[cueball13]

Look at what the tech wrote for my leaky jku.. I know they can leak- but to write that they weren't designed to keep 100% of the water out made me lol

 

[willysdave]

I would send that to Jeep directly and ask them if that is what the techs. are supposed to write or is that his personal feelings ?

 

[ocd_dave]

Sounds like a good way to get fired, or at least demoted, not smart to put that in writing.

 

[Mike-D]

I can all but guarantee that was not the tech putting that note in there. Not without someone higher up telling them to do so anyhow.

 

[14Trailcrawler]

Everything is designed with a certain exposure or rating in mind. Even building Windows and exterior wall systems will allow water intrusion if exposed to conditions beyond the design intent.

The language on the note sounds more like corporate language than technician language, maybe dealer language - but it's true.

Question is what exposure are the door seals designed for.

 

[JKSurf]

My friend who's a mechanic at my dealership told me they should not leak under "normal conditions". He asked me how mine held up after an insane storm we had a few weeks ago (hours or extreme wind driven rain). He said Chrysler would not consider that "normal conditions", same goes for a high powered car wash.

 

[kik]

That's just a typical Chrysler and/or dealer disclaimer. A tech doesn't freelance to that extent. The tech most likely entered into the system down to "no leaks present at this time". Technically, the seals can't keep out 100% water "intrusion".

 

[YankeeSailor]

To me that reads like boilerplate from the legal department. How often have you heard a Jeep mechanic use the term "water intrusion" instead of "leak"?

 

[AlaskaErik]

I take mine through a touchless wash all the time and I've never had any water intrusion.

 

[gahris]

I've only had water intrusion once and it was due to my portable Sirius radio antenna cable passing through the door seal.

 

[Lusus_Naturae]

If I hit mine hard with a powerwasher it will have a few drips on the inside. I don't consider that abnormal. Under normal weather conditions, including some heavy rains and winds, I haven't had any leaks.

 

[Gethin]

That is too funny! I've never noticed such verbiage. Perhaps they should list this note on the window sticker for potential buyers of a $30-40k purchase. Factory bed liner under the carpets would be a nice touch, hell, even complete paint coverage would be a great start. I reckon the model T experienced less liquid intrusion.

 

[Vt rider]

I had a '13 JK with a soft top. It DID NOT EVER LEAK.....under any conditions. I couldn't believe how well it stayed dry. The JK was utterly reliable and absolutely never had a problem of any kind. Truly an exceptional Jeep.
Then, like a fool, I swapped it for a Can-Am Spyder.
Spyder is being sold, and new JK on order.

 

[cueball13]

Have to lol at this.. First rain since new seals.. Yep, water on the floorboards. Since it's under warranty, I am gonna call them today. I know it's common for jeeps to get some water (this is my 6th wrangler). But to spend $35k on one and have to worry about WHEN the floorboards will start to rust, is ridiculous.

I also want to put the soft top on soon but need to see if this can be resolved first. I have 32k miles on it and running out of warranty soon. Already had to pull the front carpet because it was getting wet too often and I feared mildew would set in. Now I have the drain plugs pulled and have the wonderful risk of exhaust fumes.

 

[kuruma1]

To me it reads the opposite of corporate lawyer speak. I think it was the tech feeling froggy after replacing the seals.
It's his opinion that the doors don't seal 100% of water out so he took it upon himself to write it down.

 

[WaltA]

Its designed to be an open air vehicle. There's a flip side to that.

I assume you all yell "sue" if your Totes umbrella allows your shoes to get wet in the rain.

 

[Kadonny]

Its designed to be an open air vehicle. There's a flip side to that.

I assume you all yell "sue" if your Totes umbrella allows your shoes to get wet in the rain.

Seconded.

By the way, the tech is 100% correct.

 

[AlaskaErik]

So my Jeep must be defective, as I have never had any water intrusion, whether in a touchless car wash or during monsoon season. I wonder if I can sue.

 

[cueball13]

Its designed to be an open air vehicle. There's a flip side to that. I assume you all yell "sue" if your Totes umbrella allows your shoes to get wet in the rain.

So all convertibles are this way, or cars with T-tops? I can understand soft uppers needing to be tweaked to seal right, but this is with a hardtop and full doors that have never been removed.

Rubber seals so do just that- seal. But they should keep regular rain out

 

[escher]

While this note from the tech may seem comical - it may or may not be factual.

I'm trying to find an FCA SOR (Statement of requirements) or System design specification in my corporate database to see what FCA's standards are for sealing. Can't find anything at the moment... but their DFMEA's (Design Failure Mode Effects Analysis) say essentially the same as mine do - the weatherstrip must seal out water, dust and air at a nominal seal gap +/- 2.5mm of door variation.

I personally work mainly with Ford - and Ford states that you have to pass a 20 minute soak in a Ford Approved water booth. We have a water booth that has all the appropriate nozzles for each OEM and can run water soak tests for a full vehicle to verify we meet specifications.

All that being said - and assuming they have a similar requirement for the Ford spec.. A 20 minute soak isn't that hard to pass as long as your seals are making good contact. Imagine your spray attachment on your garden hose. Set it to the wide spray pattern and about 20 psi... Now imagine one of those nozzles placed every 6 inches front to back and about a foot apart all the way around the vehicle - no closer than 2-3 feet from the vehicle.

I found a pic online of what the water booth's look like:

You fail if you get a drip inside the cabin. Floorboards or door trim getting wet would also be a failure.

I can't tell you how many hours I have spent inside vehicles during water tests with a flashlight looking for drips...

Now - Commercial power washer spray is a "whole notha level!" Thats multiple hundreds of PSI - and no sealing engineer in their right mind would sign up to pass a point blank spray test of that magnitude... If you point a powerwasher right at your margin gap from a few inches away - NO seal will keep that much pressure out.

We do have to pass a "commercial car wash" - but that is no worse than the 20 minute soak...

I do disagree with the "Hard Rain" statement - that would never pass in the industry... Unless FCA has a "watered down" specification for the wrangler and it allows some leakage as long as the passenger doesn't get wet (i.e. floorboards and trim wet is fine).