Boot water woes!

[Lukai]

Had to keep my car out the garage for the last few days and sods law it pretty much rained the whole time. When putting it back to sleep in the garage last night i noticed quite a bit of water in the boot where the battery tray is etc

Luckily the boot tidy caught most of it, but I still took the battery and tray out to get rid of what wetness had made its way down there.

My problem is I can't figure out how the water got in? As the rest of the boot was pretty much bone dry from what I could see, the only water was a little puddle in the well where the battery is.

Anyone know what the cause could be?

[march109]

Rubber seal around the rear lights is likely perished, is there water in the lights and is the metal below the lights (on the inside) damp? You can usually narrow it down to this just by feeling around the carpet below the lights.

[Lukai]

Rubber seal around the rear lights is likely perished, is there water in the lights and is the metal below the lights (on the inside) damp? You can usually narrow it down to this just by feeling around the carpet below the lights.

I changed the rear lights about 6 months ago and the seals seemed in pretty good nick. Had a feel around below the lights too and the metal / carpet was dry.

As there was a quite sizeable puddle in the boot tidy it lead me to beleive it must be dripping down or something??

[march109]

Have you opened the boot and checked the run off lip around the edge of the boot opening hasn't been blocked by crud so water off the windscreen is running into the boot?

I'd still wager its the rear light seals, unless of course you replaced them with new ones.

[skipunda]

aerial blanking plug, though an unlikely culprit is above this also. Get the hose out!

[doc323]

I have the same problem after i removed the boot seal to clean around the area, was fine before...think i need to glue the seal back on to stop it!

Best way i found of finding a water leak is to use small amount of poster paint and water mixed in a fairy liquid bottle. When its dry's you can trace the leak by following the paint trail!! Oh just pick a colour that will stand out against your car colour.

[Lukai]

Have you opened the boot and checked the run off lip around the edge of the boot opening hasn't been blocked by crud so water off the windscreen is running into the boot?

Yeh I checked the run off lip, no crud whatsoever.

I'd still wager its the rear light seals, unless of course you replaced them with new ones.

They weren't brand new but not far off.

I have the same problem after i removed the boot seal to clean around the area, was fine before...think i need to glue the seal back on to stop it!

Best way i found of finding a water leak is to use small amount of poster paint and water mixed in a fairy liquid bottle. When its dry's you can trace the leak by following the paint trail!! Oh just pick a colour that will stand out against your car colour.

Good idea using the poster paint, I might have to give that a go. Was hoping it might be a common thing that would be easy to find.

[fingerman]

I've just ordered 2 rocker cover gaskets and 2 rear light gaskets (pre-facelift lights) and was pretty impressed as it came to about £45 all in from my local dealer.

The gaskets are cheap so don't bother fagging around cleaning them or using sealant/gasket sealer etc.

Just change them then get your mate to lie in the boot, shut it and get the hose pipe on it - and don't forget to let him out

[e30topless]

Luke ,
check the rear sunroof drain pipes which empty into each side of the bootwells behind the carpet side covering. If they get dislodged or the outlets get clogged they overflow into the boot.

[fingerman]

Luke ,
check the rear sunroof drain pipes which empty into each side of the bootwells behind the carpet side covering. If they get dislodged or the outlets get clogged they overflow into the boot.

Also use clothes peg wire - sent the missus out to get some a couple of years back and does the job great clearing out the drains

[march109]

Luke ,
check the rear sunroof drain pipes which empty into each side of the bootwells behind the carpet side covering. If they get dislodged or the outlets get clogged they overflow into the boot.

Also use clothes peg wire - sent the missus out to get some a couple of years back and does the job great clearing out the drains

Forgot this one, the second most obvious problem.

[m_jermyn]

List of things for you to check.

#1 Bootlid rubber- make sure no rips.

#2 Rust under bootlid rubber- remove rubber and check for rust around the lip the rubber sits on.

#3 Tail light gaskets

#4 Arial gromet

#5 Sunroof drainage is not blocked- get a throttle cable or push bike brake cable and feed it in the drain to clear blockage

#6 Air vent leak- the vent in the bottom of the quarters that the sunroof drains out of can restrict water as it exits the vent as the water has to travel around a sharp bent. You need to check where the hose meets the vent and make sure its not coming out there and also around the edges of the vent themselves.

All the above you need to be in the boot with a mate hosing the car down. park it on a hill facing up and also facing down.

Hope this gets it sorted for you.

Mike

[Lukai]

Luke ,
check the rear sunroof drain pipes which empty into each side of the bootwells behind the carpet side covering. If they get dislodged or the outlets get clogged they overflow into the boot.

Cheers Steve, that sounds like it could be a likely culprit, I'll be sure to check that out this weekend.

[Lukai]

List of things for you to check.

#1 Bootlid rubber- make sure no rips.

#2 Rust under bootlid rubber- remove rubber and check for rust around the lip the rubber sits on.

#3 Tail light gaskets

#4 Arial gromet

#5 Sunroof drainage is not blocked- get a throttle cable or push bike brake cable and feed it in the drain to clear blockage

#6 Air vent leak- the vent in the bottom of the quarters that the sunroof drains out of can restrict water as it exits the vent as the water has to travel around a sharp bent. You need to check where the hose meets the vent and make sure its not coming out there and also around the edges of the vent themselves.

All the above you need to be in the boot with a mate hosing the car down. park it on a hill facing up and also facing down.

Hope this gets it sorted for you.

Mike

Brilliant cheers for the checklist Mike, I'm gonna go hunting for the leak at the weekend, this should prove really handy. I'll let you know how I get on.

[Lukai]

Been in the boot today and the problem seems to be when its facing nose downhill, the run off channel around the boot gets full up of water in the corners of the rear window. Once full this then starts dripping in the from the top of the boot, near the hinges.

Is this a common thing? Is there maybe a blockage somewhere, or simply because it needs a new boot seal (the current one looks nearly brand new to me, only been on the car about 5 years i think)?

[m_jermyn]

did you remove the seal and check for rust beneath it? the lip that the seal sits on can rust away and the result is there is nothing for the seal to seal against... Water will then get in beneath the seal.

[Lukai]

did you remove the seal and check for rust beneath it? the lip that the seal sits on can rust away and the result is there is nothing for the seal to seal against... Water will then get in beneath the seal.

I didn't have time to start proper digging around, so I'll have a look at some point this week.