water in glovebox and footwell

[virdi325i]

Hey all,

Please help, Just notice in the past week, my glovebox full of water and this morning also notice water in passenger footwell under mat. (No water on the sides of the footwell or on driver’s side ...(please note this is a M3)) I have checked the elephant trunk which is fine, and have had a quick look around the sunroof, which also looks fine.
any ideas???

[Chimmychanga]

Not sure if it would apply on m3 but a rusty bulkhead would do it, have you checked around behind the glove box for any rust or damp?

[threelander]

could it be the heater matrix or the valve on it

[Grrrmachine]

if it's IN the glovebox, it must be coming from above, which would rule out the heater matrix.

It could be the bulkhead, and you'll need to take off the heater blower cover inside the engine bay to assess that. But it may also be rust around the windscreen - there's a drainage hole which can get blocked, allowing the scuttle to rust from the inside.

Best thing to do is have an assistant trickle water slowly into the plastic grille on the scuttle, while you keep your head in the footwell to see if it drips in. If it does, there's rust

[Alex]

Bulkhead rot i would go for, behind fuse box

[virdi325i]

HI there,
OK checked glovebox inside, water is coming from the top .... however no signs of rust or damp. I have just off loaded 3 litres of water in the plastic grille on the the scuttle. No water has come inside the car

[Alex]

can come through the inner wheel arch too, remove the sound deadening behind the accessory feed socket.

[Grrrmachine]

Alex, it's an M3. The Glovebox is on the other side.

[Grrrmachine]

Does it have a sunroof? If so, open it and pour water slowly down the front drain hole on that side of the car.

[virdi325i]

I have just felt water, from behind the sound deadening inside directly above the glovebox

[virdi325i]

I have also just poured water into the sunroof drain holes..... and they are fine.

[daimlerman]

My money is on the 'battery tray' base rotting out.

[death]

sounds like heater matrix

[virdi325i]

I will have another look tomorrow around the battery tray, I thought it can't be the heater matrix as it's coming from above. (due to rain). will check tomorrow.

thanks

[virdi325i]

Hi,

Just got home and looked in the glovebox, and again it's full of water. It's defo got be the rain ..... any ideas from where the water could be coming from.?

I have checked the battery tray and its rot free.

[Grrrmachine]

At this stage, you need to remove the glovebox to see clearly where the problem lies.

The glovebox is held to the bulkhead by three bolts, which screw through the soundproofing. You're going to need to get upside down in the footwell to see them and remove them. It would also help to remove the speaker panel by peeling back the door rubber seal, and undoing the single screw into the speaker.

Once you've dismantled as much as you can, you'll have to repeat the earlier tests regarding water in the scuttle grille and sunroof drains. The water is definitely getting in somehow, but the dashboard and soundproofing are able to channel the water sideways, so the entry point may not be as clear or direct as you would think.

[virdi325i]

ok thanks Grrrmachine, I willl try do this tomorrow or in the next couple of days when the weather settles (been raining all day)

will get back to you folks soon

thanks

[Simon]

Behind where the bonnet locator is situated on the inner wing, pull up the sound deadening here and if your car has A/C check the rubber bung, if not check the metal where the pipes would go through the car, it's precut and can be pushed through to fit the pipes, these can come loose, or rust around the edges.

[GDBN]

Sounds like around the battery tray to me.
I have a LHD and had to have a new tray welded in ....
The mounting points for the glove box had rusted away and the elephants trunk looked fairly OK ....

G

[mercdriver]

On a similar topic I welded every possible leaking part of my bulkhead (So i thought) but it still leaked in. Turns out it was the bonnet release cable right in the corner of the bulkhead. Took me to break the car to find it! You really need the shell totally bare, no sound deadening, no trims. get in the car and get someone to pour water over the whole area with a hose as you wait and see. directly above the glovebox to fill it with water doesn't sound very common to me. could even be a hole in the scuttle underneath the wiper mechanisms? Either way, the only true way to test it is remove everything, and hose the car down as a pair. 1 pouring, one inspecting

[Grrrmachine]

Bonnet release cable is on the other side of the car.