Noah's Ark Gti - More Rain Problems

[PeterGriffin 20 1 Cars]

Hi folks,

 

I've seen plenty of threads on water related problems recently, but feel my queries are far stupider and deserve their own thread. Where I live (and for other's I think!) it's been biblical levels of rain recently - if it were any more horizontal it would be raining back up the way...!

 

Anywho, after congratulating myself on a new ICE install I found the pass. footwell was swimming in water. Driver footwell dry. Traced back to find pass. rear footwell also swimming, and then up to the 'bowl' under the rear seats - this was as highest pool of water I could find. Best bet seems to be the rear quarter window seals (quick check in the dark and they don't even seem to touch the glass...!). But it would be negligent to not check all the drain places - and this is where it gets stupid -

 

I've read that the sill drains should be near jacking point - but what about the sunroof drain...? Does water from sill mix with the footwell? Door and boot drains I think I'll locate easy enough.

 

Need to get the little domestic car issues sorted out so the real work can begin...!

 

Thanks folks!

 

P

[EZ Tutty 7 1 Cars]

The front sunroof drain hoses run down the A Pillars and dump behind the wings, the front passenger foot well could well be a split drain hose, only way to check is to pull the trim off the A pillar, and remove the kick panel trim, drop the roof lining at the front and pull the hoses back.

 

However I've had a problem with my Drivers front footwell filling with water, and it turns out it was the top of the Windscreen Rubber, the water was getting behind the rubber at the top, between the bodywork and the rubber, then working it's way around the side and coming in through the bottom corner, running down the kick panel and soaking the carpet.

[PeterGriffin 20 1 Cars]

Thanks mate, I'll try that out. Might be two leaks with the water under the rear seats also... I'll get in there tomorrow if weather ok...

 

thanks bud

[PeterGriffin 20 1 Cars]

Check seals today and nothing seems hugely out of kilter - there's a small bulge in the driver side rear quarter seal but looks to do a job. On opening tailgate this afternoon though, there was a small puddle on the inside ledge of the boot, just on other side of seal... I don't suppose that narrows it down to the boot seal by chance...? So many places to look...!

 

There are squillions of threads on leaky pugs but no-one ever updates them to say what the final fix was....

 

Thanks folks

[Simes 248 2 Cars]

Try harder !!

Rear seals leaking into the bowl and also into rear seat foot wells.

Water can run in down boot seal, on the inside of the outer skin and also in.

Wins screen can leak through rubber.

Your matrix may be leaking which makes the front footwell wet and will destroy your radio.

aerial bases can leak and water collects in interior light, runs down.

Washers on sunroof handle screws perish and leak.

There are many places that these leak.

Clear all the drainage points on the chassis and inside front and rear footwells.

Remove the rear passengers trim to see how much water is collecting in there.

I was lucky with mine, I replaced the rear rubbers and it's been dry ever since.

 

try with a hosepipe and work through them!

[PeterGriffin 20 1 Cars]

Thanks mate - when you say rear seals did you change rear quarter and tail gate seals?

 

To be honest I've had so much water it can't be the matrix, and what with it collecting up high in rear seats... Will try tomorrow but limited to pulling car apart as is my only buggy at the moment...

 

Thanks again!

[Simes 248 2 Cars]

Rear passenger window rubbers.

[commievid 8]

If it's coming in onto the ledge of the boot, then the tailgate is leaking somewhere, the drain holes for it end up lying on the wrong side of the tailgate seal, so it can end up trickling into the boot. Why they did that is anyone's guess. Usual suspects are the rubber trim around the rear window glass, get a windscreen person to take it out and reapply, that should help. Cost me £50 to do it, but a lot more to fix the rust that resulted, frustratingly.

 

Then there's the tailgate lock, remove that and reapply with butyl tape or silicone, and also possibly the washer jet. There's also a little hole near the lock too, that could possibly be a cause.

 

If it's still happening after those, then it could be the rubber bits that wrap the wiring at the top of the tailgate, then possibly the rubber seal around the tailgate.

 

For the water collecting in the rear seat bit, I would recommend removing the side trim that has the ashtrays and stuff, as that will definitely help you see when water is coming in from the rear windows. It'll also let you know if you've fixed it too.

 

In my case, the water was trickling through the rears, and the trim would actually cause it to trickle onto the seats. If they're not there, it would trickle to the bottom and drain away. From there it will sometimes travel along to the rear footwells.

 

For the front footwells, the cause in my case was the doors. Water was trickling in through the shrunken outer weatherstrip, and the door cards were not sealing it effectively. Even now, some water will trickle through the holes where the door cards clip to, but not enough to cause puddles.

 

My only problem left is a seam in the boot, which always lets water seep through whenever water of any sort is near. Hopefully if that's sorted I might be bold enough to say the car is leak free. I don't hold my breathe though.

 

Finding weatherstrips/seals is becoming an increasingly difficult task these days, so you will need to be bodging some of the areas.

[PeterGriffin 20 1 Cars]

Top info, that's my boxing day sorted - thanks for taking the time buddy..!