Changing roof and bulkhead windscreen seals

[rejeep]

I need to chang the top and bottom windscream seals on my 109 SW..
I was going to wait until it went away for the winter.. but I have feeling we might get a few sunny days in a row and the more water tight I make it, the longer I will drive it into the fall..

I have never removed the top on this truck.. or on any rover for that matter. I poked around a bit and it doesnt seem too bad.. are there any tricks or shortcuts I can take if im just doing the front 2 seals?

[LaneRover]

DOn't fully remove the top. Keep it attached to the sides, undo nearly all the bolts and then loosen the rears. Find a way to safely support the front far enough away from the windshield to give you room to work. This way you don't have to remove the whole top and keep it safe off the vehicle. You can also just drop the roof down if you do get a bit of rain.

Of course now you might need to do the seals along the bottom of the sides . . .

If you get some hurricane winds I'd bolt the roof back on of course . . .

[TeriAnn]

I did this once. Best to have a buddy help walk the roof off.

Step 1 - remove the roof from the sides. There is a whole mess of 7/16ths screws around the inside edge. Undo all of them and walk the roof off the back of the rover.

Step 2 - Unbolt the sides from the body and remove them. I've never done a 109 station wagon before but there should be a bolt at each bottom corner. Remove them and DO NOT LOSE THEM. There are some rubber donuts there as well. Renew them at assembly.

Step 3 - There are seals in grooves at the top and bottom of the sides. Last I looked the 109 SW seals have been discontinued. You will likely end up with seals for a 109 regular. You just cut them down to size and put them in the grooves during reassembly.

Step 4 - undo the latch at the bottom ends of the windscreen and tilt the windscreen forward. Remove that seal as well.


Reassembly is in reverse order. Best to have the new seals in hand before starting the project. If the 7/16ths bolts look grungy you can replace them with new 7/16ths fine thread bolts, nuts & washers from your local hardware store.

Assuming you don't encounter anything unanticipated, have two 7/16ths wrenches per person working on the project you should be able to knock it off in a couple hours. The longest part will be R&Ring the passel of bolts holding the roof on.

[Terrys]

TA is partly right; the bolts take a 7/16" wrench and socket, but they're 1/4x28 (or the bsf version thereof)

[TeriAnn]

TA is partly right; the bolts take a 7/16" wrench and socket, but they're 1/4x28 (or the bsf version thereof)

I keep getting those mixed up. Thanks for the correction.

[rejeep]

Uch... Last think I want to do is take the roof off...
Much better suited to do that when it's away for the winter in the warehouse where I have a forklift..
I really was hoping to leave the rack and roof on, just kinda prop it up..

[TeriAnn]

Uch... Last think I want to do is take the roof off...
Much better suited to do that when it's away for the winter in the warehouse where I have a forklift..
I really was hoping to leave the rack and roof on, just kinda prop it up..

A forklift? You are a lot less apt to damage it with a friend or two helping. It is even easier if you remove the roof from the sides and take them off as 3 parts. Hands conform to the roof. A forklift conforms to nothing so any mismatch and the thin aluminum roof will conform to the forklift.

It is not that bad of a project. Assuming you have the new parts on hand you can easily knock it off in a day with plenty of time left over at the end for a bottle of ale and to swap lies. Over 50% of the time involved is removing and replacing the 1/4 inch fine thread bolts & nuts that hold the roof to the sides and to the windscreen top. A closed end spanner and a socket on a ratchet and you should be able to knock them out fairly quickly.

Heck you can even do all but 4 or 5 of them a day or two earlier if you are worried about corroded fasteners.

I know for a fact that 2 women can remove and replace a 109 roof.

Of course we had the truck backed up to a flat bed trailer and just walked it to and from the back of the truck. A flat surface the height of the truck bed is a BIG plus.

[rejeep]

started to unbolt the roof today as we should have a few days of nice weather here in upstate NY..
I got the windscreen and B piller bolts off and there was quite a bit of horizontal movement with the roof.. I feel I might be able to prop up the front section while leaving most of the roof still on the vehicle..

quick question as to the folding of the series windscreen..
Bear in mind I am use to jeeps, but does the windscreen pivot off the bracket? If so it must have a very high arch?

[mongoswede]

quick question as to the folding of the series windscreen..
Bear in mind I am use to jeeps, but does the windscreen pivot off the bracket? If so it must have a very high arch

[rejeep]

about 15 min after posting this.. I ran outside, took off a few more bolts and gave it the old college try...

[rejeep]

this is what I ended up with...









I felt at home doing this... much like every jeep I ever owned the firewall/windshield seal is always rotten and leaking..
took me 5 years to do this on my YJ and stop my feet from getting wet.. glad it only took me 1 year and $xx,xxx later to do it on the rover.. shows you do learn with age...

Another similarity that is the same in any old vehicle you work on.. the surprises you find in the windshield channel rubber..





anybody have any suggestions for
a. what type of sealer to use in the joints
b. what to do with joints found in the joints

[SafeAirOne]

I can't help you with either question, however, I wanted to comment that your windscreen well on the bulkhead is in remarkably good shape.


The time you take to make sure it stays in a good, mostly non-rusted state now, while you have the windscreen down, will pay dividends in the future.

5-door station wagons rarely, if ever, have this rust-prone area exposed and leak water loves to pool there.

[rejeep]

I was planning on a light sand and a coat with some rust preventing paint.

[crankin]

The upper seal is a hard rubber. The Rover brand is the best.
The lower seal....just go get some closed cell foam for ACE.

[Terrys]

Arie, Sorry if I repeat myself, but, your truck is disgusting.