The Stupidity Story

[Forty Deuce]

So, ill just share this story of stupidity because one day somebody may find value in my error. I rented a tear-drop trailer and took my son to Zion National Park for some camping. When we arrived the beauty of the place, as well as our eagerness to set up camp, distracted me and I left the sunroof wide open on my 2016 LR4. Half way through the night I awoke to the most impressive thunder and lightening storm ever. I fell back asleep to the sound of rain.

The next morning I found my error. The interior was wet and particularly the center console. The cup holder and small “gadget pockets” were filled with water. I was immediately concerned about the electronics since the rotary transmission knob and terrain control system buttons were equally wet. I turned on the vehicle only enough to close the sunroof, removed the cup holder base, an towel dried the interior. I then left the vehicle off and in warm sunlight to (in my mind anyhow) evaporate the moisture in the vehicle. Despite my concerns I drove the LR4 the next day and it seems to have had no impact on the electricaL systems at all. Even the cigarette outlet seems uneffected. I only mention it so if anybody else out there makes a similar mistake then they can at least have the peace of mind in knowing they were not the first and at least one other LR4 suffered the same fate with no apparent ill effect.

 

[Frank8]

Thanks for the heads-up!
This has always been a big fear and I wish there was some sort of alarm or audible signal.

 

[PaulLR3]

I did something similar in VT when it was -20. I opened the LR4 to find the entire center console soaked in some sort of brown slush and thick brown liquid. Apparently the 2 cans of diet Coke that I had in the cupholders froze then exploded. Despite the cold temp, the sun coming through the windshield was melting the Coke slush and it was seeping into all the crevices. To my surprise, nothing went wrong. And the LR4 started right up we could go skiing, unlike a Q7 TDI and X5 diesel near us.

 

[Huy Tran]

Earlier this week, I too left the roof open overnight. Luckily there was no rain but the car was full of mosquitoes. So I started googling to see if auto close was an option, but came up empty. It sounds like it's not possible because of liability. Manufacturers don't want to be responsible for "accidentally" breaking something or someone. Although my 18 year old Honda can close the roof when I remove the key from the ignition.
You should feel lucky that there were no damage. There are lots of post about leaky sunroofs causing severe electronic issues.