wet footwell

[steven.collett]

Sorry to raise one of the typical problems again. After being out in a downpour at the weekend my footwell on the drivers side is now soaked. I usually get a little damp but not to the extent i have it this time, although this was the heaviest and most persistent rain I've been out in. It seems worst directly under the front of the door but all the carpet on the floorpan is wet. Otherwise all the side carpet is dry which confuses me as i would expect it to leak down somwewhere?
I have had the areas in the engine bay that I believe are the ususal suspects checked by offords who have assured me they are ok.
After reading some older posts before, I gather the windscreen can be a culprit? is this correct and does anyone have any other suggestions about what I should check and how i could prevent the water leak?

[parrot of doom]

Any holes in the floorpan?

[The Surveyor]

You could check the drain holes in the door are clear, and also when was the hood last re-proofed?

[jonathant]

Also check that the door seals are "pinched" correctly. My 99 Chim has two bits at the bottom pinched which allows water to trickle out rather than go into the car.

[tahiti450]

steven.collett said:

I have had the areas in the engine bay that I believe are the ususal suspects checked by offords who have assured me they are ok.

I had this problem for a while with lakes forming in the drivers foot well and both rear floors. I also convinced myself that there were no leaks in the usual areas, i.e; around the brake fluid reservoir and the clutch res inspection cover and the grommets in the inner wing, etc, etc.
However after much frustration I actually probed the brake res' seal and found that it wasn't sealed at all and that someone had previously tried botching it up with extra silicone and super-glue!! I removed all of the old seal and cleaned and degreased the whole area carefully and rebuilt the seal in silicone and ever since it has been completely water tight. The rear floor leaks were due to the "elephant ears" (rubber flaps under the edge of the hood material where the targa bar hinge is) having failed , since replaced the rear of the car is dry too. Now no matter how heavy the rain the floor of the car remains bone dry.
There are a number of threads about the elephant ears.