Wet Floor Driver side

[roks]

So I have a wet, soaked carpet and mat on driver side front. I noticed the soaked floor mat couple of weeks ago, I thought it was due to the me going in/out of the car, the day before during heavy rain. I took mat out and left in the sun to dry the carpet underneath was just damp so didn't think much of it. This week I noticed the wet mat again and it was more soaked, as well as the carpet below. Only thing I did was replace the driver side fender/wing on last Saturday, thunderstorm and rain Sunday. I am thinking did I knock something or block some drains while doing the fender? I had to go under the plastic grill below the wiper arms but didn’t remove any seal or touched the windshield.

 

Never had a wet floor, what could I have don’t, if any?

How do I dry it out and get rid of the slight stench?

 

I’ve lifted the carpet and stuffed newspapers to soak up the water and run the heaters. I would really like to sort it out before the next downpour.

 

Thanks in advance.

[Gerg]

On an E11 2001 Corolla we had a (slightly?) similar situation some years ago.  The drivers wing had been replaced (accident/insurance) and some months later the drivers carpet became damp, but not soaking.

Rain water was draining from the inner wing/bulkhead and dripping onto the rear washwipe feed pipe. The rubber grommet that should have stopped the water running along the outside of the pipe and entering the passenger compartment (where the pipe is routed), had split/become deformed/been dislodged (I can't remember which exactly). Reinforcing the grommet stopped this problem completely, that was about 9 years ago, it has never returned. We still have the car.

HTH.

[roks]

Thanks Greg, I didn't see anything like hoses when I took the wing off, just the wiring for the indicator light. Looks like I'll have to trace back my steps undo the bits and take a look.  :(

[Gerg]

If it's of any use, on our car the pipe and its entry grommet was visible if the drivers side plastic kick-panel (i.e. inside, to the right of the pedals) was removed.  The pipe went from there down to the drivers door sill, where it went straight to the back of the car.

The water was dripping down from the kick panel area, and so getting directly into the padding that is underneath the carpet.

[roks]

When I pulled the carpet, I saw a clear tube running along the bottom door seal and going into the 'kick-panel'. I will look properly under there tonight when I get home, I didn't pay too much attention at that time as I just saw bunch of cables and connectors.

Also, found couple threads where they say it could be a blocked sunroof drain pipe, I have a sunroof, will get some long cables and poke around.  

Thanks.

[DeTomato]

Seen a problem once where a car was jacked up on the floor pan and when my mate went over a speed hump and smacked the floor pan. This left a crack on the front panel floor seam weld which was difficult to detect. However, my mate told me that lots of coats of Hammerite fixed the seam up for him.

[roks]

Talking about jacking, I just noticed quite a dent on the passenger front. Idiot missed the jacking point and jacked it up by the panel.

Anyways, I poured water in the sunroof drain channel, water was hanging about until I poked it with a wire.

Hopefully that was it....lots of soaked newspapers still.

[roks]

Had a nasty surprise this morning

Sat in the car, felt wet patch on the edge of the driver seat. It rained all night until early morning. First thought was I left the window open last night, then noticed dripping on my thigh. Looked up and saw this:

 

I cleared the drain for sunroof last time, it’s been raining loads since and not leaked so I thought that was the end. Didn't see any water buildup in the sunroof, just wet. Luckily last time I had summer sun and loads of newspaper to dry it out. Now I am doomed, the foot well is soaked like before, defo going to get that stench….

 

Is the sunroof supposed to be water tight all around?

 

Regards

[oldcodger]

1 hour ago, roks said:

 

 

Is the sunroof supposed to be water tight all around?

 

 

Hi,

Seems its been water proof for the last 14 years ! 

Where does the drain tube exit to ?   could it be perished and leaking down the side ?

Might have to be careful in case it shorts the airbags etc.

Like any opening, the sunroof seals will slowly perish, even when not opened or closed much.

Assuming its a Toyota factory fit sunroof then you might still be able to buy the seal/s, though no idea how easy or hard it is to replace them or how much they are, I was looking for just the inner  door seal on my 5 door and they cost £120 !!

If its not something you use or want to pay or mess around with new seals etc, you could seal it in with a bead of silicone, you can get clear or black so it does not look obvious ...

[roks]

Hi OC,

Yes, its Toyota factory roof.

The water is dripping from the top, over my shoulder, just where the pillar trim meets the roof trim, and collecting in the foot well.

Last time I cleared the block, poured water in the sunroof channels, water was coming out under the car, just behind the wheel arch.

So are you saying the sunroof is supposed to be water tight? If so I guess I'll have to look for the seals.

[DeTomato]

A Sunroof tends to loose the seal where the glass meets the base rubber skirt. Is there any slack in the hinges? Are the hinges loose and worn? Can the closing lever be bent to close it tighter? And, is it definitely the sunroof causing the leak? Or is the problem with the top seal of the windscreen and the water is tracking back? You can check this but lifting the windscreen rubber because there is a sealant where the screen is bonded to the frame. If you pour water onto the top of the Sunroof or window separately, does water appear inside immediately? Also, does the rear screen wash work or not - if not then perhaps it has become detached or perished allowing water to syphon into the roof?

[roks]

OK, I've found the problem, driver side wasn't draining.....

Poked a wire and its draining, will have a proper look at the weekend. The drained water comes out of a welding seam, that's got to be clogging there.

I now need to find a way to dry the soaked carpet and underlay. The heater set to high is not going to cut it.