GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk1 => Topic started by: GemGTI on 29 June 2005, 21:37
-
Hi, I've noticed that the off side rear foot well carpet has been getting totally drenched. Its happened twice so far when the cars just been standing in rain. I've been told that it could be drainage holes being blocked or water leaking in and moving down the inside of the body pannels behind the interior.
However i cannot see where the waters coming in and i was just hoping someone else has had some experience with this and knows what to do???
cheers Joe
-
I found that the front door (2dr) membrane and outer door seal was the culprit on mine. When I removed the membrane to do the dynamat i noticed the rear floor was drenched after a spot of rain, so as soon as I could I replaced the seal and the membrane in a one'r. I also removed the door handle and whacked a load of silicone sealer behind it, as it was coming in through there in torrential rain.
The door seal was £15 from VW, abd the membrane was a sheet of plastic I found in work, fixed to the door with tank tape. One tell-tale sign is that the bottom edge of your door panel (right hand side of the o/s panel) is slightly damp or showing signs of damp.
Hope this helps?
-
...and if what Lewy says isn't the culprit then you could also check the well in front of the scuttle panel under the bonnet, there should be two drainage holes on the wing side and these can get blocked up with leaves and gunk and when the well gets full with water it spills into the footwells. :undecided:
-
I had the same problem twice and I never did figure out where the water came from. I'd clear your drain holes and check your door seals as these guys say. Oh, and keep the windows wound up to!
-
...and if what Lewy says isn't the culprit then you could also check the well in front of the scuttle panel under the bonnet, there should be two drainage holes on the wing side and these can get blocked up with leaves and gunk and when the well gets full with water it spills into the footwells. :undecided:
Blimey Gib it'd have to be a bloody big leak from the front n/s to reach the o/s rear, I'm thinking tsunami! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Hi, I've noticed that the off side rear foot well carpet has been getting totally drenched.
cheers Joe
-
^ lol - oops, I guess I didn't read the original post properly, I missed the "rear" bit ! :laugh: :laugh:
Oh well, may as well check the drainage holes so that it doesn't occur in the front, prevention better than cure and all that ! :laugh: :laugh:
-
:cry:
I've just bailed out just over half a pint of water from my rear footwells - both sides.
I can't for the life of me figure out where it's coming from - where are these drainage holes I should check?
Joe99 - did you ever find the source of the leak btw?
Please, anyone, help!!
Phil
-
Bust Heater matrix? Is it wet up fron too mate?
-
:cry:
I can't for the life of me figure out where it's coming from - where are these drainage holes I should check?
Phil, I misread the original post and the problem I was mentioning was for the front footwells not the rear ones.  :rolleyes: If it was the front footwells then the drainage holes are in the scuttle panel under the bonnet and there's one at each wing side, have a look and you'll find them, they drain the water down the side of the inner wings but they get clogged up with gunk and leaves.
I've no idea where the water is coming from for it to go into the rear footwells apart from checking seals and windows.  :undecided:
-
Gibby, the drainage holes up front are clear - these are the first things I checked! Should I be looking for drainage holes in the doors or on the sills?
It's the wet in the rear (oo-er) that's got me stumped. The carpet is dry at the sides and where it goes up under the rear seat, it's only the floorplan that is literally soaked to saturation.
It's pouring again right now and I know for a fact that when I go out to the car tomorrow morning it's going to be drenched again after I dried it off today. It's disheartening. :cry:
However, my new clear lens side indicators look sweet... :undecided:
-
I'm sure someone on here has had this problem before but I can't remember what the problem was in the end. What about, when it's not raining, going to a jet wash place with a someone and sit in the car while they blast the side of the car, windows etc with a pressure jet and that might show where it's coming in. :undecided:
-
I think I've found the source of the problem....
Check the window rubbers and dranage holes on the doors and sills!
My rubbers have hardened and contracted due to age and no longer press against the window - there is about a 1-2mm gap between the glass and the rubber. Water is running down the inside of the door and rear wing and thanks to blocked drainage holes it's not running away properly. It builds up until it reaches such a level that it spills over into the floorpan.
This is why the rear footwell is soaked but the carpet above this is dry. Because the water is rising rather than dripping down, the carpet gets damp from the bottom up which would explain why the carpet under the seat and at the sides by the seatbelt mountings and door sill remain dry.
Well, thats my theory and I'm sticking to it.
I'm putting the car up on a ramp tomorrow night to look for the offending blocked holes. In the meantime I've got my wellies and industrial pack of J-Cloths and I'm ready to go and dry the car out for the third night on the trot. :cry:
-
sounds like youve sussed it but just check the sunroof drain hoses are doing there stuff!! They should come out just before the rear wheel!
-
i have water coming in the passenger footwell it comes in where the fuse box is cause it drops on my mat so easy to see where from checked scuttle seems ok not sure what is happening
-
Got the answer to the problem of wet rear footwells! :smiley:
This is for my Cab although the same may apply to tintops...
The problem isn't with the door & window seals as i thought, although I still couldn't figure out how the front of the car was dry while the back was soaked. I checked the drainage holes on the scuttle and cleared these out as this is a well known source of leaks and would explain your wet passenger front footwell DJ G.
However, how was the water getting from the blocked scuttle into the rear footwells?
If you peel back the carpet you'll see the answer. VW thoughtfully built some channels into the floorpan which run from the bulkhead, UNDER the crossmember under the front seats and finish in the rear footwells. Water comes down the inside of the front bulkhead, gathers in these channels and then runs to the back of the car, gathering in the rear footwell where it then soaks into the carpet.
Lift up your carpet and mop up any water you see - be warned, it may stink! Just make sure you keep the scuttle drainage holes and infact the whole scuttle area totally clear of leafs and general crap and if you can, park the car so the front is lower than the back.
Hope this helps.
-
hi all. havent yet found the leak as I have been away so I just left a car cover over her to keep her dry. Thanks for all your effort phil303, I will try your last idea asap. One question though, as I am not too clued up on car bits and bats when you put, "Water comes down the inside of the front bulkhead" wheres this?
Also, I want to check the sunroof drain hoses, so where are these and what do they look like?
Cheers for everyones help :smiley:
-
As far as I'm aware, I've always thought the bulkhead was the bit of body work that runs across the front of the car just behind the pedals, effectively the bit of bodywork dividing engine bay from the cabin.
I would imagine the water is overflowing from the scuttle area, leaking into the cabin and then running down the bulkhead behind the carpeting and then along those channels in the floorpan.
Various people in the forum have said that water can get in from the scuttle area (just below the windscreen, houses the wiper motor etc) so it's obviously a weak point for water to find a way in.
As for the sunroof drain holes, I can't help you there I'm afraid as I own a Cabrio, so no sunroof. :wink:
Hope this is of some help.
-
^ Yup, what Phil said. :smiley:
-
The sunroof drain hoses come out just in front of the rear wheels, best bet is jack the car up and look just in front of the rear wheel. There should be one on both sides. I had alot of trouble with this, the car had been resprayed at some point and the hose hadn't been put back in properly. It may not be this that's giving u hassle but its worth checking!