Driver's Footwell and under seat soaked

[BillyHughesZ3UK]

Ripped my seats out ready for my new ones and found that under the driver's seat and foot well is soaked there are no leaks in the roof or seals. Only leak I know of is the rear window drips as I haven't sealed it properly (I'm having it redone) so can anyone shed any light on this for me

 

[Mr C]

I have the same problem

 

[Stevo7682]

Door seal possible I had a problem with the door seal on Lynne zed I probably discovered this earlier than I would have as I had the interior including carpet out to dry as I bought it with a damaged rear window
The water was crossing over the seal down th a pillar area and running into car at bottom.

 

[g8jka]

I've had a leak on mine for a while, windscreen is getting damp inside. I hoovered it out earlier for the first time since September and both footwells are soaked. I have a feeling it's the door seals on mine or it's getting in somewhere behind the doorcards and down into the footwell. And the boot is leaking

 

[Sean d]

If the carpets are wet there will be a few litres of water underneath as the sound deadening is about 4 inches thick, remove the side trims and lift the carpets to give it any chance to dry, as for the leak there are a number of places, one of which is the bulk head, remove the wipers and plastic scuttle, there is a drain that gets blocked and the water backfills into the foot wells.

 

[Joss]

Remove the wipers and plastic scuttle, there is a drain that gets blocked and the water backfills into the foot wells.

Has anyone got any photos of what we need to be looking for? my passenger side has enough water to be classed as a hot tub.

 

[Axelf]

Has anyone got any photos of what we need to be looking for? my passenger side has enough water to be classed as a hot tub.

You need to remove the wipers and all the small black clips you can see that holds the scuttle panel on (the big long plastic trim under the wipers) remove the rubber strip also along the panel )engine bay side) then lift the scuttle panel off... then watch this video it will show you where fills with water

View: https://youtu.be/mFgH128YA14

 

[Joss]

You need to remove the wipers

I don't have the puller tool

 

[Joss]

Ig

I don't have the puller tool

Ignore me, I watched the wrong tutorial - they are just bolted on - so that was easy, however, the gullies were clear and the water was draining properly. where next to look for water ingress? The seats are dry so I don't think it's the windows?

 

[BillyHughesZ3UK]

i have all but stripped my interior today what a painful experience that was. the drivers footwell is absolutely drenched. the carpet seems a ll but impossible to dry out as it has soooo much spongey bits fml

 

[Axelf]

Ig

Ignore me, I watched the wrong tutorial - they are just bolted on - so that was easy, however, the gullies were clear and the water was draining properly. where next to look for water ingress? The seats are dry so I don't think it's the windows?

Ok so it could be the door membrane might be either not there or damaged ... if it’s damaged or not there then when it rains the rain runs down the out side of the glass in to door and if the membrane is damaged it will then run out the bottom of the door card (panel) not the bottom of the door ... then run on to the top of the door seal and in to the car... best way to check you sit inside and look at the bottom of the door card when the door is closed and get some one to run a hose over the side window se if it’s coming in at the bottom

 

[Sean d]

Ok so it could be the door membrane might be either not there or damaged ... if it’s damaged or not there then when it rains the rain runs down the out side of the glass in to door and if the membrane is damaged it will then run out the bottom of the door card (panel) not the bottom of the door ... then run on to the top of the door seal and in to the car... best way to check you sit inside and look at the bottom of the door card when the door is closed and get some one to run a hose over the side window se if it’s coming in at the bottom

If you dont have mebranes I have 2 for sale

 

[BillyHughesZ3UK]

If the carpets are wet there will be a few litres of water underneath as the sound deadening is about 4 inches thick, remove the side trims and lift the carpets to give it any chance to dry, as for the leak there are a number of places, one of which is the bulk head, remove the wipers and plastic scuttle, there is a drain that gets blocked and the water backfills into the foot wells.

this is my issue. the sound deadening is stupid thick and like a soaked sponge i have lifted the carpets and started wet vaccing the carpet and floor may take me a while to dry but its given me an oppertunity to rebuild my interior installing some usb charge points sub ect

 

[mrscalex]

Once your carpet is waterlogged ideally it needs to come out and dry properly. As Sean says it's a giant sponge. The alternative is peeling it back and putting a dehumidifier in there (the sort that costs £100-£150 minimum). The air must be able get to both the carpet surface and foam.

It's not going to dry out effectively any other way. Including sucking it out with a wet vax. It will still be in the foam.

 

[demig]

Once your carpet is waterlogged ideally it needs to come out and dry properly. As Sean says it's a giant sponge. The alternative is peeling it back and putting a dehumidifier in there (the sort that costs £100-£150 minimum). The air must be able get to both the carpet surface and foam.

It's not going to dry out effectively any other way. Including sucking it out with a wet vax. It will still be in the foam.

And even with a decent dehumidifier it's going to take a while as I know! Add a low power fan heater (not too hot) and this helps a lot. I also found stuffing a lot of towels under the carpet and jumping on it helped a lot to squeeze out as much water from that foam before you start.

 

[mrscalex]

And even with a decent dehumidifier it's going to take a while as I know! Add a low power fan heater (not too hot) and this helps a lot. I also found stuffing a lot of towels under the carpet and jumping on it helped a lot to squeeze out as much water from that foam before you start.

You are right. Lots of squeezing out required which is why it's best pulled out completely as there are inaccessible places with it in-situ.

Dehumidifiers have limits of course. You wouldn't use them to drain a swimming pool! A modest price dehumidifier pumps out it's own heat btw. This is the one I use. It keeps my dry-lined double-garage bone dry and warm even in winter. It's about £140 and around 2ft high x 1ft wide x 0.5ft wide. I've used it to dry out a Z3. It took around a week with frequent intervention to squeeze the foam as the water ran down the peeled back carpets. It's a very, very capable piece of equipment. If you put a soaking wet towel next to it, it would dry it in 2-3 hours. The fact it needs a week for a Z3 carpet is a reflection of the sponge like nature of the backing. So it gives you some idea of how long it would take left to other means.

 

[Sean d]

I dried mine without taking them out but mine was in the shop for a year, I squeezed out as much water as I could with sides released, I then supported them with pieces of wood so they where raised and air could circulate don't know how long it took but they dried in the end, I've never looked for the leak as its kept in a garage