Interior Exterior
Q:
Does the hard top roof leak? I've heard the soft top does. Curious guy with 2006 on order.
A:
Hmmm.. well my soft top doesn't leak - the car is very waterproof so far. A pleasant change from my 71 Elan. And it is a daily driver, has 10,500 miles on it since January and has been in plenty of heavy rain and some snow.... No water problems at all.
A:
Thanks for the response, I've heard the roof does have a tendency to leak I'm glad I heard wrong
A:
I was caught in a terrific mid-western downpour last week. I had to park under a bridge and put the soft top on before proceeding.
The top was perfectly sealed, despite the torrential rain coming down. Not a single drop in the cabin.
I was actually impressed with how dry it was. After reading a lot of posts, I thought the top would be leaking like a sieve! But itwasn't.
Wayne
A:
I got into a major rainstorm once. I don't have a hard top, fortunately I managed to get the soft top on just in time. I wasn't driving, just sitting in the car to stay dry until it was over. Some small amounts of water sprayed into the cabin, it looked like it was coming through the seal between window and top. But the wind was so strong that the rain hit the car pretty much sideways, and it was very, very heavy rain.
So while it wasn't 100% waterproof, I was very pleased. A few droplets in one of the nastiest storms I have ever seen are perfectly acceptable to me.
A:
You have to be a bit careful when putting the soft top on that the tensioning cables are outside the seals and not on top of them. If you close the roof with them on top of the seals the roof will almost certainly leak and the rubber seals are likely to be somewhat deformed the next time.
That said, my car has been bone-dry (when I have got the roof on in time!)
A:
I had a tiny bit of leakage in a very very heavy rain while creeping along in traffic,I think that the water was getting caught in that little drip catcher at the top-front of the side window,and when I would move forward it would drip a small amount.
A:
Does the hard top roof leak? I've heard the soft top does. Curious guy with 2006 on order.
Was this person talking about the Elise for the US market? The older Elises had leaking problems, but our cars have a redesigned roof that does not seem to leak when installed properly. I don't have any firsthand experience as I have yet to drive my car in the rain.
- John
A:
My car had a leak under a heavy rain, but it was fixed by the dealer. Since then, no leaks.
The only way water would get in, is from a direct spray at the tops of the windows.
A:
When I picked up my car it had a really bad roof leak. Water ran in at a steady stream on the drivers side with both the Hard and Soft tops. I took it to the dealer and they said, "read your manual, it's suppose to leak". That sort of freaked me out. But they were right it does say that in the manual and even on a warning label inside my car. I fixed the steady stream leak with some black rubber silicone. I also adjusted the window height and lateral tension and that seemed to help a little. All that's left now is a few minor drips in heavy rain but I can live with that.
A:
I had a tiny bit of leakage in a very very heavy rain while creeping along in traffic,I think that the water was getting caught in that little drip catcher at the top-front of the side window,and when I would move forward it would drip a small amount.
I had a steady stream of water coming in from that very same spot. I put a tiny drop of black silicone in there it it completely fixed the leak in that area.
A:
When I wash my car, a few drops will leak through, but that's it.
A:
My roof only leaks when I wash the car and water is sprayed at the window tops. I understand they can be adjusted higher though. Hardtop, even though it came with a missing bolt in the rear didn't appear to leak, but it was only on a few days.
The trunk, well that's a different story! (just ask my laptop)
A:
I was worried about the soft top, so I bought the hard top. The soft top doesn't leak at all, but the hard top leaks pretty badly.
A:
I washed my Elise for the first time yesterday, with the recommended two buckets and microfiber towels - woo hoo! I checked for leaks afterwards and found only one. Some water had collected on the horizontal "storage tray" area behind the passenger seat, right below the right rear speaker. I assume it leaked from either the rear window, or perhaps from the hardtop. I'll have to investigate further next time. Happily, there were no leaks in either the trunk or the footwells.
Unhappily, as I was backing the Elise into my driveway to orient it nosedown for washing, I forgot to angle it a bit and heard "SCRUNCH" as I drug the nose on the ground. Rats...
But on a lighter note, as I was cleaning up, an elderly couple walked by and stated "Beautiful Lotus!" So I responded, "Wow, you two are the first people who actually knew what it was!" To which they replied, "Oh we didn't know WHAT the heck it was. We had to look at the symbol on the front."
A:
haven't had mine leak but it doesn't rain too much around here. About 14 inches last year.
have fun
Nick
A:
I was expecting my roof to leak slightly, but it doesn't leak a drop.
The front of my carpet near the pedels does get soaking wet when it rains though, I'm not sure how, but water is dripping in at the front of the chassis somewhere. Aparantly it's a common thing over on selog.org and the cure is to seal up the front of the chassis.
Luke