Water leak into passenger side floor

[krytellan]

This has been driving me a bit nuts so I'm hoping someone might have had this experience.

I realized it during the late winter when I was installing my stereo cables beneath the passenger carpet. There was a shallow ice block in the front passenger floor pan. At that time, given the season, I drilled 2 small drain holes in that vicinity until I could get to the root of the issue.

Of course, in my area, we went from winter to 3 months of rain, rain, rain. My latest assessment revealed that the passenger floor was wet from dash to back seat floor. And yes, it's water.

In trying to get to the source of the leak I'm at a loss. I can't tell where it originates. My gut tells me that it is the body portion in the area of the front door hinges, but nothing there seems any different that the driver side door, which remains dry. In order for the water to get inside the door frames, I have to believe that the doors are not likely to be the culprit, but rather a weak spot in the main body.

The seam that extends from the lower passenger side of the windshield into the hood compartment seems a bit dry-rotted, and can't tell if someone has done some aftermarket sealing there before. Is this area the obvious culprit or do I need to be looking down the hinge line of the frame.

ANY guidance here would be most appreciated. Murphy is uncomfortable!

 

[bremereric]

Kevin should post some pictures of his problem areas that he has found....one is in the cowl/hinge area of the hood...the other is a seam that runs down from the a-piller down to the door hinge

 

[77RTNJ]

Eric

Thanks now I have to post here too. LOL

Kry,

The area you need to look at is where the hood hinges attach to the top of the fender and the cowl, next to where the drain for the cowl is on the firewall. The hinge is attached to studs that you see in my pictures below where I found rust. My pictures are of the drivers side where I removed the fender. Most likely you have rust somewhere inside the cowl where the wiper linkage is and it leaks into the interior. I would pull the carpet back and run some water into the cowl area and see if it gets in the car. Do you have A/C, If you don't let me know as there could be another problem area in the cowl.

If the water does not get in thru the cowl and it looks like it is coming from around the door, you could have a hole in the area where the door hinges attach. Most likely area to rust is where the fender attaches above the rocker panel. You can see it when you open the door and look at the hinges.

Mine is ok there, but my cowl area next to drain is rotted. I will have to cut out some good sheetmetal to get to the area to weld in some new pieces.

I will get some better pictures of where the rust is that is letting the water into my car, but that will be after I cut the hole bigger.

Kevin

 

[krytellan]

Great, I'll try that.

I do have A/C, in theory anyway. It is in no way operational, but it's there. Was actually just going to remove the whole system.

 

[77RTNJ]

Is the A/C you have factory or dealer installed? I forgot to ask. If it is factory then it is the same as mine. If it is not let me know.

You will know right away if the cowl is the area. You need to get a lot of water there so use a hose or a gallon jug and pour fast down by the area and also try down the vents in the cowl. You might want to recheck the drivers side too. Mine only recently started to leak, but my car was stored in a dirt floor garage for 20 years.

Kevin

 

[crayzcuda]

How's the water testing coming? I too think its the cowl drain. Reminds me of the A body wiper bushings.

 

[krytellan]

After getting a brief chance to examine the compartment, I found that the hinges are amazingly intact so I don't think that's it. However, I think I may have found a reason, and I feel rather silly if it is actually the cause.

So, the rubber seal that attaches to the hood near the windshield and spans from driver's side to passenger side (by the cowl). I assume it's there for a reason. Anyway, all of the clips on the passenger side are broken off and the seal was nowhere near where it should be. Is the purpose of this rubber strip to keep water at bay? I attached it temporarily with a couple of small screw but haven't forced the water issue yet. Might the problem be that simple?

 

[bremereric]

After getting a brief chance to examine the compartment, I found that the hinges are amazingly intact so I don't think that's it. However, I think I may have found a reason, and I feel rather silly if it is actually the cause.

So, the rubber seal that attaches to the hood near the windshield and spans from driver's side to passenger side (by the cowl). I assume it's there for a reason. Anyway, all of the clips on the passenger side are broken off and the seal was nowhere near where it should be. Is the purpose of this rubber strip to keep water at bay? I attached it temporarily with a couple of small screw but haven't forced the water issue yet. Might the problem be that simple?

The cowl rubber seal keeps engine compartment heat from being sucked into the cowl...it will do nothing about keep water out