Gore-Tex Softshell

Softshells are not waterproof – they are water resistant. Your softshell might be GoreTex Windstopper, which is a wind-resistant fabric with Gore's laminate in between the outer DWR-treated fabric and the inner lining.

Actually,
Gore does have a material which is calles Gore-tex Soft Shell which is nothing else than a gore-tex membrane bonded to a fleece or fleecelike liner (and Gore has just released their 2nd generation). So just like the OP described. However, Gore also has a windstopper based soft shell type fabric to cover all markets.

what the question of the OP concerns, yes, if eventually your face fabric will wet out, greatly reducing the breathability of the fabric, making it possible that you het wet from the inside. But to be honest, that's not specific to gore-tex soft shell but practically every fabric.

Thanks guys … $475 and it's still not waterproof? … now I'm thinking a hardshell would be a better idea …

The "softshell" concept has really become bastardized…

Your garment may well be technically waterproof in that it will disallow water from fully penetrating the fabric. That does not mean it is functionally waterproof- you will likely feel like a soggy towel in prolonged rain.

My take on these jackets is given here:

http://www.rockclimbing.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=2203864;page=unread#unread

I'm "zxcv"
Though I am talking about Powershield, my thoughts are even more applicable to a full Gore-tex softshell.

Except that your GTX soft shell is already a hard shell (be it a warm one). Don't let the name fool you, it's a hard shell.

In general, softshells can not be made 'waterproof' because of the stretch in the material. Waterproof membranes can not stretch like the softshell material can.

There are some jackets on the market (like the Marmot La Grave being discussed here) that claim to be a waterproof softshell, but in reality they are hardly a softshell. What's going on here is that the 'softshell' is made less stretchy than a normal softshell and then they use the Gore-Tex soft shell membrane which has a bit more stretch. The result is a jkt half way between a traditional hardshell and a softshell. To the touch, it feels like a softshell but it's thinner and less stretchy.

Regarding the question of this jacket not seeming to be waterproof, it sounds like it's working fine to me. All waterproof jackets have the waterproof membrane UNDERNEATH the face fabric, so the face fabric can get wet but the jkt is still waterproof because the water hasn't penetrated the membrane. In all waterproof jkts, the face fabric is coated with something called a DWR (durable water repellent) which helps the water bead off, but this wears off over time and you can force the water to soak in by rubbing it in. With any jkt, it's important to keep the DWR in good condition by restoring it every year or two. Even if the jkt is still waterproof, it can not breathe properly if the face fabric is saturated. Plus having the face fabric saturated adds weight :)