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1990 Custom Cruiser Water in Rear Passenger Footwell
I have a 1990 Boxy Custom Cruiser with water wicking through the carpet at the back edge of the passenger side second seat footwell. It had sat outside during a rainstorm at the shop last November for a week before we covered it. When it came home both the front and rear passenger side footwells were saturated. At first, I thought it was because a shop put our car cover on the back seat wet but strangely the seat itself wasn't wet. After using heaters, a dehumidifier, and a carpet cleaner I was able to dry it up completely over the course of a week. The last stubborn spot was the same exact spot where it has returned. It's been driven and parked in the rain a few times over the last two weeks but the front floors and driver's side rear floor are still bone dry right now. Only that one spot is wet! It normally lives under a carport so it doesn't normally sit in the rain. The way I discovered it this time was by lifting the floormat to clean and I noticed the back edge was wet. I've even been under the car probing for leaks with a light but the floor pans look mint and super clean. It's definitely water, no sweet smell or loss of coolant. Just smells like dirty carpet water when you press with a paper towel.
Anybody else run into a leak in this spot? Any ideas would really help my search.
If it's not coolant, then the drain holes in either the HVAC box or the cowl are plugged with leaves and other crap. Water backs up and comes out the heater duct.
Even though the front seat floor is dry? It's only the back edge of the rear seat floor.
Sorry, I read it too quickly. In that case, the only possibility that makes sense is a weatherstripping problem at the back door. If the weatherstripping is all in good shape, cut 1" wide strips of newspaper and insert then across the weatherstripping as you close the door. If you can pull them out, the weatherstripping isn't sealed properly. It might be a door striker adjustment, worn hinges (unlikely on a rear door), or old weatherstripping.
Could a leak at the front of the quarter glass work its way there? I had a leak at the rear on that side sealed. It went into the spare tire well. Other than the door, like you said, I'm at a loss for ideas. I'll try the door test when my son takes it to work on Monday.
Could a leak at the front of the quarter glass work its way there? I had a leak at the rear on that side sealed. It went into the spare tire well. Other than the door, like you said, I'm at a loss for ideas. I'll try the door test when my son takes it to work on Monday.
Yes, it could. I didn't list that as those fixed windows typically don't leak, but if it's a know trouble spot on this car, then it's also a candidate.
Joe, you may have been right in your first guess. The water showed back up in the front carpet after heavy rain. While exploring under the hood I've discovered that during a previous heater core replacement they did a crappy job of sealing the heater/AC box. It has cracked and missing sealant at the firewall. Could it be possible because of the rearward rake of the car that the water is running under the carpet pad to the back floor and then building through the carpet the more it leaks? I can't see water trails down the metal under the dash but it is dampest along the outboard edge of the well in the front and the back outboard corner of the rear well.
The rear wheel well area especially near the outboard rear seatbelt anchor is an area of high corrosion. That area receives a lot of tire splash and should be inspected.
Check the drain holes at front and rear of the inner door structure. They're often plugged. If they are, the door will fill with water and overflow past the trim panel into the footwell.
If you hear water sloshing when operating the door, the drains are plugged. Small screwdriver or pick will clear them and if you're lucky the trapped water will flush out the crud.
Today my son and I got the front carpet, front and rear door sills, glove box, kick panel, and passenger side trim panels out today. Quite a bit of surface rust spots and water in the jute pad and on the metal. The feet of the seat has tons of surface rust. We used and hose and put water to the heater box, doors, and underbody. After almost giving up, as I'm about to back the wagon back in the car port suddenly water appeared on the front floor. It appears to be coming from an opening between the intersection of the floor pan, firewall, and fender in the lower right corner. Pouring straight down the side along the sill and ending in the floor pan channels and making to the back floor also. By the look of it, it's been happening for a long time. Has anyone seen this and how did you fix it? I have inserted some photos. In the photos it appears to go out the door but with the sill in it pushes it under the carpet.
The cowl drain holes at the bottom of the RH cowl are plugged with leaves and other debris. Water backs up and comes in. Pull off that sound deadener and you'll likely be able to see the crap inside the cowl.
We pulled the sound deadener off at the entry point in the first picture. There's a cowl drain at that body joint in the top picture? That is as far forward in the floor pan as you can get. Is the cowl drain the one at the bottom of the heater box?
Last edited by smparr; April 8th, 2021 at 09:06 AM.
Reason: add photo
The cowl drain is inside the kick panel, at the bottom of the cavity that is currently covered with sound deadener. When the drain holes get plugged, water backs up and flows into the floor pan.
We found mud and alder pollen down in front of the cowl drain and blasted it out with a hose. Water immediately rushed in that same seam opening. Even after clearing it, water still comes in. We even used different color food dye to find the outside entry location. It seems like a lip on the bottom front of the firewall that gathers pollen pods on it. Is that corner where the fender meets the firewall in the engine compartment the drain you were talking about?
I sealed the seam at the front of the footwell where it meets the firewall and cleaned the drain on the outside and it appears to have stopped leaking. we have washed the car and it rained and no new water. Now I need to lift the seat out and pull the jute pad to replace it and Por-15 the floor pan were it has surface rust from the leak.
March 19th, 2021, 03:54 PM
