Wet carpet (now with pics )

[JF008]

I took the driver seat out today and noticed that the foam under the carpet was soaked, front and rear.

After much painful cleanup I wonder how so much water got into the car.

The car is parked in a slight angle sideways, lower on the passenger side (which is dry!)?? Can't find anything with the search engine...

As anyone solve similar problem?

[Duke137]

Have you had the carpet out completley?

Chances are it's rot of some kind, if you check behind the throttle pedal mount for crusty metal the water gets in and it just keeps accumulating in the sponge lining of the carpet.

Other areas to check are suroof drains and the battery tray/bulkhead/pedal box.

Make sure you post plenty of pics of your findings!

[Topblag]

water ingress can come from mirror seals, holes in the bulkhead, a blocked elephant trunk on the engine side of the bulkhead, damaged door seals, blocked sunroof drains, or worst of all, holes in the floor, bulkhead, rear arches and corners of the floor at the front.

Suggest you remove the carpet, see where the water builds up and use either talcum powder to find the source or use a smoke bomb to see where the holes are.

[Grrrmachine]

Have a read:

http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/inde ... t_Footwell

[JF008]

Thanks for the inputs, I have not removed the whole carpet, I lifted the carpet on the wet driver side, the rear is holding up with a bucket and I stuffed a couple roll of kitchen towels at the far front : ) its ghetto but all I had time to do. Its all been sponge dried as much as possible..

I will investigate the drains, but the engine is coming out in the next few days so it will surely be a good time for findings. I will post pics up if anything relevant is found

[JF008]

where is the elephant trunk?

[suedenim]

To dry the carpet properly I reckon you'll need to remove the whole carpet, otherwise the water will just sit in the foam and not necessarily evaporate into the cabin, others may confirm this. With the carpet removed you can investigate holes in the floor, if that's ok, hose the car down and look to see where the water is coming in.

[Duke137]

Definately need to remove the carpet to dry it properly, it WILL NOT dry by "dabbing" it up

[Brianmoooore]

Carpet needs to come out, both to dry it and to find ALL of the rust holes that it's coming in, and to be hung vertically from one corner. Most of the water will quickly collect in the lowest corner, where it can be squeezed out.
Since it's wet already, I suggest you give it a good going over with shampoo and a pressure washer, before attempting to dry it.

[JF008]

ok cheers

[verde]

A wet carpet is like the induction into E30s. Fucking sucks, could be door seal, sunroof drains, bulkhead leak, fucked heater pipe.....

[JF008]

So I removed the carpet and here are the findings




rust marks suggest this is a leaky area






random rusty mark under the seat






Does not seem that bad to my untrained eye I washed the car and been for a long ride today and the only water that got in is where the rear door hinges are, some light corrosion in there... The door seal needs replacing i guess

[suedenim]

I hope mine looks that good when I take my carpet out in a few weeks!
I guess it wasn't the reason but still worth knowing that there are potential issues which can be addressed. Good work!

[JF008]

thanks, took me about two and a half hours to take everything out and tidy up, first time doing it ... Its was about time that carpet had a wash too.

[JF008]

Just found out the water end up leaking under the driver side speaker when I pour water in the ''gutter'' on the same side! nearly there I guess

[JF008]

I tought I'd update this the water was leaking in form the sub-woofer power feed cable penetration point. As seen on last picture ( red cable ). I don't think that is the proper way to run such cable, someone took the easiest path for sure! A generous amount of Wurth automotive sealant has been used.

The end

[jmc330i]

Please say you took the 15mins to route that cable properly

[miniblob]

water ingress can come from mirror seals, holes in the bulkhead, a blocked elephant trunk on the engine side of the bulkhead, damaged door seals, blocked sunroof drains, or worst of all, holes in the floor, bulkhead, rear arches and corners of the floor at the front.

Suggest you remove the carpet, see where the water builds up and use either talcum powder to find the source or use a smoke bomb to see where the holes are.

Is there a page somewhere explaining how to check/clear the sunroof drains???
Think they need might want checking on my touring!!!

[Sanchez]

[/URL]

Was about to comment on said power amp wire but you found dit yourself.

Im supprised that hasnt shorted out. Thats a proper bodge job.

[JF008]

No JMC, I sealed the f*cker in place for now as the battery may end up in the boot due to engine swap..

[Grrrmachine]

Get that wire rerouted NOW. Stop fooking about.

[JF008]

Chillax grrr the car is on a ramp half gutted with little cherubs flying around throwing £20 notes at it , its well looked after dont worry.

[jmc330i]

the car is on a ramp half gutted

All the more reason to spend 15mins to sort it out properly.
No point doing a bodge job (even if you might move the battery) as it just causes more issues - like water leaks as you have already experienced.

[SGP]

Nice tidy shell btw

[JF008]

I would have had a heart attack if I would have discovered any holes in the floor, I've seen a few on pics on here holy crap!

The wire has been moved as well!