C141medic
Active Member
Thanks for posting this. It amazes me that for almost two years now the service centers have been passing this off as “normal.” At least it seems to be an easy fix.
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Trunk weather seal gap
- Thread starter reheat
- Start date
Jedi2155
Model 3 has Arrived.
super20g
Member
They told me there was a new seal design and will install it next week. That is after the last go around when they told me the gap between bumper and seal was within spec.
I had an issue with my trunk seal similar to everyone else posting in this thread. I scheduled an appointment with Tesla Mobile Service. They came out to my work and fixed the issue in a few minutes. The technician was able to repair it using basic tools in the field. He stated the seal was installed incorrectly at the time of assembly and had been pinched between the frame and bumper cover. He simply removed the seal by hand and then re-seated it on the frame. He also noted the frame had a bend which didn't allow the seal to sit as it should, so he bent the frame a little so the seal had a better fit. Overall, it's a very easy fix and can be done at your work or home in 15 mins.
I saw the tech did it, it's simply pull it up and reseat it so the rubber flap is seating right, took 5 minutes.
I'll second that. Except that I actually figured it out myself. Things were just installed in the incorrect order. There's glue on that gasket, but if you do this on a warm day you'll be fine. Pull it up off the seam, keep the skirt OUT of that gap, and it'll look lovely when you've pressed it all back into place where it should be.
Anybody who tells you that this requires a new part, or that one is coming soon to fix this is blowing smoke up your skirt. As others have said, about 99% of the Model 3's I've inspected have had the gasket installed incorrectly. As far as I'm concerned this should be a correction performed automatically whenever a car is brought in for service.
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AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
The trunk will only leak if the seal is not making a good seal. This gap has nothing to do with that as that is not a location that it seals.
My brother has a leak in the middle top of the trunk where the seal is “joined”, and it is not perfectly smooth. As a result, there is a small path for small amounts of water (there is a lot coming off the rear glass in that location when it is raining) into the trunk. It results in a small leak. He lives in Seattle but hasn’t had it addressed yet (had the car about 8 months) since it is so minor. The fix of course would be a new trunk seal. Not the topic here, though.
The trunk gasket hasn't been seated. You have to pull it up/out, and then pull out the lip and push it back down. If you don't want to do it, at least pull it up to see what is going on, so you can tell them at the SC.
The door gasket is extremely common. The gasket is very thin there, and because the seam is there, and it makes a 90 degree turn, it has a tendency to buckle like that. You can massage and heat it with a hair dryer to flatten.
Thank you for your suggestions.
I may have a go at the window seal myself with a hair dryer.
The trunk seal is something I will probably leave for the mobile technician as I don't want to risk chipping the paint, and I don't have the proper plastic pry tools.
I fixed the trunk gasket. It turned out to be quite easy on this hot Southern California day.
Tesla Mobile Tech came today to adjust the window seal gasket. It’s now 90% good with minimal pucker. The gasket has no adhesive and is only pressure fit. If I had seen a video beforehand I’d have tried it myself. It’s pretty easy. The tech pulled away the top edge from corner to corner and re-adjusted the gasket. He was done in 10 minutes.
Thanks for the info guys. Mine was also pinched all around... Oct-2018 build date.
Used some plastic trim removal tools and chopsticks to unpinch and reseat it as it was ment to be. Took maybe 10 minutes in 30-40F ambient temp (rubber wasnt easiest to work with).
Used some plastic trim removal tools and chopsticks to unpinch and reseat it as it was ment to be. Took maybe 10 minutes in 30-40F ambient temp (rubber wasnt easiest to work with).
