loose?
Some hoses are kinked?
Some hoses are split?
Some duck bills are stopped up?
Some duckbills are too rigid to drain?
The VW fix reduces the drain rate?
??

To really fix all this you need an upgrade large hose and tear the car half apart to get the issue resolved. What we get from VW is a dobby small hose snaked through the existing large hose that drains perhaps too slowly?

I do not even know what the whole sun roof drain assembly looks like at the sun roof. Anyone have a wreck to take apart and show us?

I complicate things way too much? VW complicates things by cutting corners?

I just want my carpet dry. I want original high flow drains that work. Write to the lawyers before the time limit expires. Post here so we have something to show what is going on. If we accept the VW fix do we lose future recourse?

eddif
 

JB05

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 20, 2005
Location
Il.USA
TDI
Golf,2005,anthracite blue
Are the duck bills the end pieces I see inside my front door? Today with the sun roof open I saw two rectangular holes(1/8 X 5/16 in.) in the front most part of the opening. I assume these are the drains. Following the Bentley diagram I could not locate the rear drains, top or bottom.
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
JB05 said:
Are the duck bills the end pieces I see inside my front door? Today with the sun roof open I saw two rectangular holes(1/8 X 5/16 in.) in the front most part of the opening. I assume these are the drains. Following the Bentley diagram I could not locate the rear drains, top or bottom.
Those are the duck bills.

The drains are round holes (about the size of a pencil) right in the corners of the sun roof. They exit the bottom of some little depressions (wells) that collect water and provide the exit for the water.

Someone please provide some photos.

eddif
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
My hoses had a lot of extra hose which must be the issue with mine. It was the front doors that were kinked. I was able to pull about 3 inches out of the car with the red hose and I took about 1.5 off. I let go of the hose and it went back in the car and was a bear to get back out. I then held on to the hose and put it back into the black duckbill. It was kinked right at the duckbill from having to much hose in the car part. Even with the trimed hose I could feel it hitting inside the car putting it all back together meaning any longer and it would kink. I tested to make sure I didn't pull the hoses off the drain on the sunroof by pouring water in it and it really came out nicely. The rear drains on my golf were interesting. There is redish brownish hose I could see on the right taillight housing. I pulled the hose and duckbill out from the inside. No kinks since there was room to move things around in there. I trimmed the end and put back together. I couldn't get to the left side from in the car and couldn't see the hose in the housing. I reached up into the bumper to find the duckbill and I could only feel it. Couldn't see it all all. There was a wire near by and I couldn't get both hands up to it so I couldn't get a siccors to cut it. I just took a razor blade and trimmed it carefully even though it was a hack job. I have no clue if the rear drains are still hooked up as I was parked in the wrong direction and I had to get to work (who ever has the newborn gets the car so I took the rabbit truck).

Removing the duckbill takes the stop out of the hose where things could collect. My hoses were clean, just full from rain water.
 

scurvy

Good Ol' Boy
Joined
Feb 21, 2006
Location
Chicago IL USA
TDI
2006 Golf
Here's a pic of my Golf with the rear bumper cover off from my Westfalia hitch install. You can see one of the circumcised drains on the right, under the taillight hole. IIRC the driver's side is the mirror image of this one.

 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
Right now this is an exercise in futility. The VW fix is a flow of less than 30% (?) of the original flow. How did this fix get the OK of anyone? Just plain a case of the car company gets to wave a magic wand over the problem and everyone talks of their great help.

If you are a person trying to fix it like stock you know the hard time you will have. All this talks easy, but it is rough getting it done. We need a super type of replacement hose and help getting the headliner down. If not fixed better, the smallest of trash will stop up the VW fix. If the dirt dauber stops up the new hose (no duckbill) we are in trouble. Maybe the mud dauber will not accept the new home and all will be well.

I need to chill I know. It is just an old 2004 car. After all, nobody, but a select few, wants an old car. Buy a new car and help everyone out. LOL

eddif
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
Well 30% is better then 0% at least like I was getting. I don't know the answer but since my problem is solved with the 100% flow I don't think I will be searching much harder for the answer either.
 

eddif

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2006
Location
MS
TDI
2004 Jetta PD Automatic
Compromise time?

1/4" outside diameter nylon tubing will fit down the existing system. That came from others.

1/4" inside diameter PEX has almost a 3/8" (?) outside diameter and will not slide through the opening from the sun roof end. Do NOt try and force anything on the drain system It Is Plastic and Will Break. The PEX will not slide through the existing tubing (especially after shrinking / kinking. PEX is rated to 180 degrees and is fairly tough. It may be an option if it has a short hose connector (leak stopper / physical restrainer). It also may fit into the sun roof drain when the headliner is dropped (?). PEX is about what used to be called Quest.

If anyone takes down their headliner could you try some PEX (1/4" ID flex water line) and see how it compares with the size of the sunroof drain? I would be much happier with this size drain. The odds on getting VW to do the original size tubing is slim. Right now I have 1/4" OD nylon tubing installed with a gimpy O-Ring seal. A 1/4" ID drain would be better IMHO. The original drain had a 3/8" ID (about).

I may get around to the headliner, but right now I hope someone posts the headliner removal / drop process for a 2004 Jetta.

eddif
 
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