The roof seam under that plastic filler trim or from the roof rack feet/spools. The fiber and mastic washers.

Roof Rack Parts List | Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum (fjcruiserforums.com)

 

It looks like the window seal may be leaking at the corner?

 

Thank you for the posts, when I remove and seal the roof rack I will use new bolts. The other side of the windshield cracked today, I have not driven it. Cracked sitting in the driveway while I was at work. Best price I found for a new windshield/installed was 400 out the door, with the shop using my new factory upper windshield frame. I’m not gonna stop til she’s bone dry.

Has anyone ever used white bed liner on their roof?

I found this link for a leaky roof.

 

Damn I paid 240 just to have a new upper windshield trim replaced..when I said fj they new what was going on. Make sure they know what they are doing.

 

This where I see evidence of leaking.

 

Same here. I ordered the molding clips, screws, and some sealant today. But wondering now if that’s not the problem. I have water in the exact place as you show in your pics.

 

@Hannibal is the roof rack HW kit PT278-35130-HW universal to all model years?

 

Yes, but there are long and short bolts. Long for OEM roof racks, short for the rack delete kit.

 

This may be a stupid question but I am new here. Does any of this make a difference depending on the year? I don't see a year referenced here.

 

They are all the same except 2007's had metal 3 piece header moldings that rusted. They're all plastic now. Metal is no longer available.

 

"Best price I found for a new windshield/installed was 400 out the door, with the shop using my new factory upper windshield frame." - is that after they get reimbursed by your insurance company? When I recently replaced mine it cost $484 for the windshield, $175 for the top molding and $200 for labor for the glass R&R. I did all my own labor for moldings removal and replacement (he came to my house to do it). There are a pair of rubber "moldings" that go along the R & L side of the W/S glass, they cost $30 for a pair (maybe sometimes they can be reused if done carefully?). The bunch of clips and fasteners (I replaced them all, to be on the safe side, as so many crack and break, came to another $80~100 - there are so many and even though they are not individually expensive they add up).

So, I am skeptical of the $400 quote as that wouldn't even cover the cost of the glass piece alone.

"Has anyone ever used white bed liner on their roof?" - not as a sealant. The smart play would be to follow the video and remove the rack and moldings and find the source of the leak, rather than try to glue the whole roof hoping that will accidentally solve it.


"Same here. I ordered the molding clips, screws, and some sealant today. But wondering now if that’s not the problem. I have water in the exact place as you show in your pics." - definitely check out the video for other possible sources (cracked roof sealant in the trough, or leaking roof rack mount).

 

HOW TO: Removing the Headliner | Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum (fjcruiserforums.com)

 

I live in a rural area so maybe that’s why the cost is low, I called my insurance and added glass coverage to my fj today. Even if 400 dollars is a great deal I never want to pay that much again to replace the windshield. But I am going to go by the shop and set everything up to get it replaced.

Is the bolts the main thing that seals the roof rack? I had planned on using small amounts on clear silicone on the bolts when I install a different rack, looking at a used front runner.

I hope those things fix your leak, unfortunately they did not in my case.

 

No and you DO NOT need silicone. Use the washers in the kit. The bolts go through the white plastic tubes. Placing silicone on the threads does nothing to seal them. The mastic and fiber washers seal around the tubes to the roof's sheetmetal.

Silicone will only bind up the threaded plate nuts underneath the headliner. If those fall off, you're dropping the headliner to get them back in place.

There's threadlocker on the OEM bolts. They have to be removed in a very specific way, so the nut plates don't spin and fall off the metal lip.

Roof Rack Reference Pics | Toyota FJ Cruiser Forum (fjcruiserforums.com)

 

I’m drove my FJ without the upper trim piece this weekend at high speeds and lots of rain. No leaks and maybe slight wind noise but nothing I really noticed. So you can drive without it. I am getting my windshield replaced Friday for 400 out the door me supplying new clips and trim piece.

 

I guess I am going to change the roof rack bolts and use bed liner on my current rack and try to freshen it up a bit. How do you re-seal the seams under the white caps in the front of the windshield?
And hopefully my FJ will stay dry. After these things are done.

This is what I want.
The wamba rack is bad!!

 

I started the process of changing the roofrack bolts today. I did a test on all the bolts to see how hard they would be to get out. 11 out of 12 turned really easy and free, the 12th one was almost completely seized up. It was the last one on the back on the drivers side. I barley could get it to turn at first, I did notice the bolt moves a lot back and forth. Tells me it might be loose or broken on the inside under the headline?? None of the bother bolts move at all when they are being turned. After working some wd40 back and forth I feel comfortable that I can remove this bolt, I’m afraid it will fall into the headliner. Wanted to redo the rack on the ground but may leave it on and change all the roof rack bolts and washers but this one. I got to stop the leak at the driver A pillar. The roof rack bolts say 08-14 I they fit a 07.

 

Had to go all the way and drop the headliner. I ordered all new brackets and clips from pure fj. Shipping was a killer. Someone had definitely tried to reseal the holes many years in the past. I will not stop til it’s bone dry. There is some rust on the inside seams so I’m gonna do some rust prevention before I put it all back together. Any other things that I should look at while the headliner is off??

 

Pic of grime and sealant

 

Pic

 

A small dab of 100% silicone sealant would work to keep the mounts waterproof.

 

I am happy to report my FJ is 100% dry after replacing all roof rack brackets, new roof rack bolt kit and new clips. I used a light amount of gorilla glue paste on the outer roof seam. I’m gonna give it a few more days just to make sure it stays dry before I re-install the headliner. Thanks you for all of your help.

 

I had the same issue and after re-sealing the rack it was still there. Took the ole mini tank to the windshield shop as that was what I was sure the problem was. Nope, the body weld in the drivers side corner above the windshield was cracked. JB Weld to the rescue. Dry as a bone for a couple years now.

 

I have the same issue. How did you apply the JBWeld? I'm going to drop my headliner later this week to gain better access to that corner and wondered if you had any tips or tricks. TIA!

 

I’m gonna add some photos to this thread and I hope my FJ remains water tight for many years to come. Dropping the headliner is not that bad. Anyone looking to this thread for assistance don’t let removing the headliner scare you. Just make sure you keep track of what bolts go where and using an electric ratchet really saves times.

The only thing wasn’t sure about was sealing the broken roof seams with the Gorilla Glue Paste. I think it was the perfect solution, I don’t think it’s silicone based.

As you can see one of the roof rack brackets had a large amount of rust. The seam connecting the 3 piece roof also showed signs of rust that’s what it’s painted with black rubber coating.

 

I don't know if you noticed, but there's a Stick Bug in IMG_3643, and a close up in IMG_3644. Looks like he's just hanging around next to the rack retainer nuts supervising your work.

I like all the pictures of the interior with the headliner removed. Good references for everyone wanting to do this type of job.

 

I hope the headliner is still out because the roof panel has separated from the cross members. It's going to vibrate.

And I'd put your seam sealer under the exterior roof - front to rear trim as well, or is that what you meant in post #24 ?

 

Moved to Interior/Exterior Tech with the other pertinent threads and STICKY.

Good job and great pics for future reference.

 

Separated roof bow! That happened to mine too (really loud roof flutter on the highway had me scratching my head until I found that was the cause).

Here is a link to how I fixed it, hopefully the information will be helpful to you too:

How to repair failed roof mastic and insulate roof

An FJ is always somewhat loud at highway speeds, there's not a lot can be done about that. There are threads on here showing how to cover every inch of the interior with dynamat and so on, but still a lot will come through the thin glass. However, it should not vibrate. My FJ started having...

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The hood had also separated its outer from the inner reinforcement, and was closing with a loud, tinny "clang". Once I repaired that with the same 3M mastic it now closes with a solid clunk like it should do.

 

Thanks for pointing that out, Unfortunately I have reinstalled the headliner. My FJ mostly cruises around town and rarely goes above 65, not many miles put on it. I will fix this eventually but as long it will not cause more damage I’m ok with it for now. It’s more of an investment/keep forever, how many stick shifts will be left in 20 years anyway. Yes I did reseal the entire seam on the outside. It’s not my daily driver. Thanks again for all your help.