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Water leak into footwell - dodgy seal info and DIY repair guide (Image links dead)

FortCupraR225

Guest
Ok so i started fixing the seals on my doors today, whew was getting a bit annoyed with myself, got the door panel off without breaking any of the black plugs which was good and got the Butyl tape on no bother it was after that the problems started!

Put the door back together to find out the the black ring that goes around the speaker between the door card and the door had fallen out so had to strip it down again and put it back!
Then put it back together then noticed i couldn't open the door from the inside, the wire runner from the door handle had slipped off.....so guess what had to strip it down again!

Was pretty ragin with myself and it got dark and i had only managed 1 door! :cry:

Hopefully will be dry tomorrow and i'll get to it again this time i think i could do it with my eyes closed! :D

Whats the best way to get the felt under lay out to dry?
 

irishmanr26

Active Member
Jun 30, 2010
382
1
Ireland
LOL!! I did that with the door handle as well!
Was there much water on the floor when it was wet?
I just left the heater on in mine for a while with the windows opened a bit and the floor is bone dry now but I only had a wee bit of dampness
 

FortCupraR225

Guest
The front is wet but not nearly as wet as the back, its completely soaking, thats why i'm gonna take up the carpet and get it good and dry before i put it back in!

I think i made all the mistakes i'm gonna make on the first door, hopefully plain sailing from now on! lol
 

DubSteve68

Active Member
Nov 4, 2010
125
6
Up North
The front is wet but not nearly as wet as the back, its completely soaking, thats why i'm gonna take up the carpet and get it good and dry before i put it back in!

I think i made all the mistakes i'm gonna make on the first door, hopefully plain sailing from now on! lol

I originally planned on removing the carpets but decided against it as I would need access to VAG-COM kit afterwards. Problem is you need to disconnect the battery to safely work on airbag systems, which on petrol models will necessitate doing a Throttle Body alignment afterwards. Life's never simple with modern cars...

DubSteve :)
 

FortCupraR225

Guest
I originally planned on removing the carpets but decided against it as I would need access to VAG-COM kit afterwards. Problem is you need to disconnect the battery to safely work on airbag systems, which on petrol models will necessitate doing a Throttle Body alignment afterwards. Life's never simple with modern cars...

DubSteve :)

Thats way out of my league i'm afraid, oh well i'll have to think of something to get around it then, i bought a couple of dehumidifyers, one is fully charged and in the car now, will stick the other one in tomorrow, not sure how much they will actually take in though.......flaming nightmare! [:@]

Could i just peel the carpet back maybe and get the worst of it without doing any harm?
 

DubSteve68

Active Member
Nov 4, 2010
125
6
Up North
Thats way out of my league i'm afraid, oh well i'll have to think of something to get around it then, i bought a couple of dehumidifyers, one is fully charged and in the car now, will stick the other one in tomorrow, not sure how much they will actually take in though.......flaming nightmare! [:@]

Could i just peel the carpet back maybe and get the worst of it without doing any harm?

This might be worth a look if you can't get access to VAG-COM/VCDS. You may well be able to pull the carpets back but I gave up with mine as I couldn't work out how to remove some of the plastic trim parts without trashing them. As I mentioned in an earlier post I managed to deal with the worst of the wet by parking on a slope before tackling the rear footwell with a wet vac and lots of towels, and leaving the windows open whenever possible. As for passive dehumidifiers (the crystal filled jobbies), we have one in the basement but it's very, very slow. Maybe you could "borrow" a proper one from Argos for a few days if there's a store nearby... ;)

DubSteve :)
 

blueboy

Guest
Many thanks to DubSteve68 for his article on how to fix the leak with butyl rubber. Got some from ebay and it came this morning so already done one door and now to do the passenger side as i can see traces of water and future issues.

I have still yet to get the water out of the car but i will park it on a slope and get it all out from the rear drivers side area.
 

mikeholroyd

Guest
i will park it on a slope and get it all out from the rear drivers side area.

I doubt it will work like that, because the floor isn't flat. The water will be held in the carpet and soundproofing like a sponge, and you'll have to strip out to dry out properly.
Sorry!

Mike
 

blueboy

Guest
I doubt it will work like that, because the floor isn't flat. The water will be held in the carpet and soundproofing like a sponge, and you'll have to strip out to dry out properly.
Sorry!

Mike

Got most of it out so will just let it dry now.

Anybody had a problem with mould at all?
 

FortCupraR225

Guest
Got most of it out so will just let it dry now.

Anybody had a problem with mould at all?

I've done 3 of the doors now, got the 2 that were leaking first and just got the drivers door to do now, did parking on a slope really help with the water??

I'm gonna to do my best to get as much water as i can out tomorrow but the felt underlay underneath the carpet seems to hold the most water and its a nightmare to get to! Just push down on it and it squelches because its soaking!

What did you do to get the water out of that bit?
 

Joey2cool

Active Member
Nov 14, 2007
60
0
Wiltshire
couldnt hurt to ask them, after all if you just bought it you shouldnt have to deal with a problem after 5 months! Since there is a part they use to replace the door seals they know that it is a problem
 

Rauer

Guest
Wondering if anyone has had the water leak trouble fixed under warrenty?
bought our leon 5 months ago from a seat dealer and is covered by seat extended warrenty.
please let me know?

Mine has warranty and put it in for otherthings aswell as the door seals if coverd but they checked with the warranty company and it wasn't , I think the warranty only covers named parts ( and yes mine was a seat warranty)
 

DubSteve68

Active Member
Nov 4, 2010
125
6
Up North
I doubt it will work like that, because the floor isn't flat. The water will be held in the carpet and soundproofing like a sponge, and you'll have to strip out to dry out properly.
Sorry!

Mike

With the sorts of hills I have to park on around Colne (steeeeeeep!) it doesn't matter that the floor isn't flat, the water still ends up at the back ;) But Mike's right, it's the stuff under the carpet that holds the most and causes squelching. There isn't really any substitute for pulling the carpets out other than using a decent dehumidifier (thanks again Mike). Mine seems to be well on the way now though, no more carpet squelching or condensation in the rear lights. I just get misted up windows on odd evenings now but then most of the other cars on the street seem to as well, which is progress in my opinion :D

DubSteve :)
 

blueboy

Guest
I parked mine on a slope and then lifted the carpet and used rags to soak up the water. I used my foot to help the matter and soaked up what i could. I was at it for an hour, i could not believe the amount of water in there.
 

FortCupraR225

Guest
I parked mine on a slope and then lifted the carpet and used rags to soak up the water. I used my foot to help the matter and soaked up what i could. I was at it for an hour, i could not believe the amount of water in there.

Yeah thats what i did, i just peeled the carpet back as fat as i could the lifted the felt underlay then slid a towel underneath and lay it all back down a tread on it for a bit took me 3 towels before it felt dry then i got stuck into the carpet with the trusty vax!
The front footwell was a different story though didn't really want to start peeling back the carpet so i got as much out with vax as possible then i went for a drive with the heaters blasting on my feet! Isn't bone dry yet but is getting there!

Another thing i was trying to open the bonnet while doing this but it was stuck shut, it wouldn't even lift a wee bit so i could get my fingers underneath it, so i looked it up on this site and people were saying its pretty common alot of dirt gets in about it so just spray it with WD40 and use the stray to get in about it until it eventually opens( i have about 4 cans of WD40 and none of them had the wee straw!):rolleyes:
So i went out to the petrol station and bought yet another can, but it was dark so i just though i'd get to it in the morning.....woke up and looked out my window in the morning and the bonnet had popped up slightly, more than enough for me to open it and grease it up! Turns out we had an earthquake at 6am and it must have shook it open!
Not a massive one but it helped me out! :happy:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-12262293

So if your having trouble opening your bonnet just give your car a damn good shake and hey presto its open! :happy::happy:
 

DubSteve68

Active Member
Nov 4, 2010
125
6
Up North
Yeah thats what i did, i just peeled the carpet back as fat as i could the lifted the felt underlay then slid a towel underneath and lay it all back down a tread on it for a bit took me 3 towels before it felt dry then i got stuck into the carpet with the trusty vax!
The front footwell was a different story though didn't really want to start peeling back the carpet so i got as much out with vax as possible then i went for a drive with the heaters blasting on my feet! Isn't bone dry yet but is getting there!

Another thing i was trying to open the bonnet while doing this but it was stuck shut, it wouldn't even lift a wee bit so i could get my fingers underneath it, so i looked it up on this site and people were saying its pretty common alot of dirt gets in about it so just spray it with WD40 and use the stray to get in about it until it eventually opens( i have about 4 cans of WD40 and none of them had the wee straw!):rolleyes:
So i went out to the petrol station and bought yet another can, but it was dark so i just though i'd get to it in the morning.....woke up and looked out my window in the morning and the bonnet had popped up slightly, more than enough for me to open it and grease it up! Turns out we had an earthquake at 6am and it must have shook it open!
Not a massive one but it helped me out! :happy:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-12262293

So if your having trouble opening your bonnet just give your car a damn good shake and hey presto its open! :happy::happy:

Bonnet release fixed by earthquake. Awesome :D

DubSteve :)
 

mark230678

Guest
Ok without wanting to sound thick.
I have a skoda octavia with a similar issue.
I have took the door card off the o/s door and all that presents itself is a layer of foam
I cannot see an inner door carrier.
Is this right
2003 model
Help appreciated
 
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