sliding window water leak

[Duncdan]

Hi

My 2010 Maxi life has a water leak from the sliding window in the sliding door. There is a rubber seal on the sliding part of the window that appears to be intact but i guess needs replacing. I cant find the rubber seal as a seperate part and I fear that the whole bonded glass with the sliding window will be one part. Has anyone got a simple fix? Please!


Thanks

[dan@biali]

There was a similar issue in this thread viewtopic.php?t=51548 although he resolved it by bonding the glass so it was fixed rather than sliding.

I can't see that the rubber seal is a separate or service item. The sliding part is though - #2 in this image. The Maxi one is £150 from VW and that might also need VAT adding to it. The entire glass panel #1 is £595.



Might be worth talking to vw parts dept as they can quote based on your chassis number so you would get the correct colour. I doubt autoglass sell these but its another option to see if they do and whether its cheaper.

[Duncdan]

Thanks Dan.

That the pic I'd found. I need to phone VW.....

[petrev]

Well ! The things you learn !!

2010 Caddy had the opening/sliding part at the front of the glass, and the rear quarters could be opening/hinged windows.

Later (Facelift+) the opening moved to the rear section of the glass, and the rear quarter is fixed.

Later still (MK5) and nothing opens in the rear area !

Progress ...

[Caddy_Maxi_Life]

Hi Mates!
First post here.
Duncdan, did you repair slide windows? I have same issue both side. Any good tips?

[Duncdan]

I spent loads of time on this. Ened up using a plastic wedge to hold the window tight. I wondered about cutting a section of the seal out so the water drains out of the van not into it.....

Let me know if you find a better solution

[Caddy_Maxi_Life]

Hi Duncdan,
mine is leaking because seal in sliding windows is too flat, because of age. I found on eb*y seal which is bigger than that (cost £50). That is one solution, but I put double-sided tape (2mm), under seal and now no more leaks (20 minutes £0), now windows closing harder because seals are "bigger", but no leaks

[JiMsHaDy69]

I experienced a similar problem with a 2019 Transporter Kombi I had. The VW OEM drain was notorious to fail and leak inside the van. Looks kinda similar to the exploded diagram here. Ended up replacing with aftermarket windows with a simpler external drain. There were lots of people who had tried to fix themselves but it always ended up leaking again.

[Duncdan]

seal in sliding windows is too flat, because of age. I found on eb*y seal which is bigger than that (cost £50). That is one solution, but I put double-sided tape (2mm), under seal and now no more leaks (20 minutes £0), now windows closing harder because seals are "bigger", but no leaks

Thanks for the info
Exactly the same problem with mine. I'll have to try the 'tape spacer'

D

[daveilbarbaro]

Hi mate, I don't get it. can you provide further details/pictures?

[Duncdan]

If you see the diagram early in the thread it shows the inner sliding glass has a rubber seal that flattens over time. The suggestion is to remove the rubber and refix it with double sided tape to add some thickness.

[daveilbarbaro]

If you see the diagram early in the thread it shows the inner sliding glass has a rubber seal that flattens over time. The suggestion is to remove the rubber and refix it with double sided tape to add some thickness.

Thanks Duncdan. Now it's clear.
@Caddy_Maxi_Life how long do you think the double-side tape will last? It doesn't seem like a durable solution...

[Duncdan]

With the right prep and the right tape fitted carefully it would be a permanent solution

[KenE_in_SA]

I have the same problem with both sliding windows on an older 2005 TDi Life. Unfortunately living close the coast has resulted in the sliding brackets falling off due to rust!
I finally removed the windows, stripped the (useless) rubber seals off them and used Pratleys (Standard) Steel putty to permanently fix the windows in place. I rolled the putty into a thin sausage which I kneaded into the groove all around each window, pressed the window firmly into place from the inside, removed the excess that peeled over the outer edge of the glass and smoothed with a wet sponge. A little cosmetic touch-up with a permanent marker and the repair is invisible. (I am retired and the ridiculous price that VW charges for Spares doesn't compare to the $20 cost of 2 packs of Pratleys!)
I am happy to report that the windows are now safe, secure and no longer leak!

[juliang71]

I've just been looking for threads about this issue as my 2019 Caddy Maxi Life has a sliding rear window that appears to be leaking. I noticed this recently but have not had time to take a real close look. When I did quickly look the other day I couldn't really see how or where the water could be getting in from and I couldn't see any rubber seals at all.

I know this thread was started by someone with a 2010 Maxi Life, so has anyone had this issue on a Mk4 Maxi Life and better still know how to fix it?

Picture below shows where the water can be seen inside the car. It's not pouring in or even dripping but I can clearly see that water is collecting where I can marked the picture in red.