Leak

[450Nick]

Hi all, after trying for a while now to trace a leak in the car, I've pulled up the carpet in the drivers footwell by the door and found possibly the source of the wetness. There are two holes in the fibreglass down by the sill with bolts inside which look like they secure the bottom door mount. If I put my hand down here while driving, I get a huge amount of air rushing in, so I'm thinking that this must be the source of damp air/wetness when I leave the car standing for a while. The trouble is that I have no idea where the hole goes! I've stuck my fingers in there and tried to look from outside and can't see how the air might be getting in. I could just pump silicone in there until the air stops but I'd like to locate the exact point of entry. Any ideas where this hole goes?? If I reach backwards down into the sill, I can feel that it is full of foam, but forward in the sill feels hollow. All bolts appear to be in place etc.

[spend]

Its the ventilation over the inner wing, water in there is typically from the inner wing under the bonnet (ie brake reservoir, bolts on wing, clutch cover, grommets, pop rivets on insulation, panel joint wing/bulkhead..) collecting in the hollow section.

I would still suspect however that dampness in that area is attributable to the pesky door seal - check very carefully where it is fitted to the body inverted under the screen/dash area. That whole 6-12" length needs carefully attaching with sealant rather than just being clipped on IMHO.

[450Nick]

Thanks spend. I'll check under the bonnet and see if there is anything that needs sealing better. I replaced all of the door seals the other week and carefully attached it all the way around so I'd hope that it's well sealed but I agree that it's tough to get a good seal here. Do you know how the water gets around it? Does it run down the inverted bit and soak into the carpet clipped under the seal? This is plausible but I'm not sure how you'd cure it - did you literally just run a bead of silicone around the back edge of the seal?

[spend]

Its just a case of looking where the water will get behind the seal, the bit that goes over the lip of body/carpet, and sealing the outside joint of that area IYSWIM.

I tend to pull the seal and lay a bead all the way down the front of the door area, push the seal on.... if not enough then apply extra sealant along the top of that dodgy area.

BTW The inner wing is used for the drivers air ducts / fans on various models, typically gaffer tape seals the bolt holes etc under the carpet to stop drafts. Sounds like someone has had yours apart and not resealed with tape - so its drafty