2004 ES330 Wind Noise

Ever since I bought my 2004 ES330 six years ago, there's been a mild wind noise. The wind noise occurs when traveling about 55 mph or more on certain days, presumably when the wind hits in a certain direction, etc. The sound comes from the sunroof area and sounds like the sunroof is very slightly open.

When I go to my local Lexus dealer for regular service, I ask them to look at it, but they've never been able to get rid of the problem. When I look at the way the sunroof aligns with the roof, it looks pretty smooth to me. I can't figure out what could be generating this noise. Is this a design defect? Am I just wasting my time asking them to fix it?

Reply to
David Z
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Does the noise go away when you close the interior sun shade?

Reply to
Ray O

IIRC, no, but it's slightly muted.

Reply to
David Z

Try placing duct tape across the top of the windshield, covering the black sealer between the windshield and body and any trim. If the noise goes away, the trim or black sealer may need some re-sealing. A glass shop should be be to check for you.

Reply to
Ray O

Thanks, Ray. I'll give that a try when I get my car back from the dealer.

When I looked a couple of days ago, I did notice that there's about a 1/4 inch gap between the black sealer at the top of the windshield and where the roof starts. In between the 2, there's about a 1/4 inch drop.

Reply to
David Z

You're welcome! I suspect that the gap is the cause of the noise.

Reply to
Ray O

Got my car back last week. Took it out on the highway a few times and it seems like the wind noise is (finally)gone. They say they replaced a molding, but I think they've said/done that before.

BTW, while I was at the dealer, I checked out the other ES330s on the used car lot and they all have that same small 1/4 inch gap between the black sealer at the top of the windshield and where the roof starts. So, it's still a mystery to me.

Reply to
David Z

That's good news!

Reply to
Ray O

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