Why does my hardtop leak?

Most, if not all, manufacturers of accessories such as hardtops, hard tonneau covers and roll covers inform customers that their products are watertight, not waterproof. This is because these types of accessories are installed in a non-invasive manner, therefore 100% resistance to the penetration of small amounts of dust or water into the interior of the hardtop at the joint between the hardtop and the truck bed cannot be ensured.

Due to non-invasive installation, the car body is not exposed to corrosion. This manner is in compliance with the recommendations of car manufacturers and does not result in the loss of body warranty. During use, the hardtop is exposed to constant vibrations and small movements of the truck bed, which occasionally may cause the penetration of small amounts of water into the hardtop when travelling during a downpour, washing with water under a high pressure or driving at high speed during rainfall. With additional gaskets between the hardtop and the truck bed sidewalls at the joint between these two components, water leaks are extremely rare, of course provided that the accessories have been properly installed.

When water is visible on the truck bed floor, it may indicate that it is getting through unplugged technological holes in the vehicle or gaps in the sides and at the bottom part of the pickup’s tailgate. The water tightness of the pickup’s tailgate is a weak point in all car manufacturers in this segment. However, it should be borne in mind where pickup comes from and what the primary objectives behind it were. Some manufacturers, such as Mercedes and Volkswagen, offer original seals fitted to the pickup’s tailgate to provide additional sealing.

Road Ranger hardtops (RH04 and RH05 models) come with the so-called tailgate water protectors, i.e. thermoformed ABS elements rivetted to the vehicle body in the area of the rear lamps. The protectors are set with the hardtop rear door seal which ends at the truck bed floor level. The seal carries water away so that it freely flows into the area of the lower gap of the vehicle’s tailgate.

To sum up the subject of water penetration into the pickup hardtop, it should be repeated that if the accessories are properly installed and the technological holes and vehicle tailgate gaps are sealed, this occurrence is very rare, but not impossible.