[diesel4]

I have had a MAJOR leak in my car now for about 7 months. After prolonged or heavy rain my passenger foot well will have a water level OVER the carpet. If it rains for a long time it will overflow into the back of the car.

The water comes in the passenger door at the bottom near the hinges. I established this after several hours with a hosepipe.

I have done the following to try and rectify the problem.

I have had a new windscreen fitted (needed it anyway)

I have replaced the door seal (which seemed to have stopped it for a about a month)

I have had all the pollen filter assembly replaced and tested.

Please has anyone got any ideas because i cannot put up with the smell or damp any more!!!

 

[W36 EJO]

I have had this problem on mine, only once though. It was when i had parked with the passenger side wheeld up on a high curbo, so the car was at an angle. It rained hard and the passenger side carpet was soaked. So is your car parked on the flat? Mines never done it since.

The only thing which I could suggest is get all the rubbers replaced if your sure that's where it's coming from. There are some other posts about this same problem though on the board, but without a search facility at the moment it becomes harder to find them!

 

[diesel4]

It only leaks when parked on a slight downward slope, ie front pointing down.  Yes it has to locate threads...

 

[W36 EJO]

Which means that the water is running down and through a certain area into the passenger side. The best thing I would suggest it to put tissue all the way along the passenger side under the door sill, then when on the slope, open the door, run some water down the door sill (outside painted bit) and see if the water comes in then. If not, hose it very quickly over with the door shut (so you dont get too much water coming through) and see where the tissue is soaking the water up. Blue tissue would be ideal. Then you have at least figured where its coming from and you can look for how it's coming through and do something about it.

 

[diesel4]

I know where the water is coming in. It is coming in over the door seal on the bottom, see pic

What i would like to know is how. It is driving me MAD!!![8o|]

 

[Easy-Runner]

It seems to be the usual problem of the window regulator plate leaking at the bottom. There's a lot of posts on this issue, the cure is a new regulator at approx ?65 or to loosen it off and apply sealer to the bottom edge then re-tighten.

Hope this helps.

 

[diesel4]

So to check, if i take my door card off, would the inside be wet?

 

[Easy-Runner]

Only the very bottom of the door card may be wet. The problem is that the water is leaking out from between the window regulator mounting plate (the grey metal cover behind the door card) and the actual door itself. There's a seal that runs all the way around this mounting plate, but is perishes and breaks up and allows water that would normally be inside the door to leak out and pool on top of the door seal as your picture shows.

 

[diesel4]

Yes there is a big silver plate to which all is attached. It is bolted on all around the edge. It would appear that the water is running down off the window glass in side the door then leaking though under the speaker.

Is it normally for loads of water to be in the door like that, for instance the back of my speaker had all water marks and spots of mold on it?

To rectify the leak inside the car can i just use silicone sealant rather than replace the metal?

 

[Easy-Runner]

Water inside the door is OK as it's designed to be like that. Just make sure that the drain holes in the bottom of the door are clear so that any excess water can drain away.

What you need to do is loosen the plate and clean up the area where it is leaking. Then apply silicone sealer to the gap between the plate and the door to prevent the water from entering. Tighten up the plate and this should solve your problem.

It's worth checking the drivers door as well as this is likely to be in a similar condition.

 

[diesel4]

Thanks so much, i will be sealing this tomorrow and i will do the drivers door as well, good point!  i think i will put some plastic or something on the back of the speaker as i don't like the idea of my ?200 components going mouldy......

 

[diesel4]

Well passenger side all sealed and good, no leaks. But did drivers side and although the door was dry sealed anyway. Then to my horror i found the drivers side under the carpet to be just as wet as the passenger side except i don't know where it was coming form! ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Could it have come though from the passenger side? The center console looks welded to the floor with no gaps that i can see but perhaps someone knows something i don't?

 

[ADH]

It's possible that the wet stuff has moved along the spongey stuff which forms part of your sound deadening beneath the carpet.
Try a dehumidifier to pull out all the excess damp in the car. You'd benefit by removing anything that might start producing that 'orrible damp stagnant smell anyhow.

 

[diesel4]

I have cut out all the sound deadening and it is in my conservatory drying. My main concern was how did the drivers side get we. Although i agree it must have come from the other side, How?

The center console is sealed, so there is no way the water could have crossed over??

 

[vrooooom]

I've had the same leak for months now too, just got round to striping the passenger door down and gone mental with the silicone sealant today.

I've had the same leak in the same place on the drivers door, but that seems to be more intermittent than the passenger side, must be how the cars parked at home (nose down on a slight tilt).

I've been lucky and the waters stayed ontop of my carpet matts, but then i've got some deep plastic matts on top as well which will hold about half an inch of water safely, which is how i spotted the leak in the first place!!! I had a pond!! with ducks!![]

If you've got damp in the drivers side, it'll be the drivers door. I can't see water traveling accross from either side (unless it's been very deep!!!) as the exhaust tunnel runns down the middle of the car and thats a high barrier for water to cross!

[][]

 

[diesel4]

I know 5 other people with leaks in there MK4's, i must be honest i am starting to get fed up with it now, the last year i have had nothing but trouble! My MK2 is 18 years old and i have not had a moments grief from it, and that engine has done 200,000 miles.

I have sealed all 4 doors, and will carry extensive and through hose testing tomorrow.

 

[j40hnw]

A friend of mine has a Dagenham Dustbin (Ford Mondeo ST220) that does this when it rains they have changed rubbers etc and it still pishes in.
Sorry cant be of much help.

 

[meelas]

when replacing both window regulators and door lock switch(both common problems) i too found that i had leaks at the bottom of both the door cards  ,especially when parked on a slope.best thing is to seal bottom of door plate as said above.

 

[diesel4]

Well it turns out my car was leaking in the back as well as the front and leaking in more than one place. [:'(]

Yes it was leaking from the shot seals on the bottom of the window regulators (the silver metal) but i it was also leaking though my autoleads speaker adapters. It would seem they don't have a water tight seal like the OEM ones.

Something to think about for anyone that has them, a lot of black silicone is the key!

I have done all four doors and i have hose tested the car for hours with NO LEAKS!!!

YEA!!![]