Water Leak Final Answer
01-25-2010, 07:47 PM
#21
S197 Section Modder-ator
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Orlando FL
Posts: 13,373
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???
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???
You remind me of a bench racer.
Give a little more credit to the people that actually work on those cars everyday.
I know you want to help the folks here but so do I.
Members know by now that I'm not misleading them even though I've been wrong before...
I didn't throw your theory away either, I just said it's not NECESSARILY the main water leak problem.
If those grommets were so problematic, you'd have a wet floor on the driver side as well.
So what's your theory on that? I'm all ears...
FOMOCO don't even have a definite answer to this problem, since they never narrowed it down to one particular cause.
They do focus on the side panels a lot though as shown on those pics...
01-25-2010, 08:04 PM
#22
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: NC
Posts: 1,138
Oh yea - I also stuffed rags into every area identified by Ford as possible water entry points - the grommit path hole, the firewall wiring harness hole, and the door path hole. The only rag that was wet after it rained was the grommit path rag, and it was soaked. Did this a few times - same result.
It is strange about the drivers side not usually being affected. Strangely though, I actually DID get a leak on the drivers side from the garden hose testing, but only when hosing directly on the last drivers side grommet. I think the cowl channel is slanted and shaped such that, in rain conditions, most water drains toward the passenger side.
It is strange about the drivers side not usually being affected. Strangely though, I actually DID get a leak on the drivers side from the garden hose testing, but only when hosing directly on the last drivers side grommet. I think the cowl channel is slanted and shaped such that, in rain conditions, most water drains toward the passenger side.
Last edited by richmod; 01-25-2010 at 08:09 PM.
01-25-2010, 08:08 PM
#23
S197 Section Modder-ator
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Orlando FL
Posts: 13,373
Very easy for the water to slosh over that lip from the car movement when driving
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.
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.
And I thought about the sloshing around but the water is supposed to evacuate at each end of the cowl channel to prevent build up and moisture, well according to Ford anyway.
Next time I have a S197 in the shop with the fender off, I will check all this mess for sure.
Again, why only on the passenger side though? There are grommets and the oval opening on the driver side as well...
There is more than one reason for those leaks obviously and the cowl area is one of them.
That seems to be your problem but other people have water coming from different places.
That's why there isn't one solution for all of the cases, PITA.
01-25-2010, 08:20 PM
#24
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: NC
Posts: 1,138
No doubt there's other causes. One of them seems to be the little plastic drain at the bottom of the cowl getting clogged with debris, causing water to pool in the cowl and actually seep into the passenger area though the cabin air filter area. Those with that problem actually described hearing water sloshing around behind the dash before a large quantity of water came spilling onto the floor. I never heard any sloshing, and the amount of water on my floor was always mimimal and under the rug, not on top of it as this problem causes.
Last edited by richmod; 01-25-2010 at 08:23 PM.
01-25-2010, 08:31 PM
#25
S197 Section Modder-ator
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Orlando FL
Posts: 13,373
I asked the dealer if they had a firewall panel in stock so I could really have a visual on how the sheet metal is stamped but they didn't have it.
I'm not surprised since it's not an item that sells because by the time you need to replace that, the car is totaled, lol.
01-25-2010, 08:57 PM
#26
3rd Gear Member
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 851
I half expected this post to read, "Get Rid Of The Car" in giant letters when I opened it. To me, that's the final answer.
Clearly there are lots of ways that the water can come in. When I first had the leak, I could see water dripping on the SJB just sitting in the driveway when it rained. After a few dealership fix attempts, it seemed fixed, since it no longer leaked while parked. I was so thrilled to find it dry in the parking lot, I decided to take the car out for a drive in the rain "just to be sure". Soaked. By the way, all of this was AFTER my grommets had been re-sealed, the hood and cowl had been taken off and put back on, crap cleaned out of the drain holes, etc, etc and it goes on.
Now I have an 08 (built in late 2007) and haven't had a problem....ever. Trust me, I check...a lot.
I submit that there is no final answer; there are lots of known suspects to look for when a leak is discovered, but "the fix" seems to vary from car to car. Some may even have multiple leaks (I believe I did).
The OP's statements are FACT, but within the scope of his car; I think it's naive to think that there is a one-size-fits-all fix, although I'm sure there are others out there that have your exact problem.
Don't get me wrong; this is great info! I hate seeing these threads come up, but it makes me feel better every time I see that someone else has fixed their issue or discovered some additional piece of helpful info.
Clearly there are lots of ways that the water can come in. When I first had the leak, I could see water dripping on the SJB just sitting in the driveway when it rained. After a few dealership fix attempts, it seemed fixed, since it no longer leaked while parked. I was so thrilled to find it dry in the parking lot, I decided to take the car out for a drive in the rain "just to be sure". Soaked. By the way, all of this was AFTER my grommets had been re-sealed, the hood and cowl had been taken off and put back on, crap cleaned out of the drain holes, etc, etc and it goes on.
Now I have an 08 (built in late 2007) and haven't had a problem....ever. Trust me, I check...a lot.
I submit that there is no final answer; there are lots of known suspects to look for when a leak is discovered, but "the fix" seems to vary from car to car. Some may even have multiple leaks (I believe I did).
The OP's statements are FACT, but within the scope of his car; I think it's naive to think that there is a one-size-fits-all fix, although I'm sure there are others out there that have your exact problem.
Don't get me wrong; this is great info! I hate seeing these threads come up, but it makes me feel better every time I see that someone else has fixed their issue or discovered some additional piece of helpful info.
01-25-2010, 09:05 PM
#27
S197 Section Modder-ator
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Orlando FL
Posts: 13,373
That's what the Forums are for...
I wonder how many people have the door issue like I posted, and don't know about it...
While going through all kinds of trouble and all it is, is that damn plug!
I've seen 4 cars with that with that problem so far...
I wonder how many people have the door issue like I posted, and don't know about it...
While going through all kinds of trouble and all it is, is that damn plug!
I've seen 4 cars with that with that problem so far...
01-25-2010, 09:10 PM
#28
6th Gear Member
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Nicely done
Posts: 11,881
what we need is a nice little rain jacket
for our sjb. something that slips on, protects
against water and is easily removed.
fighting the water may be a hopeless cause, maybe
we should focus on protecting sensitive components.
for our sjb. something that slips on, protects
against water and is easily removed.
fighting the water may be a hopeless cause, maybe
we should focus on protecting sensitive components.
01-25-2010, 09:22 PM
#29
S197 Section Modder-ator
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Orlando FL
Posts: 13,373
