Does anyone have sunroof leak problems on a 2013 Toyota Highlander?

I have Toyota Highlander XLE sunroof closed still leaking

Is 2016 highlander!

I have a 2014 highlander and have been told my drain tubes are pinched which caused an overflow into my main cabin. Not sure how a non moving part gets pinched.

2013 Highlander water on driver side cabin floor, told my sunroof drains were clogged after $124.00 to fix it the water came back even deeper on my driver side. they said the drain pan under the drain hose was filled with gunk which caused the water to back up into the cabin,,suppose to be fixed, just waiting for the next rain...we'll see........

I was told today that water has been getting into my car because of clogged drain tubes in my sunroof. Carpeting and airbag on that side of the car needs to be replaced. Insurance is saying its an act of god and may not be covered. Sounds to me like poor engineering.

I have a 2012 highlander and started getting water in my floorboard in 2016. It took a while for me to notice and didn't realize until I saw mold on my carpet. Toyota blew out the lines but problem continued. Was told by Toyota that it's most likely the seal in my sunroof. Seal dry rots and the only fix is replacement. I don't think this is an uncommon issue. I feel like it's a defective seal and Toyota needs to stop producing cars with this kind of seal. Cost to replace sunroof and replace moldy carpet- $4,000.

2014 Toyota Highlander LTD Platinum. Toyota knows its a problem but will not address it.

I negotiated down to 500 from a 1000 bill. I saw the drain tubes which were pulled out and replaced. The tube on the drivers side definitely pinched off and causing the problem. I know this problem was ongoing since I purchased the car. After rains always had a musty smell but no visible damage so didn’t know excatly why/where the problem was until we had some heavy rains. Problem now fixed but Toyota wouldn’t cover. 2014 highlander hybrid.

2014 Toyota Highlander LTD Platinum with panoramic roof leak and resulted in mold above the entire roof headliner and under the floor carpet. Water leaked down the seat belt column so it wasn't detected until I smelled an order and had condensation on the roof glass interior.Car has 24,000 miles on it but Toyota will only pay $2,500 of an $9,000 repair bill. There is a technical service bulletin issue for 2014-2015 models in July 2015. Toyota is not being helpful. I have been a staunch Toyota advocate and owned 7 Toyota vehicles since 2006. Will be looking at other manufacturers....no more Toyota's for me!

If you are in the Houston, TX area Wayne's Auto Collision Shop, Pearland, TX can do the repair changing out the drain tube 281-489-5078. He knows the Toyota issue and is very reasonable on price.

I have a 2015 highlander Ltd that also leaks. I bought about 2 years ago certified pre-owned thru toyota. I took it in November during heavy rains for peaking (first time it happened). They told me the drains were clogged. I took it in today, Feb. 4, 2019, for same problem, told them to take pictures of what comes out when they drain it. They called me to say it wasnt clogged, and they'd have to take the headliner out to check of that's part of the problem ($700 in labor) but if its something with that (i dont recall what he said), it will be covered by warranty. Have to keep it til at least tomorrow. Also, there isn't a safe covered place for them to keep my SUV with the windows down so it can dry out instead of getting moldy over night. I asked why, if this is a known problem with their Highlanders, hasnt this problem been fixed, but as the person who fills out the paperwork for the mechanics, he didnt know. I dont believe any of this would be user/owner error or "act of god", it's an engineering problem that could possibly be fixed with better equipment or engineering.

My issue with the 2014 Highlander is not related to the drain tubes. It is the gasket on the fixed panoramic glass. There was a Toyota technical service bulletin issued in July 2015 for the gasket but, never an official recall.

I think it is a defective part problem. I was showed the drain tube and it was flimsy totally crimped/pinched so that nothing was draining from it. Wayne's Auto Body changed the defective tube to a thicker tube that will not bend or pinch to clog, and I have not had a problem since the repair. Toyota knows this is a issue and should take care of the problem for free.

I have 2013 Highlander have had on going issues with drains had them unclogged 2 times by Toyota. They tell me its because I live around a lot of trees. WHAT a bunch of scrap! I've had sun roofs for 20 YEARS, my husband has a sunroof, never clogged. These drains clog all the time. Taking back to Toyota they need to fix this Or I'm getting a LAWYER

I have a toyota highlander 2019. Lease it a really brand new one when after a month the roof started to dripped. Took it to toyota service, said they did’nt find any problem and another leaking happened after two weeks it had been checked. So disappointed.

If you are in the Houston, TX area Wayne's Auto Collision Shop, Pearland, TX can do the repair changing out the drain tube 281-489-5078. He knows the Toyota issue and is very reasonable on price. It has been 3 months since he changed the drain tubes and I have had no leaks.

My 2012 highlander limited was just TOTALLED due to mold issues. Kept feeling sick when I got in the car. It would resolve when I was back indoors, thought it was allergies!

Purchased my 2013 Toyota Highlander pre- used with 10,000 miles in Jan 2017. One month out water on the floor in rear passenger seat. Toyota said clogged rain gutters and they blew them out. April 2019 same problem after weeks of rain. Went to my mechanic he blew them out... June 2019 after 3” of rain front seat passenger floor has a half inch of water!! Went to my body shop, gasket around sunroof was dry rotted but.. that wasn’t the only problem. The rain gutters are not designed to empty out, outside of the car when they fill up after a heavy rain they just spill into the inside of the car! And as you drive the water runs forward and backwards on the floor under the carpet. This explains why sometimes it is the front and sometimes the back seat area also the headliner can get soaked!! My auto body mechanic pulled everything apart to find the problem! He made and installed drains to go out side of the car! This is clearly a design flaw. There was never a reason that my gutters would even get clogged as I never park near any trees. Just heavy rains that the vehicle is not designed to accommodate!! Shame on Toyota to charge people for their design flaws!!!

I had the same issue with pooling inside my 2011 Highlander primarily on the driver’s side for over a year. It was definitely a sunroof- related problem but no amount of blowing air into the drain hose or snaking a wire down it would resolve it. I finally figured out that the issue was with a clogged drain pan, which was a real pain to clean out, but I did. I just posted a detailed video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/i69Sw7b1v5M

If you pull up the carpet on the driver side, there is a grommet near the fuel door lever. You can pull off the trim on the a-pillar and pull the drain hose out. Cut it at a convenient spot and take the hose to home Depot. Find a hose in the plumbing dept that fits the inside diameter of the original. 10 feet will do. Route it behind the dash, under the carpet and slice a hole in the grommet. Push hose into a-pillar side as far as you can. Route hose as best you can, cut hole in grommet and insert hose about 2 inches. You're welcome.

Yes! 2011 Highlander. We had water on floors in front of drivers seat and front passenger seat with no idea where it was coming from. Took it to my local dealer, Town and Country Toyota in Charlotte. They told me they don't work on water leaks and had to have a 3rd party, The Water Doctor look at it. I had to pay $104 for them to tell me it was the sunroof drain lines. They gave me a $1200 unitemized estimate to fix it, but only The Water Doctor could fix it and I would have to wait a week. Once I knew it was the drain lines, I called a local collision/autobody shop. They said it was very unlikely that they were bad and needing to be replaced most likely clogged. I then googled it and apparently this is a common problem with the Highlander and the engineering design, that when the lines are clogged the overflow goes into the floors of the car. We tried blowing out the clogs with an air compressor but it did not work. I took it to the local collision/autobody shop and they looked at it for FREE. They said the lines were fine just clogged and there was a slight bend in a piece of metal near where the drain lines exit the car that could be contributing. They fixed the metal and worked with the drain lines. I told them about what Toyota said and they agreed it was a giant scam. First how does Toyota not know how to fix a common problem with their own cars and second the estimate for the work was absurd! This is a problem Toyota needs to address and take responsibility for it!

If anyone still having trouble with this I made a video of how I solved this issue. https://youtu.be/ZH4yx0jWgN0

Our 2013 Hylander started accumulating water on the passenger floor winter 2018. The Everett dealership eventually sent us to Hoglunds Upholstery for diagnoses. They quoted $540 for the diagnoses and booked us for an appt 4 months out due to their sched. Before completing the appointment I found this on the net: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=i69Sw7b1v5M. This video makes the most sense to me as to the problem. It persists today June 2020.

Sunroof drain problem solved! https://youtu.be/ZH4yx0jWgN0

i also took my 2011 highlander to Town and Country in Charlotte. They gave me a huge estimate to fix, dealt with insurance. Ended up calling Water Doctor's myself. It cost about $250 for them to come to my house and clean out drains, replace weather stripping around sunroof, pull up wet carpet and dry out the padding. That was June 2016. Just left toyota again today with same problem, actually leaking from sunroof as well as on floor. They cleaned drains for $120 this time and said I need a new sunroof. I highly recommend water doctors, they were great. I highly recommend never buying a toyota! No more Toyotas for me ever!!

Took my 2016 Toyota Highlander Limited to the dealer cause of the strong musty smell in the car. Wanted to get it professionally detailed hoping it would solve problem. Toyota Service just called me to say the seals on the panoramic sunroof need to be replaced. Water leaking in. They wanted a whopping $3200.00 Looking for a place to take it for another estimate! Toyota has defective parts and needs to acknowledge and replace.

I have a 2014 highlander which had a similar problem. Started off with an odor and then into visible water damage. Dealership wanted over a thousand dollars to replace what they thought could be problems with the drain tubes. After some negotiations the dealership agreed to $500. It ended up being one pinched drain tube. Pretty sure it was installed that way because I bought the car new and it always seemed to have a slight odor when it rained but couldn’t figure out why until it showed itself

Try this if you're having sunroof drain issues. It takes about an hour and costs less than $10. https://youtu.be/ZH4yx0jWgN0

@Guru5NT7J I'm interested in how well the fix is working for the roof leak? Is it still draingin okay since Wayne's fixed it or have any new issues developed? Thanks,

No issues to date. Tell Wayne that Ernest sent you.

I just took my 2014 highlander in and was told the sunroof assembly is cracked and leaking. The headliner, airbags, and main harness need to be replaced and parts alone are gonna cost me $10K total with labor $15K. Nothing from toyota other than file with my insurance.

Have 2015 Toyota Highlander Platinum. Major sunroof leak at ~60k miles. Had to remove and replace headliner and reseal panaromic sunroof. Cost ~$1k to fix.

2013 Highlander with 41,000 miles. September 2020 and two days ago, the sunroof drain clogged and forced the water into the cabin, flooding the floor. Spent a long time with the wet vac and fans. Brilliant design. My Toyota dealership unclogged it for me again, and showed me a video of all the trapped water coming out. I called Toyota corporate complaints at 800-331-4331 and at least registered a complaint.. Will be seeing if there are any federal agencies that can do something about this. There needs to be a class action products liability lawsuit. Surely Toyota can figure out a clip or something to recall and retrofit their obvious design defect which results in health and safety issues. Their cars are so nice, it's a shame they decided to be shoddy on this.

2013 Highlander here. Between badly peeling "premium" paint and a horrible sunroof drain design, my wife now hates her Highlander. You shouldn't have to contend with large patches of paint flaking off and stinky, musty carpet because the sunroof drains don't work when you pay over $30,000 for a car. How does Toyota let such things happen and WHY don't they care to do something about it? 30+ years owning Toyotas in my family but no more after this one. Looks like I'll be doing rabidbeagle's "repair" this weekend. SHAME ON YOU TOYOTA!

I have leaking from Overhead lights compartment in my 2012 Highlander. Do you think this is still from faulty sunroof. During a heavy rain, Its enough water to fill my cup holders.

I'm investigating the recurring leaks in my 2008 Highlander but I have made one firm resolution. NO MORE SUNROOFS! This was my first and it will sure be my last. If I can't resolve this quickly I'm filling up the channel around the sunroof with silicon caulk and pulling the fuse.

I have an 08 Highlander that has a leak which comes out of the lower drivers side kick panel due to filling up with water from sunroof drains. and leaks onto the drivers floor. The issue is that compartment fills with debris and creates a clog so water does not drain from the pinch weld under the vehicle which by the way is a horrible design .It is also impossible to access the debris as there is only one small hole. I tried a coat hanger which helps a little but water still backs up and leaks onto the floor. We love the Highlander but will never by one again with a sunroof.

Finally found a fix for the issue. Removed the A pillar cover, cut the factory drain tube and put a new drain tube and ran it out an existing hole in the floor pan. Never had another rain issue after that. Sadly, a turd with no license/insurance T-boned my wife in a parking lot and totaled her car. 2 weeks later, we get a letter from Toyota, NOW they want to address the peeling "premium" paint. Had to buy a new car and guess what we didn't buy? Compared the new Highlander to the Pilot and felt it was no contest. We drive a Honda now and love it. Feels more solid, better visibility and just a better all-around feel.

Ive got your sunroof leak solution. Piece of cake! https://youtu.be/ZH4yx0jWgN0