Roof/Cowl Drains
03-12-2018, 11:16 AM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
Roof/Cowl Drains
I dropped the pig off at the indy today to let them figure it out but I have been getting water in the driver's side footwell. I have searched far and wide both on this forum, youtube, and others but have been unable to solve it.
Fortunately, I have been able to dry the area out completely and the wiring harness was unaffected so no worries there. Here is the timeline of what has occurred:
-Girlfriend remarks that it smells musty in car, I of course didn't realize it since I drive it every day. After she mentioned it I notice that it does, indeed smell like there is moisture in the car and notice that the driver's side footwell is completely soaked.
-I pull the rug up a bit and see that there is about 1/2" of water under the rug-it is seriously soaked in there. Luckily it has not spread far and I put a household dehumidifier in the cabin, plus a fan, and sop up the water so it dried out completely after only a couple days. I kept putting the dehumidifier in the car overnight to be sure.
-I checked the sunroof drains with a visual check (nothing obvious blocking them) and also poured water into all 4 of them to ensure proper operation. They all functioned fine.
-I then checked the sill drains. The plugs had already been removed and there was no water in there.
-After that I checked the drains ahead of the firewall-bingo (or so I thought). Standing water in there as well as sludge from crap building up. I partially removed the wheel well liner and removed the plug on the drivers side and tons of water came out as well as all the crap that had built up. I did not put the plug back in as it seemed unnecessary.
-Finally, I checked the rest of the cabin for water intrusion and found absolutely nothing so I assumed that I had the issue licked. I had my celebratory beer, swept out my garage (the cowl drain made a big mess) and felt great about myself for conquering the almighty Pig.
Fast forward a week or so to the crazy rain we had last week. I happened to peek under the floor mat and it was soaking wet again. I rechecked the front drain and it was bone dry. The indy is going to check the drains themselves but I'm at my wits end. Where else could the water be coming from? The only thing I have not done is check the A/C drain but from what I gather that affects the passenger side which has been bone dry.
Any input?
Fortunately, I have been able to dry the area out completely and the wiring harness was unaffected so no worries there. Here is the timeline of what has occurred:
-Girlfriend remarks that it smells musty in car, I of course didn't realize it since I drive it every day. After she mentioned it I notice that it does, indeed smell like there is moisture in the car and notice that the driver's side footwell is completely soaked.
-I pull the rug up a bit and see that there is about 1/2" of water under the rug-it is seriously soaked in there. Luckily it has not spread far and I put a household dehumidifier in the cabin, plus a fan, and sop up the water so it dried out completely after only a couple days. I kept putting the dehumidifier in the car overnight to be sure.
-I checked the sunroof drains with a visual check (nothing obvious blocking them) and also poured water into all 4 of them to ensure proper operation. They all functioned fine.
-I then checked the sill drains. The plugs had already been removed and there was no water in there.
-After that I checked the drains ahead of the firewall-bingo (or so I thought). Standing water in there as well as sludge from crap building up. I partially removed the wheel well liner and removed the plug on the drivers side and tons of water came out as well as all the crap that had built up. I did not put the plug back in as it seemed unnecessary.
-Finally, I checked the rest of the cabin for water intrusion and found absolutely nothing so I assumed that I had the issue licked. I had my celebratory beer, swept out my garage (the cowl drain made a big mess) and felt great about myself for conquering the almighty Pig.
Fast forward a week or so to the crazy rain we had last week. I happened to peek under the floor mat and it was soaking wet again. I rechecked the front drain and it was bone dry. The indy is going to check the drains themselves but I'm at my wits end. Where else could the water be coming from? The only thing I have not done is check the A/C drain but from what I gather that affects the passenger side which has been bone dry.
Any input?
03-12-2018, 12:15 PM
#2
Banned
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Location: Spring Lake, NJ, US of A
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Sure - but it might be helpful if you gave us info on year of your pig..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
03-12-2018, 01:13 PM
#3
The V8 Porschephile
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
This will happen to me on the rare occasion when we have rain during above-freezing temps; followed by a mixture of an overnight freeze and wet snow.
I'm led to believe that the sunroof drains are freezing causing the wet snow to melt around the perimeter of the sunroof and then pour down the A-pillars. Short of using dye to prove my point, I'm still looking...
I'm led to believe that the sunroof drains are freezing causing the wet snow to melt around the perimeter of the sunroof and then pour down the A-pillars. Short of using dye to prove my point, I'm still looking...
03-12-2018, 03:43 PM
#4
Instructor
Thread Starter
Sure - but it might be helpful if you gave us info on year of your pig..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
03-12-2018, 04:18 PM
#5
Instructor
Thread Starter
This will happen to me on the rare occasion when we have rain during above-freezing temps; followed by a mixture of an overnight freeze and wet snow.
I'm led to believe that the sunroof drains are freezing causing the wet snow to melt around the perimeter of the sunroof and then pour down the A-pillars. Short of using dye to prove my point, I'm still looking...
I'm led to believe that the sunroof drains are freezing causing the wet snow to melt around the perimeter of the sunroof and then pour down the A-pillars. Short of using dye to prove my point, I'm still looking...
According to the indy, the passenger-side cowl drain was heavily clogged so maybe, somehow, it made its way over to the driver's side. I was planning on clearing that one soon but since I wasn't seeing moisture on that side I didn't think it was necessary to address now. The mechanic also checked and cleared all of the other drains in case there was some kind of build-up.
This vehicle is surely testing my patience. I enjoy working on it but do not enjoy playing whack-a-mole with some of the issues.
04-16-2018, 10:47 AM
#6
Instructor
Thread Starter
Sure - but it might be helpful if you gave us info on year of your pig..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
On my '06 CS - I went through all the known drains looking for a leak that only flooded the passenger's footwell in heavy rains or automated car washes. Finally found it. Somewhere here I have a posting with photos.. but a brief description of what I found.
Under the hood - there are foam/rubber barriers around the area of the hood hinge - that direct water off the windshield down to the outside of the engine compartment. They also direct any debris. The path of the water goes by the seam between the firewall and the steel fender liner. Right above that seam in the firewall I found a hole about 1.25" diameter - and behind it I could see one of the main wiring bundles that leads to the fuse box on the passengers side end of the dash. In the "V" of the seam - debris had built up, and I could see a high-water line that was even with the hole in the firewall. It seemed rather obvious to me that water would flow down to that location, directed by the foam/rubber barrier - and build up in the V until it reached the level of the hole - and from there - go directly into the passenger compartment following the wiring down to the fuse box.
Fix was to find a plastic body plug that filled the hole (surprisingly I had one that was an exact fit - leftover from a BMW project) - then clear the debris out of the way in the "V".
No more leaks. That was the end to a 2 year saga of chasing the leak.. and doing all the other drains/plugs/etc that everyone else found. I saw no way the plug could have fallen out, and no reason for it to have been removed - so I'm guessing it was missing from the get-go.. overlooked at the factory.
You'll need a bright maglite to see it - and you'll have to move the rubber barrier around the hood hinge out of the way a bit. See if yours is missing..
Do you need to remove the plastic cover to get at this area or is this something I can access from inside the cabin or by removing the smaller service panel? The big plastic panel is a bit of an annoyance since I would have to remove the wipers and such to get it off. I'll do it if its necessary but if I don't need to I'd rather not. I shined a light in there and didn't see anything missing.
04-16-2018, 02:52 PM
#7
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Still chasing this down...
Do you need to remove the plastic cover to get at this area or is this something I can access from inside the cabin or by removing the smaller service panel? The big plastic panel is a bit of an annoyance since I would have to remove the wipers and such to get it off. I'll do it if its necessary but if I don't need to I'd rather not. I shined a light in there and didn't see anything missing.
Do you need to remove the plastic cover to get at this area or is this something I can access from inside the cabin or by removing the smaller service panel? The big plastic panel is a bit of an annoyance since I would have to remove the wipers and such to get it off. I'll do it if its necessary but if I don't need to I'd rather not. I shined a light in there and didn't see anything missing.