I have a 03 convertable that leaks behind the plastic trim on both a-pillars into the front floorboards everytime it rains. All of the weatherstrip looks good. Any help would be greatly appreciated, this thing is driving me nuts.

 

The drains under the car are plugged with debris....
Pull off the kick panel and look into the steel frame and you will see them.

Otherwise look under the car and you will see them.

They are not big, they are just slits about 2 inches long.

While you have the kick panels off, make sure all the holes are plugged with rubber grommets.
Mine had one missing.


BTW while you are at it, check the rear drain holes as well.
They are in front of the rear tires.
Water runs through the frame from front to back and should exit there, at least the water that hasn't exited from the front holes.
If you need any more information let me know.

 

i think he is talking about it is leaking where the front corners of the top meet the windsheild, at the top of the a-pillars. i have the same problem in my 94, but never really looked into how to fix it. if you figure out how, please post up some info. i think its a fairly common problem.

 

Yes I believe you are correct.... My misread!
I would take the trim off and run a garden hose on spray (to simulate a typical rain) and watch.
It can't be that difficult now that he knows where the leak starts.

The hard part is when you find a puddle on the floor and have no clue where it came from!
Maybe the door is not closing tight enough and thus not compressing the weather stripping?
Top not latching tight enough?

 

You also might want to check the latches and make sure that they're adjusted properly and pulling the top down tightly enough.

 

My carpet in the rear passenger foot wells gets extremely wet when it rains, even when the car is parked. It's the fitted carpet that gets wet first, not the loose mats so the water is coming in from the bottom of the car somewhere. The doors seem to fit well and the rubber looks good so maybe it's those drain holesunder the kick panels? By kick panels you mean the plastic molding over the door sills you see when you open the doors?

Thanks!

 

This pisses me off!!! My Mustang leaks in the back and it just catches all the water in the back I can see where the water comes from but I dont want to make the leak bigger so thats why I have not messed with it. Ford Sucks for this!! Why can't they make anything that works like it should!!!