Water Leak Final Answer
4th Gear Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,895
From: TN
my 08 was built in oct 07 and i havent had the problem. drive it in the rain and it is parked outside. hopefully i wont ever have the problem. it does feel as if the car doesnt start right at times. but i check the pass side floorboards all the time, bc of this site and knowing the problem exists in these cars. glad to know someone has a taco bill style fix for it now. thanks buddy
but after reading all the posts again my starting problem might be related to this problem. might have to seal all the grommets on the cowl real soon. windows dont fog up all the time but have a couple of times in the past. pictures of what all needs to be sealed would be great. if someone has some.
but after reading all the posts again my starting problem might be related to this problem. might have to seal all the grommets on the cowl real soon. windows dont fog up all the time but have a couple of times in the past. pictures of what all needs to be sealed would be great. if someone has some.
Last edited by shoeys08dkcandygt; Jan 25, 2010 at 09:54 AM.
s197 Junkie
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 16,088
From: IN
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 247
From: Ca
I think I'm having the water leak problem. A few weeks ago, my parking lights would turn on and off for a few hours. The problem stopped the next day and hasn't reoccurred till 2 days ago. My windshield does fog up in the middle and I've had this problem with my 4.0 when I bought it 2 years ago. When I tried to start my car this morning, the battery just died! WTF? I just bought my gt 3 months ago 
4th Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 1,470
From:
my 2008 takes a **** every time it rains. i have taken the cowl off the passenger side and sealed all the grommets i can see, i have run seam sealer across as much of the forward pinch seam that i can get too, i have re-seated the wire harness above the gem module to no avail. the new TSB claims the problem affects 2005 - 2009 models so most of you may have the problem. do your windows fog up? you will need to feel under the carpet to see if you are affected. there are many threads here of people here claiming that they have a strange electrical malfunction but swear up and down that their car was never affected so be warned.
mxg30 did you seal off all the grommets or just the ones on the passenger side? im running out of ideas. in order to get to the grommets on the drivers side i need some windshield wiper arm pullers. i sealed the grommets with a very strong nylon tape. i covered the entire grommet and cut a slit in it so the cowl could still sit properly. do you know if water can come into holes where the cowl rest?!?! im about to take drastic measures here. i will upload pictures here very soon
mxg30 did you seal off all the grommets or just the ones on the passenger side? im running out of ideas. in order to get to the grommets on the drivers side i need some windshield wiper arm pullers. i sealed the grommets with a very strong nylon tape. i covered the entire grommet and cut a slit in it so the cowl could still sit properly. do you know if water can come into holes where the cowl rest?!?! im about to take drastic measures here. i will upload pictures here very soon
4th Gear Member
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,138
From: NC
Here's a link to the most recent TSB on the water leak issue: http://francesco.maxdsl.de/documents...B/08-26-07.pdf
The TSB clearly shows the path the water takes. There are several possibilities, but the most common is through the cowl grommets. My leak didn't start until after I lifted the cowl to replace the cabin air filter. Dealer finally sealed the grommets - all better now.
And that is my final answer Regis.
The TSB clearly shows the path the water takes. There are several possibilities, but the most common is through the cowl grommets. My leak didn't start until after I lifted the cowl to replace the cabin air filter. Dealer finally sealed the grommets - all better now.
And that is my final answer Regis.
Last edited by richmod; Jan 25, 2010 at 01:13 PM.
S197 Section Modder-ator
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 13,373
From: Orlando FL
OK, I changed my cabin filter today and while I was at it and because of the timing of this thread, I got to check all this water leak rumors because of defective grommets...
Let it be known that my car doesn't have any leaks or any other problems of any kinds with 51K miles on it, this thing has been flawless!
Well, no offense to the faulty grommet believers but this theory doesn't NECESSARILY holds water (lol, see what I did thar?
).
I went to the dealer and got some specs/diagram on that cowl design to further help understanding this dilemma.
There is no doubts that a faulty grommet would let some water go through but not big enough of a flow, to get into your floors.
This Diagram explains why to me...
That ovalized hole where the three arrows are shown, has a 3/16 upward lip...
It means that water would have to climb that lip and then fall into your kick panels.
No way! Gravity wouldn't allow that and that cowl channel is a tight enclosed area so no air pressure from driving will ever get there to force the water though...
Now, water could build up in there and eventually overflow through those ovalized holes but the Ford techs say that water and moisture gets out at the very ends of the cowl channels by the fender.
So I took a grommet off and put it back without the insulator (see pic).
Then I ran water on the area with a garden hose for a minute and checked my floor boards... bone dry!
So you tell me!!
Let it be known that my car doesn't have any leaks or any other problems of any kinds with 51K miles on it, this thing has been flawless!
Well, no offense to the faulty grommet believers but this theory doesn't NECESSARILY holds water (lol, see what I did thar?
).I went to the dealer and got some specs/diagram on that cowl design to further help understanding this dilemma.
There is no doubts that a faulty grommet would let some water go through but not big enough of a flow, to get into your floors.
This Diagram explains why to me...
That ovalized hole where the three arrows are shown, has a 3/16 upward lip...
It means that water would have to climb that lip and then fall into your kick panels.
No way! Gravity wouldn't allow that and that cowl channel is a tight enclosed area so no air pressure from driving will ever get there to force the water though...
Now, water could build up in there and eventually overflow through those ovalized holes but the Ford techs say that water and moisture gets out at the very ends of the cowl channels by the fender.
So I took a grommet off and put it back without the insulator (see pic).
Then I ran water on the area with a garden hose for a minute and checked my floor boards... bone dry!
So you tell me!!
S197 Section Modder-ator
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 13,373
From: Orlando FL
Hey, now that I remember...
Here's a cause of water leaks that I'm sure few know about.
This one will fill your floor boards and it's pretty sneaky.
The door drain plugs on these cars do such a great job that the water won't drain, lol.
I caught this problem on cars that were still on the dealer lot!! Especially if they're parked on a slope.
The water will rise inside the door until it overflows through the speaker hole and it'll sip out from behind the door panel, fall onto the edge of the sill plate and on the carpet it goes.
Take a look at the pics... GET RID OF THAT STUPID PLUG!!
Here's a cause of water leaks that I'm sure few know about.
This one will fill your floor boards and it's pretty sneaky.
The door drain plugs on these cars do such a great job that the water won't drain, lol.
I caught this problem on cars that were still on the dealer lot!! Especially if they're parked on a slope.
The water will rise inside the door until it overflows through the speaker hole and it'll sip out from behind the door panel, fall onto the edge of the sill plate and on the carpet it goes.
Take a look at the pics... GET RID OF THAT STUPID PLUG!!
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 233
From: Florida
Pascal,
You know that it never rains in Florida for a minute so your test results are very mis-leading to the people you should be assiting.
I won’t challenge you to expose your car any longer as you would not like the results.
What I wrote is FACT and I wrote it to HELP any and all to whom it may apply.
You should know this being a moderator???
To all to whom this issue does apply to or may have concern:
My post is based on FACT and if any Ford representative was willing to step up I wouldn’t have posted in the first place.
This isn’t a debate… Simply Protect Your Investment.
Sorry I didn’t take any pictures, but if it will help I will take my cowl cover off and post pictures of what I did. Simply I replaced the factory gasket with sealant and allowed it to cure before I re-installed everything.
Just because you have NOT had this problem YET doesn’t mean it won’t happen.
WATER is the strongest element on the face of our planet and while it can at times be contained it can also force its way Through, Over, Under and Around what ever it wants to.
That’s simple physics and also how the Grand Canyon was formed.
Don’t test it guys… Just Fix It
You know that it never rains in Florida for a minute so your test results are very mis-leading to the people you should be assiting.
I won’t challenge you to expose your car any longer as you would not like the results.
What I wrote is FACT and I wrote it to HELP any and all to whom it may apply.
You should know this being a moderator???
To all to whom this issue does apply to or may have concern:
My post is based on FACT and if any Ford representative was willing to step up I wouldn’t have posted in the first place.
This isn’t a debate… Simply Protect Your Investment.
Sorry I didn’t take any pictures, but if it will help I will take my cowl cover off and post pictures of what I did. Simply I replaced the factory gasket with sealant and allowed it to cure before I re-installed everything.
Just because you have NOT had this problem YET doesn’t mean it won’t happen.
WATER is the strongest element on the face of our planet and while it can at times be contained it can also force its way Through, Over, Under and Around what ever it wants to.
That’s simple physics and also how the Grand Canyon was formed.
Don’t test it guys… Just Fix It
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 377
From: MD
Pascal,
You know that it never rains in Florida for a minute so your test results are very mis-leading to the people you should be assiting.
I won’t challenge you to expose your car any longer as you would not like the results.
What I wrote is FACT and I wrote it to HELP any and all to whom it may apply.
You should know this being a moderator???
To all to whom this issue does apply to or may have concern:
My post is based on FACT and if any Ford representative was willing to step up I wouldn’t have posted in the first place.
This isn’t a debate… Simply Protect Your Investment.
Sorry I didn’t take any pictures, but if it will help I will take my cowl cover off and post pictures of what I did. Simply I replaced the factory gasket with sealant and allowed it to cure before I re-installed everything.
Just because you have NOT had this problem YET doesn’t mean it won’t happen.
WATER is the strongest element on the face of our planet and while it can at times be contained it can also force its way Through, Over, Under and Around what ever it wants to.
That’s simple physics and also how the Grand Canyon was formed.
Don’t test it guys… Just Fix It
You know that it never rains in Florida for a minute so your test results are very mis-leading to the people you should be assiting.
I won’t challenge you to expose your car any longer as you would not like the results.
What I wrote is FACT and I wrote it to HELP any and all to whom it may apply.
You should know this being a moderator???
To all to whom this issue does apply to or may have concern:
My post is based on FACT and if any Ford representative was willing to step up I wouldn’t have posted in the first place.
This isn’t a debate… Simply Protect Your Investment.
Sorry I didn’t take any pictures, but if it will help I will take my cowl cover off and post pictures of what I did. Simply I replaced the factory gasket with sealant and allowed it to cure before I re-installed everything.
Just because you have NOT had this problem YET doesn’t mean it won’t happen.
WATER is the strongest element on the face of our planet and while it can at times be contained it can also force its way Through, Over, Under and Around what ever it wants to.
That’s simple physics and also how the Grand Canyon was formed.
Don’t test it guys… Just Fix It
Please post pics! Thanks
4th Gear Member
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,138
From: NC
I did the same thing with the same result - bone dry. But I still had water leaking when driving in the rain. Something about the water sloshing around while driving makes it hard to reproduce while it's standing still apparently. Still, I have no doubt that my leak was from the cowl grommets. After a hard rain and subsequent leak into my car, I took off the kick panel trim and looked up behind the glove box area. There was water droplets starting from just under that oval opening running all the way down to the floor. That oval is covered by some foam insulation, but if you pull it aside you cab see/feel the oval opening and above it - very wet up there. ( I actually posted some pics of this once - Ill se if I can find them.DSo I actually removed the glove box completely - when you do that you can see right into that area even when driving. did that for a few weeks until finally it rained hard - and I actually saw water slosh down from up in that area. Once the dealer sealed the grommets -no leak since.