79 300TD sunroof seal replacement... help... IT'S RAINING!!
 

I have been searching for an hour for info, tons of members have written up sunroof seals changed...
Hey, how did you get to the back sunroof seal? I just got a set of seals from phil, but I cannot figure out how to get to the back one. do I have to remove the entire headliner?
also, on the side seals/guides, how do you get the back screw out? it appears to be at an angle, making it impossible to remove... maybe I am missing something. take down the interior panel while the roof is closed... hmm just pondering here. I have all the side screws out, and I have partially removed the side seals, if I have to close the roof, it is gonna be difficult.
John
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ps, it's raining...:mad: :eek: :eek:

Remove the sunroof panel.
 

There are some phillips-head screws pointing straight up. Pull those out, and one of the chrome pieces comes off; the inner, I think. That's all that holds the sunroof in. Take out the sunroof portion of the headliner (clips at front; remove upwards), slide the roof forward, push up from inside, and it just lifts right out. The writeup on this procedure in the FSM is dead-nuts.

Jay.

babayjames has it right. You have to remove the panel to fit the new rear seal. The front seal is a *****. Don't go there if you don't need to.

Rick

well, it is all cracked and leaking, not to mention it allows the roof to hit the opening, causing rust along the edge of both the sunroof and the opening. I have already pulled out the front seal, and I am going to sand the rust off and spray some primer down before putting the new seal back on. the old one looks like it was glued in, should I glue the new one in too?

John

front sunroof seal - I am curious also, for my 1984, I have ordered 3 brands; Meyle, CRP and OE from the dealer. The dealer one fits the best but still is not staying in the groove around the middle. I even took the wind deflector and plastic holding clips out. I have strecthed it to try to help get in the grooves, but it is still floopy in the middle. Sunroof stays closed against it to help mold it in place. May end up glueing...what glue? 3M or black windshield sealant?

mercedesource.com has a sunroof booklet I may end up getting to see if they shed any light on this front seal.

my old one was glued in with what appears to be yellow 3m weatherstrip adhesive
John

The one front seal I did was a Meyle. It took all I had to shove it in- no glue. Its hard to figure out just how it is supposed to be oriented. It's still too fat and the roof doesn't close on it properly.:mad:

hmm, I got a lot to look forward to.
I got MB Star seals from phil.
they look pretty good to me, but we shall see.
John

I hope this makes sense; on the front edge of the front sunroof seal (closest to hood) there is a dip (ridge) in the rubber that gets hooked or pushed into a groove (slot) on the metal holding frame under neath the roof (it is hard to see). The back end of the sunroof seal (closest to the trunk) has a dip (ridge made into it that hooks and holds onto another groove or slot. The curved parts near the side brushes did the above and fit nicely, but the flimsy part in the middle I can not get like that. I even tried starting in the middle, tried some lube also, did not help. May end up glueing with some 3M eventually.

For the rear seal; remove sunroof headliner, pull the clip on the rod and 2 bolts 12" near. Then pull the sunroof out just enough to acess rear seal. On mine, it fit in the grooves nicely. I did have to cut and glue (3M) at the curved part so it would not come loose.

My front seal stuck evenly across eventually. I think I tried to "flex" as I inserted it similar to how you insert the rubber bumper piece in the chrome bumper. Then I applied brutal force with a screwdriver and punched a hole or two in it for good measure. Still, the "flap" intrudes too much and the roof doesn't seem to be flattening it much a year later. I may have to cut the "flap" off for the sake of cosmetics. I really don't think any of these seals do much of anything as far as catching water. As long as your drains are clear , you won't leak.

The rear was cooperative, once you get the roof panel off.

Rick

Drains?
 

I couldn't disagree more. The side seals, especially, are critical for keeping the inside of the car dry. I know this from experience....

Jay.

yeah, well maybe the side seals are important. I have always had decent side seals. But we ran without the front seal for awhile with no ill effects and the rear seal doesn't really do much except keep the steel from rattling.

To get that screw out without removing the panel you need a right angle screwdriver.

For the front seal, I was having a heck of a time getting it out when someone suggested using dishwashing soap to lubricate it. Pour a line of dishwashing soap on the seal and work it all the way around. After doing that, I had the seal in in 20 minutes.

Paint whatever you prime !!!
 

I have no input as to the sunroof seal itself, but I did see you mention priming the metal after you removed the rust. I didn't hear anything about painting. Primer only attracts moisture. If you prime please paint - even if it's flat black. It doesn't sound like color matching is a concern in the area you are talking about.

Teeman

Could somebody please go into further detail about the removal of the sunroof panel headliner? I'm about to remove mine tonight to get the sunroof out (in order to access the rear seal) and don't want to damage anything.