Roof Leak Above Door on New 2026 Navion 24R

[HRYSER]

We've been having a huge heat spell of mid 90s, until now. We FINALLY, after a couple months of no precipitation have received some rain! This is great news, but it exposed a whole new problem: I have a leak in the roof of the coach!!!!! The water is dripping down in the center above the house- door. In an effort to prevent further damage, I removed the small panel above the door where the water was pooling within. It appears to me as if Winnebago or the dealer knew about the leak, see the large amount of black sealer.
Not that I want to depart from my solar issue, this water leak has me worried a bit more. The problem for me is that we do not have a Winnebago approved service facility within 4-5 hours from here. And where should I go, to the dealer in Albuquerque (6hrs from here) or an approved Winnebago service center in Grand Junction (about 7 hours from here), and what is the proper way to address a warranty claim like this?

Water pooling behind this panel above the door:

After removing this panel, I noticed this heavy caulking. Insulation is all saturated

This is possibly the place where water enters the coach:

It sure doesn't look water tight:

 

[creativepart]

Wow, that is a more serious issue to take care of right away. Let's split this off of your Solar thread into a new thread of it's own. I'll take care of that now.

 

[HRYSER]

as always, thank you so, so much!

 

[creativepart]

On my previous Winnebago Adventurer motorhome, I had a similar leak in basically that same spot and I put Manus Bond M-75 on that seam you pointed out and it cured my leak. You'd probably want to use Clear ProFlex sealant on that leak. Manus Bond looks like what you see inside. NOTE: while that seam is a likely place for the leak there are certainly other options. I'd just start there.

Now, about taking it to a dealer that's far away. When you don't live close to a dealer Winnebago will agree to let you use a local independent RV Tech or company to do the repairs and pay the Tech directly. You need to contact Winnebago Customer Care.

Here's an email address for them. Include your model year, model, VIN and Serial Number in your email. I'd mention both problems and any other issues you have.

Winnebago Motorhome Customer Care <[email protected]>

I bought my 2026 24R at the LeMesa in Albuquerque. In fact I bought my 2017 Adventurer there as well even though we live in San Antonio. When I had my Adventurer I used them once for service and was not impressed. When I bought my new View this past Sept they claimed they've totally revamped their service dept. But I haven't used them.

I try my best to avoid all RV dealers. In my previous experience (6-RVs over 20 years) dealers just take your RV, hold it for weeks or months and claim to have things fixed but don't really fix anything. I use an independent shop in San Antonio and they always fix things, and usually gets things completed in a day or two at maximum. That may be difficult to find near you, I'm just lucky.

 

[HRYSER]

Thank you kindly for your info and thoughts. I will do what you suggested

 

[RayIN]

The gap where the front, top cap meets the roof has always been a problem. My 2000 Ultimate Freedom has that large gap. The gutter is open at the end, so it directs roof runoff directly into the gap
My solution was to push 3/4" backer rod into the crack after removing all the factory caulking.
I left about 3/8" space between backer rod and lip of cap and filled it with non-leveling Dicor sealant. It hasn't leaked since.

 

[HRYSER]

Thanks RayIN

Meanwhile, I contacted Winnebago's "[email protected]" They replied quickly and said that due to the risk this leak could amount to greater damage and that Winnebago doesn't have a technician that could travel to the Four Corners region, that I should find a local RV service to fix the problem and to send the invoice to the dealership where I purchased the MH.

I contacted a couple of places but it is obviously RV-season. Everybody is extremely busy. I caulked the area but I don't think that this will fix the problem as it is somewhere under the large awning housing.

 

[Sparky19053]

I'm with Creativepart on the solution. Clean out the old caulking and apply new.

 

[RV_Lee]

That cap seal is what geocel proflex clear is for. I am a little shocked it left the factory like that - and THEN the big glob of black sealant inside. Anything NOT clear in that area will stick out like a sore thumb

 

[HRYSER]

Thanks Sparky and Lee. I fully agree with you. We just returned from a one week camping trip and there were small rain showers on two nights. And, as expected, the water got into our coach again.
I now have an appointment at an RV service place to have the leak checked and hopefully fixed.
But first, I think I have to let the dealership know, that there will be an invoice from me for a refund, as Winnebago Industries assured. I will report, what the RV service folks find out.

Unfortunately, on our recent camping trip we learned about an other issue that I will post in the more "Generator-specific" interest folder.

 

[Journey39n]

Had a similar problem with that front curve where the roof sheet tucks under and down at the front cap. Dealer could not find the problem, even pressurized the coach to find the leak, no luck. A year later, I was renewing some of the roof edge caulking as specified. I carefully checked that front cap curve and found a 'flap' of caulking that would allow water in, but no air out, so the pressure technique did not work. I cleaned out all the old caulk, added a new bead into the joint, no more leaks over the last 15 years with it.

Good luck, leaks are tough to find.

 

[HRYSER]

Hi Journey39n
I read your post with great interest, of course and would like to know where exactly the spot was, in the "front cap curve". Did you refer to the curve where the arrow is pointing at?

 

[Journey39n]

My class A has a front cap much more forward of the spot your arrow points to. More to just forward of the door opening. Your structure is a little more complex than mine.

 

[Journey39n]

this is a photo after I re-caulked the joint at the front cap curve.

 

[HRYSER]

Thank you kindly for your reply with pictures. I will try my best to caulk the joining pieces as good as I can reach it. The awning is certainly in the way.
Have a great day.

 

[RV_Lee]

Whats going on in the circled area, the black part, is that sealant or is it lifted / open??

 

[HRYSER]

This is a bad fit between the front body-shell and the roof. See picture:

I think I have seen the same situation on other Navion 24Rs. Perhaps "Creativepart" who has the same motorhome can comment.
Here the view of the same section where the two pieces join but on top of the roof and right behind the awning cover.

Obviously, the leak was known to either Winnebago or the dealership and added an insane amount of caulk on top of the roof and inside right below.

It sure wasn't a professional job nor did it resolve the leaking problem!

 

[creativepart]

I haven't had a leak, so I haven't spent much time looking. Since the 2026 doesn't have a roof ladder I've only been up there once and that was to look at the solar setup and connections. The 2027's have a rear ladder.

If it were me, I'd probably put a hose on the area's I suspect and see, if possible, where the water was coming from. And, to be honest I'd want to immediately take the RV to Forest City, Iowa to the factory to have them go over everything and fix everything. I wouldn't trust a Winnebago dealer with the job.

Of course, I'm retired and can pick up and go to Iowa whenever I want. You're closer than me since you're in the Four Corners area but it's still 1,200 miles away from Gallop, NM which I think is near you.

As, to the dealer doing that fix before you picked it up, that could be but most dealers don't do repairs until the RV is sold and the owner comes in with a problem.

Here's a blow up of a photo I took of the side of the RV showing that area on my 2026R.

 

[RV_Lee]

I meant the area below, along the gutter but looks like its just a shadow. If you have an appt with the dealer to get everything fixed might be a good idea to just put some clear silicone over the open area so you can stop the leak. Silicone comes off pretty easy so it can have the proper sealant put on it later

 

[HRYSER]

I haven't had a leak, so I haven't spent much time looking. Since the 2026 doesn't have a roof ladder I've only been up there once and that was to look at the solar setup and connections. The 2027's have a rear ladder.

If it were me, I'd probably put a hose on the area's I suspect and see, if possible, where the water was coming from. And, to be honest I'd want to immediately take the RV to Forest City, Iowa to the factory to have them go over everything and fix everything. I wouldn't trust a Winnebago dealer with the job.

Of course, I'm retired and can pick up and go to Iowa whenever I want. You're closer than me since you're in the Four Corners area but it's still 1,200 miles away from Gallop, NM which I think is near you.

As, to the dealer doing that fix before you picked it up, that could be but most dealers don't do repairs until the RV is sold and the owner comes in with a problem.

Here's a blow up of a photo I took of the side of the RV showing that area on my 2026R.

View attachment 2487625

Thank you Creativepart again for your great analysis and advices. Unfortunately, I can't leave at this point for a 1-2 week journey to Iowa because of various commitments to family and friends. The picture you added definitely looks way better than my situation. The front panel follow in perfectly parallel to the roof rim below, whereas it runs at an angle in my case. Your suggestion to run water over the suspected area is great and I will do that now. Earlier I was thinking of doing that as well however, I was concerned that water could come in and run further behind the area that you can see on my internal picture. Do you think I should remove the white Styrofoam as far as I can do it without getting into a wire? That may allow better view of the leak in case the water enters further towards the back.

Do you think it would help with the leakage search if I would cut some of the styrofoam and all of the caulking out? Or do you think I would create a potentially new problem?

Again, many thanks for your reply.
Hans