Sealing a sunroof on a race car

What is the recommended way to seal around the sunroof on an old race car?

Welding is not an option. 
I'm thinking maybe some gray RTV since that's recommended for oil pans. 
I suppose JB Weld is an option too but not sure how much flex there is and whether flex will eventually crack the JB Weld...

Thoughts?

Thanks
 

In reply to amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) :

If the sunroof is secured by some other means and you are just trying to make it waterproof, you can get a piece of vinyl (like that used for numbers or graphics) that is big enough to cover the sunroof and seal onto the roof of the car. That is what I do with mine.  
 

My car is black so it's easy to match the color. I have also used silver before and just embraced the contrast. Or do the whole roof in a different color. 

My personal choice is to remove the sunroof and all the mechanics. Then attach a piece of sheet of metal about 2" larger than the opening with rivets and some form of sealant. 

Edit: If you just want to seal it, I'd use something like NP1 or OSI Quad. It will stick and remain flexible for a long time. 

I had a leaky sunroof on an old E30 I had in college, I used the aluminized furnace tape to seal it up and it held for years.   That would work if you are only worried about weather. The aluminized tape doesnt suffer the UV degredation that kills all the other kinds of tape and you could probably paint over it for a racecar and it wouldnt be to bad of an eyesore. 

Toyman01 + Sized and said:

My personal choice is to remove the sunroof and all the mechanics. Then attach a piece of sheet of metal about 2" larger than the opening with rivets and some form of sealant  

This is exactly what I've done on a few race cars now, with good results.   One time was part of the skin of an old water heater, others have been fresh sheet aluminum. 

I've also always done the metal/rivet thing. Sheet metal cut to size and painted. Then prep for rivets every inch and a half or so around the edge. when it's time to finally rivet and clamp it all together, add a healthy dose of seam sealer. It's not the ugliest thing on earth but doesn't look nearly as pro as those fiberglass filler panels ($$). 

This allows you to remove the whole sunroof cassette and saves you some weight. 

*Note that the photos below is taken before trimming the excess seam sealer out from around the edge. 

Toyman01 + Sized and said:

My personal choice is to remove the sunroof and all the mechanics. Then attach a piece of sheet of metal about 2" larger than the opening with rivets and some form of sealant. 

Edit: If you just want to seal it, I'd use something like NP1 or OSI Quad. It will stick and remain flexible for a long time. 

Came here to say the same.

Waterproofing is the purpose. It's already gutted and securely fastened with some strips. 
The oversized sheet metal is cool but more work and expense given the above. 
Toyman's recommendation for the NP1 or OSI stuff seems like a good start for me. Didn't even think of the house products for some reason. 
Thanks. 

In reply to amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) :

If you go that route, cleanup for NP1 requires acetone. OSI Quad uses mineral spirits.

Windshield butyl tape is my preferred sealant for things that I don't want to leak.  I've shoved that stuff in multiple holes in multiple roofs and had leak free repairs that lasted decades.

In reply to Toyman01 + Sized and :

Thanks. I have acetone on the shelf already. :)

In reply to Ed Higginbotham :

Thought someone had uploaded a picture of my car.  Looks just like it, red car black cover. 

Thin sheet of aluminum, two part panel adhesive, rivets. It's painted now. Sunroof completely removed.

In reply to amg_rx7 (Forum Supporter) :

How about cutting oversize patch from a wrecker donor roof skin? You might even get a color match if you have good car karma .

I have used Norton Speedgrip #06420 Metal bonding /weld bonding adhesive for belly-pans, and semi-monocoque panels. Seems to work well.

Same stuff the OEMs use to bond body panels.

https://www.nortonabrasives.com/en-us/resources/expertise/norton-speedgrip-impact-toughened-structural-adhesive

In reply to fastoldfart :

Too much time and work involved in that approach. 
I bought two tubes of the stuff at Lowe's and was done within 40 minutes 

I've done both. Vastly prefer the riveted panel solution. Just be sure to put a dab of silicone sealant in the hole of the rivet. DAMHIK.

The other way was to get some foam 'rope' insulation stuff to fill the gap. Then apply a good sealant-in-a-tube into the gap. The foam acts as a backer so the sealant doesn't just sink into the car interior. I used some sort of comparable product to that used to seal windshields.

I've gone the donor car route and stuck it down with 3M panel bond. Much success.

We used seam sealer on our old EP3 Hond Civic Si race car. 

I didn't seal up my t-tops, but I also don't have side windows.  I just sprayed water into the tub of the car and drilled holes wherever I saw a puddle. 

That may not be for everyone.

In reply to Gimp (Forum Supporter) :

LOL i suppose it works in a race car :)

Lots of good approaches here overall.  Maybe at some point I'll go back and replace the sunroof with a piece of rivited aluminum but it's good enough for now.

Toyman01 + Sized and said:

My personal choice is to remove the sunroof and all the mechanics. Then attach a piece of sheet of metal about 2" larger than the opening with rivets and some form of sealant. 

Edit: If you just want to seal it, I'd use something like NP1 or OSI Quad. It will stick and remain flexible for a long time. 

Stealing this for my work hooptie.  The sunroof motor is already froze up with rust so i'll just unplug it.  It's still a street rat so don't care about removing the sunroof cassette, just don't want to get rained on.