TheSamba.com :: View topic - Leak (rain/water) in driver's side, somewhere...

Mon Jun 25, 2012 5:21 pm

So the driver's side floorpan has seen better days and when I was recoating it with POR15 yesterday, I discovered a likely reason why.

Somewhere, rain is getting in.

I was able to determine that it's pouring into the driver's footwell from THIS hole:

Of this I am certain.

Looking under the hood, it appears as if it may be feeding down to there from the bottom corner of the windshield (where there is a spot of rust). There are two tiny holes on the underside from that corner that are rusty and there is evidence of water dripping down that set of wires that run through there (yay). There's also evidence of mold (I think - looks sort of fiberglassy or like insulation).

Suggestions to stop this, or let it drain somewhere else?

Mon Jun 25, 2012 6:06 pm

Sounds like you need to replace the windshield seal ... and fix any rust under that seal.

Also, there should be a drain hole so that water goes to the ground instead of onto your floor.

Mon Jun 25, 2012 6:16 pm

Q-Dog wrote: Sounds like you need to replace the windshield seal ... and fix any rust under that seal.

Also, there should be a drain hole so that water goes to the ground instead of onto your floor.

The drain hole should be below where it's draining into the footwell, right?
Seems like it might be sealed up tight down there.

Tue Jun 26, 2012 8:53 pm

Well, I dug around in that hole. Apparently that's where the accordion tube for the heater vent is supposed to connect (between footwell vent opening and the windshield). And it wasn't connected, so water was running down and onto the floor. I managed to pop it back into place.

I also went ahead and used some silicone to seal up around the windshield rust spots, the antenna, and the hood seals. I know it's a hack, but I can't afford to tend to the rust. Sealing it from moisture will have to do for now.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 1:37 am

Hey anime. I have a hole like that on my passenger side. Down in that spot gets filled with dirt and leaves and gunk after so many years, clogging the drain hole up. If you can, stick a shop vac down there to get some of the junk out of there. Also, find the drainage holy and start prodding at it with a screw driver to clear it up. When you do manage to get that section fixed, by a can of rusty metal primer and spray down in that area for some protection.
What's with your shifter plate? I've never seen one so thick before.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 3:55 am

Check the seals that the chrome molding clips go into. These are often split, cracked or all together missing.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 6:35 am

Vinnems wrote: Hey anime. I have a hole like that on my passenger side. Down in that spot gets filled with dirt and leaves and gunk after so many years, clogging the drain hole up. If you can, stick a shop vac down there to get some of the junk out of there. Also, find the drainage holy and start prodding at it with a screw driver to clear it up. When you do manage to get that section fixed, by a can of rusty metal primer and spray down in that area for some protection.
What's with your shifter plate? I've never seen one so thick before.

Thanks, Vinnems. I found a little rubber nipple type thing under the door sill (apparently runs under the heater duct) that was totally caked with grime. Squeezing it revealed it has a molded split. I'm guessing this is meant to be the drain path. I'll see about clearing that out as much as I can.

And the shifter plate is the common, cheap short shift kit:

Wed Jun 27, 2012 6:36 am

Joey wrote: Check the seals that the chrome molding clips go into. These are often split, cracked or all together missing.

Mine would be altogether missing - no chrome on this bad boy :)

Wed Jun 27, 2012 8:40 am

THAT IS CLASSIC.

1; radio antenna gasket bad is top fail
2: the whole hood gasket is bad.
3: the 2 holes on left corner below windows gasket leaks.
bad window gasket, ever replaced that? , and block those 2 holes forever?
4: the front hood vent leaks. (lots of ways)

and yes, the bottom of the A Pillar , does have a drain
and yours is packed, as they all are.
i added one to mine. larger at the bottom...

look in the frunk left rear side, see that Natural funnel.

bingo

Wed Jun 27, 2012 9:03 am

candymustang66 wrote: THAT IS CLASSIC.

1; radio antenna gasket bad is top fail
2: the whole hood gasket is bad.
3: the 2 holes on left corner below windows gasket leaks.
bad window gasket, ever replaced that? , and block those 2 holes forever?
4: the front hood vent leaks. (lots of ways)

1. Definitely not in the best shape. Should be sealed tightly now.
2. Hood gasket is actually in great shape. I reconditioned all the seals with Shin-Etsu grease when I got the car
3. Those two holes - look like a pair of vampire bite holes, right? :) Small and slightly rusty. I thought about sealing those, but it looks like they're supposed to be there.
4. No hood vents.

I'm going to have to see about digging around in that hole where water's coming from, down to the underside drain. Maybe blow some 90psi compressed air down in there with my tank.

EDIT: Just blew a couple tanks worth of air into that and the surrounding areas (only have a 2 gal tank). There's still water hiding in there from the other day. So, wherever it's SUPPOSED to drain, it's not doing that and it's rusting the weld right below there.

I see no obvious location for a drain for that area. Suggestions are welcome. Perhaps a diagram of where the water is supposed to drain.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 9:52 am

Here are a couple of relevant photos.

Circled is a small hole in the weld.

Circled is the drain plug with a slit in it. Nothing appears to be draining there. :)

Wed Jun 27, 2012 1:05 pm

FWIW, I found this via Google:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/manuals/vw_1500_water_leaks/VW_1500_Water_Leaks.pdf

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:34 pm

Check your radio antenna seal and the hood seal. But most likely, it is the two holes under the rubber windshield seal on the drivers side that is the cuklprit. You will need to replace the windshield seal as earlier mentioned.

I had water getting into my floor boards. It was a bad body to pan seal.

Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:39 pm

Definitely check that the six titties that hold the trunk seal curves in place on each top-to-side are in their respective holes and are sealing. I have a difficult time keeping aftermarket trunk seals in place at that spot.

Sat Jun 30, 2012 8:08 pm

FWIW, the car survived the horrendous derecho thunderstorms that blew through DC last night. There was nary a leak, just a little moisture around that rust hole in the weld.

I'll see about applying some more silicone sealant around the windshield, antenna, and the "titties" :)