Sunroof weather stripping falling apart.

[TonyJoe]

Ford covers defects in Materials. Ask them how many of these seals have failed in less than 36,000 miles. The whole vehicle is "exposed to weather". They only excluded your weatherstrip and not the whole truck? Read the warranty carefully - I don't think Ford has an excuse. Present your case, be nice, they'll most likely fix it.

Well, apparently the weather strip is not available as a single item and only comes attached to the sunroof glass. I can understand why they would be tempted to deny this claim. When looked at closely the thickness of the rubber in this area is almost paper then so it makes sense so that it is a product defect.

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[TonyJoe]

Ouch! Sorry about that TonyJoe.

I’ve spent 20+ years in the automotive plastic and rubber industry.
If it’s dry and crumbly it means the rubber used was not manufactured with the appropriate amount of plasticizer oil (DPHP), and/or UV inhibitor. That’s a Ford quality control issue and in a perfect world they should come good for it. Good luck with that!

The Maverick is the first vehicle we’ve bought in the last twenty years that doesn’t have a sun roof. While shopping my wife reminded me we rarely use the option and they always fail, motor on one and weather stripping (leaks) on two.

I’ve come to appreciate a solid steel roof.

Sometimes less is best.

Very much agreed. I've come to regret the decision for a sunroof. I almost never use it and had to wait a lot longer for delivery due to this request. It is much more inset towards the back compared to sunroofs I've had in the past and it is difficult to even enjoy since it is pretty much invisible even when it is used.

 

[TonyJoe]

Good day

That kind of damage already, really really sucks.

My only thought as to the cause is that it has been damaged excessively by the higher UV exposure you experience at higher altitudes in Colorado?

I am also wondering if that is an indication that maybe the stripping was from a batch that was not properly UV protected, as that kind of deterioration is excessive?

Whatever, I would suggest that anyone with a sunroof should be going out and getting some aftermarket spray or cream (with a good UV protectant in it) to regularly apply after every wash, for example.

The more sun your truck is exposed to heavy UV, the more important that the protectant is applied regularly.

I also concur that raising the contact point to higher in the Ford food chain may be a good idea to try.

Here are a couple of products I have and use on my vehicles for UV protection, etc.

This thread topic just reminds me to stay on top of this as well, even though I don't have a sunroof, we all have a lot of other weather seals.

Good luck to you in getting this addressed by Ford, I hope they come through for you.

Andy

Thank you. I've used the armor all before but it seems when I stopped using it my car plastic dried out even faster. Not familiar with the silk shine. Did a bit of research and conclude in that this GummiPfleger German made product is supposed to work the best

 

[TonyJoe]

I want to thank everyone for their input. I am very surprised by all the responses I have had on this post. I really would not mind paying to fix this problem. It is quite absurd that it cannot be fixed without replacing the whole glass, resulting in a cost of over $1,500. Considering I have not seen many other issues like this, I believe that I have gotten a defective seal. When looked at closely, it can be seen that the rubber in this part is extremely thin. It is just barely thicker than a piece of paper. Must have been a bubble stuck in the mold. Overall, I've been happy with my Maverick purchase and it has been one of the most useful vehicles I have owned.

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

I want to thank everyone for their input. I am very surprised by all the responses I have had on this post. I really would not mind paying to fix this problem. It is quite absurd that it cannot be fixed without replacing the whole glass, resulting in a cost of over $1,500. Considering I have not seen many other issues like this, I believe that I have gotten a defective seal. When looked at closely, it can be seen that the rubber in this part is extremely thin. It is just barely thicker than a piece of paper. Must have been a bubble stuck in the mold. Overall, I've been happy with my Maverick purchase and it has been one of the most useful vehicles I have owned.

Tony, @TonyJoe
Here's some glass shops that might be in your area take your truck by them and see what they can do. You may even be able to call them and text them your pictures without going into much detail.
I wouldn't volunteer about having talked to Ford. Sometimes the less of a backstory they know is better.
Please keep us updated and what happened good luck.
GB

 

[1929]

A bold statement from dealer influencing the warranty decision. Only ever been washed in the self-serve bays and roof never got full spray pressure. Never used any product on it, protectorant or otherwise (other than that premixed at the wash bay). Sunroof was hardly ever used and vehicle kept garaged. I wonder if it is catching on something inside the roof when retracting? Kind of ridiculous that the whole glass would need replacement since the seal is not available separately.

Recommend consulting professional sunroof installation shop. They may be able to replace the seal or glass and seal at more reasonable cost.

It's disturbing the seal failed in short time and I don't like it at all that Ford is not making this right.
Our Maverick has sunroof. I'll likely treat the seal with shin etsu silicone grease as preventative measure.
Have never had a problem with sunroof in vehicles we owned. We typically keep our vehicles for over 10 years 100,000 miles.

 

[Suzukiridr14]

Nothing major, meticulous maintenance.
Only two problem’s that cost near a thousand each,
First on a 1988 taco with the 22R, cooked the rear pickle. Commercial use, $850 @ about 200,000 miles. Sold it running perfectly @ 300,000 miles. Guy drove it past 400,000 then I lost track of him.

2000 Taco 4 banger. Steering rack blew a small seal, unit was not repairable, thanks Toyota !
$1,200 but it was commercial use also.
Totaled that one at 380,000 also running perfectly.

Crashed a few, blew an engine but I was bracket racing.
So that don’t count, 1970 Cuda.

Several pumps and starters and countless wear out items under the shade tree.
No biggie,
Couple of head jobs on my Camaro’s
I always prided myself on getting extremely high mileage.
My record was 528,000 on a 2008 2.7 Ltr Four banger Taco.
I wore it out literally.

I'm impressed, how much driving do you do?

 

[Cherokee]

I'm impressed, how much driving do you do?

Oh man these days I’m semi retired and do about 13,000 to vs 14,000 a year.
I’ve got north of 2 million miles in DOT log books in Tractor trailers.

Drove Big truck on the West German Autobahn and in Several other countries for more than five years, including bomber recovery, (B-52’s) in Canada.

The, ‘Auto Car’ was a blast, she’d pull 50 Tons.

And another 1.2 million in Toyota and Ford pick up trucks.
Rangers, F-150, 250, 350’s
Bout 80-90,000 a year and a few years with a lot more.
All kinds of courier work from emergency pharmaceuticals including hospital nuclear
Products, cancer stuff to secure radiation waste and off site data storage. In and out of Mexico to and from Florida.

Did a stint hauling Mexican clay pottery to Florida from El Paso.
The state police loved me, my CB handle was, ‘The Mexican Pot Dealer’

Yeah no shit I was a wild mo fo’

I wore out many an engine. I know how to make one last two or three times longer than most people. Not bragging just speaking the truth.
I’d commit suicide before I’d take a cubicle office job. I’m not a paper pusher.

Well you asked.

 

[Suzukiridr14]

Oh man these days I’m semi retired and do about 13,000 to vs 14,000 a year.
I’ve got north of 2 million miles in DOT log books in Tractor trailers.

Drove Big truck on the West German Autobahn and in Several other countries for more than five years, including bomber recovery, (B-52’s) in Canada.

The, ‘Auto Car’ was a blast, she’d pull 50 Tons.

And another 1.2 million in Toyota and Ford pick up trucks.
Rangers, F-150, 250, 350’s
Bout 80-90,000 a year and a few years with more.
All kinds of courier work from emergency pharmaceuticals including hospital nuclear
Products, cancer stuff to secure radiation waste and off site data storage. In and out of Mexico to and from Florida.

Did a stint hauling Mexican clay pottery to Florida from El Paso.
The state police loved me, my CB handle was, ‘The Mexican Pot Dealer’
Yeah no shit I was a wild mo fo’
I wore out many an engine. I know how to make one last two or three times longer than most people. Not bragging just speaking the truth.

Well you asked.

And I loved your answer. Nothing like asking someone who has the experience, then someone shooting from the hip!

 

[Cherokee]

And I loved your answer. Nothing like asking someone who has the experience, then someone shooting from the hip!

Life is out there, go outside and get some. Your time is so short.

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