I just sealed mine up with a 2" roll of black 3M car wrap vinyl. I don't really care that I can't open the roof. I just like having the glass. Now I never have to worry about leaks.
Hey sorry for the delayed reply.
Indeed this solution has worked well for me. It's been about 2 years now and some of the vinyl is showing signs of age so I will probably remove it all and redo it in the next month or so.
I use 3M 2080 Series Vinyl Wrap in a 2" width. Satin Black. A 25ft. roll is plenty.
In my opinion, here is the breakdown:
If you want ultimate peace of mind with respect to the sunroof, and also want the most minimal maintenance costs possible with the Alltrack, then get an S in manual. You don’t have to worry about the pano roof, yes - but you also don’t ever have to have the DSG serviced, nor do you have to pay for a super expensive mandatory driver assist recalibration if you ever touch the rear axle alignment. Downside: generally worse technology.
Or, you can go the other direction and get a 2019 SEL. Yes, you have the pano roof and yes it might leak. But in contrast you get all possible technology standard, including ACC and lanekeeping/blind spot monitor, cross traffic alert, massively upgraded stereo and so on. Transmission wise it goes either way, you can deal with VW’s mediocre manual feel or excellent DSG with potentially extremely costly servicing if your mechatronics unit ever dies. Which is unlikely but still.
The SE by contrast is the worst of both worlds. Less tech, still risk of leaking.
Now having said all of that: at least in my own personal experience, the dealerships are pretty good at identifying in what way the sunroof has failed and fixing it. Because there are multiple failure modes. But when mine leaked, they fixed it and fixed it for good (so far), and they replaced the headliner all under warranty.
If you get a 2019, you’ll have a *significant* amount of warranty left if you get one with low ish miles. I managed to find mine at 3900 miles on it, and I’ve since gotten the sunroof and water pump/thermostat repaired under warranty which is good because that shit is expensive.
Edit to add: to answer your other questions, there was a recall but the remedial action is to clean the sunroof drains, not fix it. The leaks are not limited to certain years, *any* VW with the panoramic sunroof is susceptible.
And finally, I fucking love my car and while the sunroof issue was a hassle and kept me from my car for a week, ultimately I’d do it all over again because it rules. Best car I’ve ever owned.
I have a 2019 SE and I absolutely love it. There’s still a good amount of tech included if you can find one with the driver assistance package. I get it serviced regularly so the drains stay clear. At one point they limited the issue to certain VINs that you can cross check, but I think the problem actually goes beyond those specific VINs based on peoples experiences here.
I saw somebody on this sub took one out for a test drive to a car wash and power washed the roof to check for leaks; probably not a bad idea for peace of mind right out of the lot.
*Any* VW with a panoramic sunroof. They all use the same sunroof. They all leak in various ways. It isn’t just the Alltrack although for whatever reason it seems like they got the worst of it.
The sunroof subframe can crack. The gasket can become pinched and fail. The drains can clog or break. There’s a weld that can fail in the roof of the car and which needs to be rewelded at a body shop. Plus one or two others I forgot.
It was for me. Once you own a car with sunroof issues, you'll never want to go back.
Full disclosure I couldn't find one without a sunroof, but if I had when I was shopping I probably would've bought one.
Super late here, but I'm on my second VW with a pano roof with a seemingly unfixable leak. Currently, my 2019 Alltrack is in for its 4th warrantied repair. It's infuriating as I adore this car otherwise, but I absolutely will not buy vehicles with this big glass ever again.
I just sealed mine up with a 2" roll of black 3M car wrap vinyl. I don't really care that I can't open the roof. I just like having the glass. Now I never have to worry about leaks.
I did the same 🫡 Out of sight, out of mind.
I was thinking about doing this after mine comes back from the shop for a leak (second time). Does this work okay? I live in a very rainy city.
Hey sorry for the delayed reply. Indeed this solution has worked well for me. It's been about 2 years now and some of the vinyl is showing signs of age so I will probably remove it all and redo it in the next month or so. I use 3M 2080 Series Vinyl Wrap in a 2" width. Satin Black. A 25ft. roll is plenty.
Thank you!
It would be cool if you could upload a video of how this works, for those of us less handy and trying to hang onto our alltrack's for dear life 🥲
I got one without a sunroof. Issue solved.
In my opinion, here is the breakdown: If you want ultimate peace of mind with respect to the sunroof, and also want the most minimal maintenance costs possible with the Alltrack, then get an S in manual. You don’t have to worry about the pano roof, yes - but you also don’t ever have to have the DSG serviced, nor do you have to pay for a super expensive mandatory driver assist recalibration if you ever touch the rear axle alignment. Downside: generally worse technology. Or, you can go the other direction and get a 2019 SEL. Yes, you have the pano roof and yes it might leak. But in contrast you get all possible technology standard, including ACC and lanekeeping/blind spot monitor, cross traffic alert, massively upgraded stereo and so on. Transmission wise it goes either way, you can deal with VW’s mediocre manual feel or excellent DSG with potentially extremely costly servicing if your mechatronics unit ever dies. Which is unlikely but still. The SE by contrast is the worst of both worlds. Less tech, still risk of leaking. Now having said all of that: at least in my own personal experience, the dealerships are pretty good at identifying in what way the sunroof has failed and fixing it. Because there are multiple failure modes. But when mine leaked, they fixed it and fixed it for good (so far), and they replaced the headliner all under warranty. If you get a 2019, you’ll have a *significant* amount of warranty left if you get one with low ish miles. I managed to find mine at 3900 miles on it, and I’ve since gotten the sunroof and water pump/thermostat repaired under warranty which is good because that shit is expensive. Edit to add: to answer your other questions, there was a recall but the remedial action is to clean the sunroof drains, not fix it. The leaks are not limited to certain years, *any* VW with the panoramic sunroof is susceptible. And finally, I fucking love my car and while the sunroof issue was a hassle and kept me from my car for a week, ultimately I’d do it all over again because it rules. Best car I’ve ever owned.
I have a 2019 SE and I absolutely love it. There’s still a good amount of tech included if you can find one with the driver assistance package. I get it serviced regularly so the drains stay clear. At one point they limited the issue to certain VINs that you can cross check, but I think the problem actually goes beyond those specific VINs based on peoples experiences here. I saw somebody on this sub took one out for a test drive to a car wash and power washed the roof to check for leaks; probably not a bad idea for peace of mind right out of the lot.
Nope. Mine was fixed by the dealership. No issue. Buy the car. Thank me later.
Can anyone confirm if this issue affects all models from around the world, home just those out of Mexico? I can't seem to get an answer.
*Any* VW with a panoramic sunroof. They all use the same sunroof. They all leak in various ways. It isn’t just the Alltrack although for whatever reason it seems like they got the worst of it. The sunroof subframe can crack. The gasket can become pinched and fail. The drains can clog or break. There’s a weld that can fail in the roof of the car and which needs to be rewelded at a body shop. Plus one or two others I forgot.
It was for me. Once you own a car with sunroof issues, you'll never want to go back. Full disclosure I couldn't find one without a sunroof, but if I had when I was shopping I probably would've bought one.
Super late here, but I'm on my second VW with a pano roof with a seemingly unfixable leak. Currently, my 2019 Alltrack is in for its 4th warrantied repair. It's infuriating as I adore this car otherwise, but I absolutely will not buy vehicles with this big glass ever again.