Water Leak

mikeyv · August 5, 2012

Following a bit of misting up and a slightly musty smell when first getting in in the morning, I had a prod round and found the rear drivers side footwell to be soaking wet.

I checked all four sunroof drains by pouring water directly in to each corner and seeing healthy discharges under the car each time.

All door seals look to be in good order.

Removing the plastic trims and pulling the carpet back as far as possible seems to suggest it's got in at the bottom lip under the door.

This is the first time it's been noticeable since bought in January, and we've had plenty of rain since then.

My only theory at the moment is that the car filled up when we left it parked on the hill, facing up, with the nearside sloping down the camber, for a fortnight, allowing the rain to pool in the bottom rear corner of the rear door opening and leak over the sill trim.

Not much of a theory I'll grant you, so any other ideas gratefully considered.

Next step is to remove the back seat to allow the carpet to be further removed and thoroughly dried out, won't be a quick job though, that foam backing is very thick and absorbent.

I had a quick look before calling it a day, and found a couple of loop type brackets bolted to secure the backrest, are there any other fixings to release the back before accessing the squab fixings?

Thanks in advance.

Cynrobinson · May 19, 2013

Where r the sunroof drains? I can see the front ones but not the back ones.

Thankd

Clunkfish · May 19, 2013

Following a bit of misting up and a slightly musty smell when first getting in in the morning, I had a prod round and found the rear drivers side footwell to be soaking wet.

I checked all four sunroof drains by pouring water directly in to each corner and seeing healthy discharges under the car each time.

All door seals look to be in good order.

Removing the plastic trims and pulling the carpet back as far as possible seems to suggest it's got in at the bottom lip under the door.

This is the first time it's been noticeable since bought in January, and we've had plenty of rain since then.

My only theory at the moment is that the car filled up when we left it parked on the hill, facing up, with the nearside sloping down the camber, for a fortnight, allowing the rain to pool in the bottom rear corner of the rear door opening and leak over the sill trim.

Not much of a theory I'll grant you, so any other ideas gratefully considered.

Next step is to remove the back seat to allow the carpet to be further removed and thoroughly dried out, won't be a quick job though, that foam backing is very thick and absorbent.

I had a quick look before calling it a day, and found a couple of loop type brackets bolted to secure the backrest, are there any other fixings to release the back before accessing the squab fixings?

Thanks in advance.

One thing to check would be the drain holes in the bottom of the rear driver's side door. There are three of them (I think) just above the rubber strip right at the bottom of the door - if they get blocked with dirt or mud or whatever, rain can't drain away after running down the window and can end up inside the car. Giving them a good poke with a cotton bud should tell you if they're clear or not.