Leon ST 65 plate - leak in boot

[bretth1974]

Hi.

My Leon ST (65 plate) has developed a leak in the boot. Water appears to be getting in around the left hand boot hinge and dripping through the roof liner and also running down the boot pillar and dripping through the vents that are located above the cubby hole storage area in the left hand side of the boot.

Has anyone else has this issue?

Many thanks

Brett

 

[matthab]

Are you sure it's not the rear windscreen jet? The tube can pop off or come lose, so when you clear the rear window it goes inside the car.

 

[bretth1974]

Are you sure it's not the rear windscreen jet? The tube can pop off or come lose, so when you clear the rear window it goes inside the car.

Hi Matt

Thanks for the reply. Definitely sure it's not the rear windscreen jet.

I had been noticing water in the boot after heavy rain and then recreated it today with the hose pipe.

The boot rubber seal seems fine so I don't think that's the issue but there is a weld seam and the boot hinge bracket where the water is getting in. I have a sun roof as well so there is a chance it's getting in there and then finding a route to the boot where it drips out?

I'll be contacting the main dealer on Tuesday too see if it's a known fault.

Cheers Brett

 

[SRGTD]

Water ingress around the hinge (where it’s bolted to the bodywork above the hatch opening) was an issue on some early mk7 Golfs, as was water ingress around the two holes above the hatch opening where the rubber sleeving that protects the tailgate wiring fit into.

 

[bretth1974]

Water ingress around the hinge (where it’s bolted to the bodywork above the hatch opening) was an issue on some early mk7 Golfs, as was water ingress around the two holes above the hatch opening where the rubber sleeving that protects the tailgate wiring fit into.

Cheers for the info. Hopefully that's where is getting in and it's a relatively easy fix.

 

[Matt89]

Do you have a panoramic sunroof? In researching a squeak in my sun roof, I've read that sometimes the drains can get blocked and leads to water ingress in the boot area.

 

[bretth1974]

Do you have a panoramic sunroof? In researching a squeak in my sun roof, I've read that sometimes the drains can get blocked and leads to water ingress in the boot area.

Yes I do have a sun roof. I'll take a proper look at it today but do you know how I can check if the drains are blocked?

Thanks

 

[CalJames]

Up until March I've had a very long 14 month battle with Seat about a leak into the boot. They replaced/repaired nearly everything on the rear end, and after all that it still wasn't sorted. Turned put to be a seal where the rear bumper meets behind the wheel arch liner.
They also changed the fuel filler housing as they said that was causing it.
Just a few things extra for you to look at.

Best option for self diagnoses is to strip all the plastics away and sit in the boot and have someone blast it with a pressure washer.

 

[bretth1974]

Up until March I've had a very long 14 month battle with Seat about a leak into the boot. They replaced/repaired nearly everything on the rear end, and after all that it still wasn't sorted. Turned put to be a seal where the rear bumper meets behind the wheel arch liner.
They also changed the fuel filler housing as they said that was causing it.
Just a few things extra for you to look at.

Best option for self diagnoses is to strip all the plastics away and sit in the boot and have someone blast it with a pressure washer.

Thanks for the info. Pretty sure it's coming in through the roof somewhere because the roof liner gets wet and then the water finds its way to the vents above the storage area on the left hand side of the boot.

I have put gaffer tape around the boot hinge to see if that stops the leak and if it does I'll take it to Seat and tell them that's where the water is getting in and see if they can fix it.

 

[Matt89]

Yes I do have a sun roof. I'll take a proper look at it today but do you know how I can check if the drains are blocked?

Thanks

I found this link:

Unplug a sunroof drain - front and rear - Seat Leon MK3/5F - Volkswagen Golf

Recently I discovered a lot of water in the trunk of my Seat Leon Mk3 / 5F (2014+) . After much investigation I saw drops falling in the grill on...

www.ifixit.com

And also this:
paddy6789 has uploaded workshop manuals, and there is one called 'locating water entries'
https://forums.seatcupra.net/index.php?threads/leon-mk3-official-seat-workshop-manuals-link.442353/

 

[bretth1974]

I found this link:

Unplug a sunroof drain - front and rear - Seat Leon MK3/5F - Volkswagen Golf

Recently I discovered a lot of water in the trunk of my Seat Leon Mk3 / 5F (2014+) . After much investigation I saw drops falling in the grill on...

www.ifixit.com

And also this:
paddy6789 has uploaded workshop manuals, and there is one called 'locating water entries'
https://forums.seatcupra.net/index.php?threads/leon-mk3-official-seat-workshop-manuals-link.442353/

Thanks, that's really helpful. The blocked rear drain sounds like my issue.... Hopefully it's not too difficult to remove all those plastic covers without breaking clips!

Which I hadn't bothered with a sun roof.... Cost £900, I hardly use it, constantly rattles and now this!

 

[Matt89]

Thanks, that's really helpful. The blocked rear drain sounds like my issue.... Hopefully it's not too difficult to remove all those plastic covers without breaking clips!

Which I hadn't bothered with a sun roof.... Cost £900, I hardly use it, constantly rattles and now this!

Oh I do love the sun roof. As a bald man I could never bring myself to buy a convertible so this was the closest I could get

 

[Fishbowlhead]

Had this exact same thing. Was the boot hinge. Had both hinges unscrewed, lifted, cleaned up and dried, then a gasket sealer applied and rebolted, sorted that. Will definitely be checking my sun roof drains however just to pre empt that for the future.

 

[bretth1974]

Had this exact same thing. Was the boot hinge. Had both hinges unscrewed, lifted, cleaned up and dried, then a gasket sealer applied and rebolted, sorted that. Will definitely be checking my sun roof drains however just to pre empt that for the future.

Still early days, but looks like it's my hinge as well. Gaffered it up with Gorilla tape and tested it with the hose pipe and seems to have fixed the issue.

What was the cost for getting yours professionally sorted?

 

[bretth1974]

Problem solved. Was a blocked rear drain. Fixed for £140 at a local independent VAG garage. Cheers for all your help.

 

[Fishbowlhead]

Well mines back. Not the boot hinge as thats been sealed. Great. It’s getting in somewhere on the left hand side underneath the boot lid as the roof liner is wet. Will take a picture tomorrow see if anyone else has an idea.

 

[bretth1974]

Well mines back. Not the boot hinge as thats been sealed. Great. It’s getting in somewhere on the left hand side underneath the boot lid as the roof liner is wet. Will take a picture tomorrow see if anyone else has an idea.

Sounds like exactly the same thing as mine. Tell the garage it's the left rear sunroof drain. Local VAG garage fixed mine in under 2 hours.

 

[Digimortal35]

I had a similar problem of water running down the inside rear left pillar after rain or car wash and pooling in the spare wheel well. I have the panorama sunroof fitted. Having found this forum and the link to the ifixit page, I found the left rear drain was clogged and cleaned it out (got soaked in the process) so hoping this has fixed the problem, no need for a dealer or removing any trim and only took 1min. Many thanks for the help!

 

[bretth1974]

I had a similar problem of water running down the inside rear left pillar after rain or car wash and pooling in the spare wheel well. I have the panorama sunroof fitted. Having found this forum and the link to the ifixit page, I found the left rear drain was clogged and cleaned it out (got soaked in the process) so hoping this has fixed the problem, no need for a dealer or removing any trim and only took 1min. Many thanks for the help!

For my future reference, and to save paying a local garage, how did your clean it out without removing trim etc.?

 

[Digimortal35]

On a Leon ST it's possible to access the drain from under the rear of the car. There is a cavity between the wheel well and the bumper. You'll need to make sure the car will not roll and lie under the rear of the car near the wheel and look straight up, (a torch will help) you should see the end of the drain protruding through the frame (see step 6, picture 3 in the ifixit link from Matt89 for what the end of the drain looks like), I used a cotton bud to clean it out. As I got covered in gunk and water I'm hoping the fixed the problem. From the internet searching, it seems the left side suffers more from the problem as the end of the drain is more exposed to the elements on the underside of the car and clogs up whereas on the right hand side it's behind a plastic cover protecting other components.