Water Leak After Replacement of Weather Plastic Seals For Targa Roof

[nsxtypet]

I had replaced all the weather plastic seals around the targa roof. After replacement, both passenger and driver sides at the top of the a-pillar leak under heavy rain. I searched other topics in the forum and seeing that I might need some sort of sealant.

Can any kind owner provide instruction of where to apply the sealant and what sealant is needed? From Acura dealer? Any part number?

Many many thanks in advance.

 

[robbiedawg]

I had replaced all the weather plastic seals around the targa roof. After replacement, both passenger and driver sides at the top of the a-pillar leak under heavy rain. I searched other topics in the forum and seeing that I might need some sort of sealant.

Can any kind owner provide instruction of where to apply the sealant and what sealant is needed? From Acura dealer? Any part number?

Many many thanks in advance.

The Honda grease for the targa and other weatherstripping seals is Shin-Etsu-
https://www.amazon.com/Honda-Genuine-Shin-Etsu-Grease/dp/B006Z9TZ9M

Honda P/N on mine is 08798-9013,it says made by Shin-Etsu for Honda.

I'm surprised new seals are leaking, though, because this product keeps seals fresh, and new ones are already fresh. Maybe they were installed improperly?
In any event, this is highly recommended to preserve these expensive seals. Use just a little, a tube came with my car 9 years ago and I'm still using it.

 

[Old Guy]

Robbiedawg has identified the Shin-Etsu wonder grease that Honda sells for the gaskets on the NSX. However, this is not a sealant. It is the equivalent of the deep cleansing facial moisturizing rejuvenator for the NSX Targa and door gaskets (also available at the L'oreal cosmetics counter :smile. It is not a sealant. You massage it into the gaskets to keep them in good shape.

I am guessing that the seals you are referring to are the two rubber gaskets mounted directly on to the Targa roof panel, one above each side window? The installation process for these seals is complicated (6 pages long in the service manual). The manual refers to the use of 0.5mm butyl tape, 3.0 mm EPT sealer (which is not a sealant) and sealant part # 08712-0004. The manual does not provide part numbers for the butyl tape or the EPT sealer, so I don't know whether that means this stuff is supplied with the replacement targa seal or whether you have to source it separately. There are a bunch of different locations where you have to use the sealant, tape or EPT or combinations of the three. You really need to down load the section of the service manual dealing with the targa top form the NSX Wiki.

The three items, butyl tape, EPT and sealant are required to correctly attach and seal the gasket. If your gasket is not flopping around, I expect that it has already been attached with the sealant and butyl tape.

Check to see where the water is coming in. Is the water coming in between the glass and gasket surface? If it is, then the Shin-Etsu grease may help a little bit since the grease is hydro phobic. But, if you put enough grease on the gasket to seal out water it is going to leave a greasy smear on the glass. The problem may also go away as the gasket conforms to the top of the glass and provides a better seal. If the water leak is bad, you may need to adjust the in/out positioning of the side glass to get a better seal. Door glass adjusting is not trivial so do it as a last resort. If water is entering between the gasket and the roof panel itself, then you may have an improperly sealed / mounted roof gasket.

 

[nsxtypet]

Really appreciated your details explanation and help.

I should of have the seals (gaskets) replaced in Japan while my car was sent from Hong Kong to Tokyo for major overhaul in end of 2012. At that time, Japanese yen was very high in exchange and it already costed me a fortune to replace many parts (almost everything new). The last that I didn't replace was the seals around the entire roof. When it gets old, wind noise was getting serious.

I have waited a few more years when the Japanese yen came down, then I ordered new seals and had it replaced just by a mechanic. It sounds pretty complicated from your above description. I really have no idea how to tackle the leaking problem now.

It isn't leaking when I take it to car wash. The major leak between the two gaskets and the glass for the two doors (I'll attach photos later) is when the car is in motion. Likely it is due to the car body twisting and allowing the water rushing in under heavy rain.

Will anyone has that 6 pages long service manual and hopefully I can bring down to mechanic for doing some extra works.

Many many thanks in advance!!!

 

[Old Guy]

Go to the NSX Wiki

http://www.nsxprime.com/wiki/Service_manuals

There you will find links to the .pdf version of the service manual for the later cars. In the body section of the service manual, there will be a separate section covering the T roof. That is where you will find the gasket replacement instructions. The manual describes how to remove the old gasket and clean it up (I expect you plan to reuse it) and reinstall the gasket.

If the leak is between the gasket and the glass, that sounds more like a glass adjustment problem.