I have just bought a hardtop and had it fitted to the car for around a month. Now the weather has turned colder and damper I’ve noticed that on occasions there has been an excessive amount of condensation on both the front and rear screen on the inside of the car. It tends to be most severe on the passengers side of both windows, and from time to time it’s been so bad that the window has been dripping. In two years of using the car in the winter with the soft top I’ve never had a problem, so is it a common problem or have I not done something correctly when fitting etc? Any help would be much appreciated.
hardtop woes
- Thread starter jamiecarpenter
- Start date
You may have a poor seal...
With the hardtop, water runs off the roof down the pillars either side of your windscreen. With the softtop, the water is absorbed by the first skin of the ragtop and drains elsewhere. I'm sure I'll be corrected if this isnt right....
Hard to know the exact cause of your problem, but I would check seals round windows, and that windows are fully up etc
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With the hardtop, water runs off the roof down the pillars either side of your windscreen. With the softtop, the water is absorbed by the first skin of the ragtop and drains elsewhere. I'm sure I'll be corrected if this isnt right....
Hard to know the exact cause of your problem, but I would check seals round windows, and that windows are fully up etc
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Check the rubber seals at the point where the side windows meet the top of the front windscreenpost.
The seals on the hardtop are push in, and when handled, ie taking off ir putting on the hardtop, they can move causing a gap.
Takes a few secs to have a look and a few secs to pull the seals back in place....... costs nothing to check
The seals on the hardtop are push in, and when handled, ie taking off ir putting on the hardtop, they can move causing a gap.
Takes a few secs to have a look and a few secs to pull the seals back in place....... costs nothing to check
lacroupade
Veteran
jamiecarpenter said:
Could also be a couple of other things:
1. Dampness from your hardtop, depending on how it was stored....
2. There is a tendency for there to be a tiny leak at the front of the passenger door.....the only telltale will be a drip running down the trim from the door or a damp patch on the carpet underneath that point. There are two causes, one that CJ outlined on a recent thread thats to do with the door membrane, and another (which I had) that I can't quite recall but it was a simple fix.
EDIT - if you don't already, you should be running your aircon regularly throughout the year, not only because it helps keep seals lubricated and reduce the chances of a leak, but also because of its dehumidifying effect. Mine is permanently on unless the roof is down.
I'd bet that you have no new leak or anything related to the hard top per se. With the softtop there is likely more air movement so already wet carpets evaporate off and breath, so no visible condensation.
Add a hardtop instead, lower the temperature for the now colder days and you'll get condenstation on the windows from evaporation that can go nowhere.
Check if carpets are wet, then run a hose gently around seals and I'll bet nowt gets in. (I'm not talking direct full power jet at the seals as that's not realistic)
Add a hardtop instead, lower the temperature for the now colder days and you'll get condenstation on the windows from evaporation that can go nowhere.
Check if carpets are wet, then run a hose gently around seals and I'll bet nowt gets in. (I'm not talking direct full power jet at the seals as that's not realistic)
Thanks for the tips I'll take a proper look tomorrow, just hope it doesnt rain. 
My rear window on my hardtop seems quite damp every time I drive the car ( it lives outside 24/7). It's always been like this. It may have something to do with a small cabin area and the fact that the car can't breathe as designed with a soft top.Don't worry about it, keep the aircon running and it will dry out.
I’ve now looked into all the suggestions that people have put on this thread. Unfortunately or fortunately none of them seem to apply. The only thing I can see maybe a problem is the passenger sides fit isn’t as flush to the car as the drivers side. But cant see how I can fit it any better!
drivers side
Passenger side
drivers side
Passenger side
The gap Ranski i talking about should be an even 5mm.
Reason to use a rawlplug or similar is using a 5mm drill etc. you risk scratching the paint.
Frankly though it's not critical for seals just cosmetic and knocks over bumps, wind whistles, etc.
Have you tried the hose test?
Reason to use a rawlplug or similar is using a 5mm drill etc. you risk scratching the paint.
Frankly though it's not critical for seals just cosmetic and knocks over bumps, wind whistles, etc.
Have you tried the hose test?
Yep tried with the hose and everything is fine. I'll look into using the rawplug to check the gaps. Ill then try and adjust it again 3rd time lucky.
lacroupade
Veteran
I'd agree with what CJ and Bigshurv say - the hardtop is more prone to condensation, a lot of which is inherent in the vehicle after a long summer and should eventually dry out until you wet the carpets again in inclement weather. More reason to have your aircon on all the time.
Just got into my car this morning after not using it for 3 days and the windscreen was soaking wet with condensation. So much so that the heater was never going to shift it so had to use a cloth. I have had this issue before but never to this extent. I have my hardtop on; it is fitted correctly, but have noticed that the passenger foot well carpet is wet. So question is where is it getting in? Haven’t noticed any water on the inside of the car, and the seals around the door are still intact and rubbery so not quite sure where else to look.
I've got exactly the same problem. Car mists up within 20 mins of arriving home. No wet carpets recently but still misting :x
I'd check the membrane behind the door card. Most likley water is going down the window and then through a tear in the membrane into the car and not as it should out the bottom of the door and outside the seal
Cheers Phil does this mean I have to remove the door card? Do you have a pic of what it looks like?
Yes - remove door card. Don't have a picture, but someone will have.