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Hello all, I recently bought a 99 323i and it just started raining in my area. I am freaking out because there is a significant amount of water getting into my car, and I cannot find the source! I have checked the front drains in he sunroof, and also the drains in the cowl. Those seem fine. The water comes out under the car and through the gap between the side skirt, and the fender. I haven’t been able to get to the back drains on the sunroof, is there a trick? Also any other things I should check? I know some people have had their AC drain tube come loose, but that is usually associated with water on the passenger side of the car. I have quite a bit of water in the foot well of the drivers side, and some in the back on the drivers side. But I think water only gets to the back of the car if the front is "full". By full I mean soaked, there is no visible water line above the carpet, it is just soaked.
well i have had water leaks coming in from my doors the vaper barrier in the doors have to have a tight seal otherwise overflow water comes through. I will be replaceing them when i receive them. This problem is common to happen to these cars if there is work done in the doors and the dealership morons slap it back on hap hazardly.
__________________ "What happens here stays here" Las Vegas
one other less likely possibility is the lower seal on the windscreen (this happens commonly if the car was in an accident or the windscreen was replaced).
have one guy pour water from a hose on the windscreen, ant other guy stick his head in the driver footwell and watch for water on the firewall behind the carpeting. i do not think you can see the seam itself.
I got a chance to take both drivers side doors apart, and found that the vapor barriers were intact. They had been removed previously, but I couldn't find any gaps in the seal at all. It looks like whoever put them back on used silicon to reseal them. So, now I'm back to my clogged drain theory. Anybody have info on the rear drainage system?
Well, over break I was able to tear my car apart and pull back the carpet. So far, I have been trying to dry it out for the past 2 days. I put a small heater in there, and a fan. I'd say it is about half way dry at this point. This really sucks! I want to drive my baby!!!
I have come up with a plan though. I think I will get in the car, and close it up. Then have a friend start at the front, and work his way back with a hose. I just hope I will be able to see where the water is coming in, and fix the problem now that I have the carpet peeled back.
Anybody know if there is something in particular I should be looking for? Or should I just wing it and hope for the best?
you know your not paying attention when this happens:
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'>Are you refering to his Signature? oh shit, i just remembered i used my name in my sig... I just 0wn3ed myself. </div>
-Founder
You could also try running it through a "hands free" carwash where it just shoots high powered water, that might show more than a hose. But it also might get more water in...I dunno...
__________________ <span style='color:blue'>2000 323i Sport Wagon (yeah, I got the wagon!)
Remus Sport Exhaust w/ Ralley Tips
Smoked Clears
10" Kappa Perfect 10.1
1000w Kenwood Amp</span>
Well, if anybody is interested, it ended up being the front drivers side door seal. I guess there was a small gap in the seal. Got the problem all fixed, and the carpets all dry.
Removing all that water must have added more HP cause she is faster then I remember. :P
Originally posted by BlackTape@Dec 30 2003, 01:44 AM the dealerships jerry rig your car so you come back... those bastards
The last thing we want to hear is that a customers car has water leaking into it, especially if it was just worked on for say, oh, a window regulator... :P
Any time I do a window regulator or work in the door, I never remove the bottom portion of the vapor barrier.....my work don't leak.
Tknojnky, I wouldn't count out the vapor barriers just yet. I can almost guarantee you that the water is coming from there. It's easy to test this.
Get your water hose, without a nozzle. Open the door you want to test. Run a slow stream of water all over the outside of the window glass. Water won't splash everywhere if you keep the water stream moderate. Do that for a minute or so, and then look inside the door at the bottom of the door panel. If you see any wate coming out from between the door panel and the door, you have a problem. This water will just drain into the car without you seeing it with the door closed. When it rains, it doesn't take a major leak to get things wet.
All the water that goes down the outside of the window will drain into the inside of the door. The vapor barrier is what keeps it at bay until it can make it's way down to the bottom of the door, where the drains are. The water rolls down to the bottom of the vapor barrier and comes in contact with the glue that holds the barrier on. If there is evene the slightest opening in that glue, you have a leak.
I hate this design. It royally sucks to deal with. I've pulled seats and carpet before because of this.
5 series will do it to-E39, but not nearly as common.
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