I have the "usual" problem with water in the boot and I've been chasing an entry point without success.
In doing so, I've become curious as to the purpose of each piece of the window trim, as I have gaps in mine.
For example, the piece pictured here is between the painted body and the metal decorative trim above the rear door. Does this actually serve a purpose other than aesthetic? Should I be looking to seal that up to control water?



Similarly, on the rear window, I note the outer rubber trim (highlighted red) is deformed... and at the very bottom of the screen the trim to the glass itself is peeling away. Again, are these purely decorative? Can I remove and replace? Any benefit?

 

I too have exactly the same gaps in the seals around the same places. I don't get any water ingress. I even have one seal that surrounds the back window that has a large gap in it and it also does not leak water. Do you have water in the rear footwells at all or just in the boot? If it's just in the boot then check the seal around the boot itself between lid and boot. Also check the seals in the rear light clusters as they can also perish and let water in.

 

Thank you, that's exactly the confirmation I needed. It would seem unlikely that these seals are more then decorative, but with some of the odd design decisions Jaguar make I wanted to be sure!

 

Those outer door seals reduce noise as well as stopping spray from dirtying the door shut face. This is a PITA as dirt there tends to get on woman's cloths and skirts when exiting the car ! My XE doesn't have an outer seal on the lower part of the door and the door shuts get really dirty. 0/10 to Jaguar !!