Help!
My 2001 Bora has developed a leak. the water is dripping down from behind the Glovebox onto the Passenger footwell. It's not a swimmint pool yet, but I want to get to the bottom of the problem
I've looked closely at the pollen filter (and broke a piece off the cover whilst putting it back, which I've replaced), which seems OK.
I had the car at VW to be checked and they could not find anything, and suggested a carpet removal costing 5 hours labour and £900 new carpet (to which I declined)
The water is definitely getting in through the area where the pollen filter is located though, as the whole area is damp, and the ?Fire-resistant fabric is very wet.
I sloshed water over the windscreen and then checked inside. The water comes through very quickly into the cabin.
My thoughts on the source are:
1) Possible blocked drainage causing backup of water
2) Pollen filter / cover(I know this is a common fault)
3) Windscreen seal failure - although it's the original screen
Any thoughts on how I can proceed with determining the point of entry and any other sources of the leak?
Many thanks in advance
Charles
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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It's usually the pollen filter, check it again, bear in mind carpets take ages to dry out in this weather.
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I like the way they tried to sell you a carpet even though they had not found the leak.Presumably when the new one got wet you would just pop back for another.
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Yeah. I kinda laughed at the offer. They could not guarantee finding the leak even after that.
naming and shaming (deleted - er, no. DD), generally, the service I get from this particular dealer has been good.
I spoke to Heathrow VW, who were actually quite helpful, there was a service tech at the Parts desk who suggested that it is more than likely the pollen filter housing seal which has gone.
New housing with seal was £8 and in stock!!! Better than the carpet option
I'm going to try replacing this at the weekend and see how it goes. If it does indeed solve the leak, I'll post confirmation here.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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Phew. Just finished the replacement of the Filter housing. I sloshed water over the screen and so far no water inside.
The old housing seal was very squelchy with water, so I'm almost convinced that this was indeed the case. For £8, this is a cheap fix to the problem.
It's fairly simple to change, although I have a Haynes manual which somewhat helped. Be aware that removing and fixing back the scuttle panel should be done by hand. Using any tools could chip, crack or shatter the windscreen.
1) Remove the Windscreen Wipers. Use some masking tape on the glass to mark where they should be when replacing them
2) Remove the rubber strip in front of the scuttle panel.Remove the Pollen filter cover screws
3) Remove the Scuttle panel. This is the hardest bit. To get it off, remove the small black plastic trim from the edge of the front wings where they meet the pillar. Then you can pull the scuttle panel from the corner. Take your time. It is really easy once you have the first bit unclipped.
4) Remove panel and cover. Remove the Filter from the top of the filter housing. Remove the 2 plastic Bolts from the housing. Lift off the housing (it will be quite stiff)
5) Replace housing. Clean underneath with damp cloth, then dry thoroughly. Replace Filter, and place Filter Cover over (Important to do this, as the filter cover is ever so difficult to get back with the scuttle in place)
6) Clean the Scuttle thorougly. Clean the Windscreen edge thoroughly to get rid of any grime and grit.
Spray the edge of the scuttle with WD40
7) Carefully replace the Scuttle. Push firmly into place, do not hit it. You'll hear some clicks as the clips fix into place. once your satisfied that it's in place, replace the rubber seal in front of the scuttle.
8) Replace the Windscreen Wipers and the trim you removed from the wings.
All set. I hope this helps anyone else with the same problem.
Charles
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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i have the same ingress problem with my VW passatt 2001 model and i thank you for taking the time to advise what may cure the problem
By the way i owned a another new ( 1997 passat) and this also had water in the footwell , is this a common problem for VW ?
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yes, a common problem. my son works for vw main dealer and has repaired dozens of pollen filter housings. jag.
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Unfortunately...Replacing the Pollen filter housing has not cured the problem
With the recent downpour, the water is still getting in somewhere.
I have tried again to trace it. It appears that water is coming down the bulkhead on the passenger side footwell. I have heard it could be a windscreen seal. I masticked the windscreen as the seal did look a bit dodgy. Fingers crossed that this may solve it (I'm not hopeful)
If that's not it.....could it be a bulkhead seal somewhere. The car has never had an accident/shunt.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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I was able to shove a thin piece of paper inside the car between the windscreen and dashboard. When I pulled it out, it was soaking wet. This seems to confirm my theory of Windscreen seal dissolving away.
The mastick did not work - heavy rain just washed it all away.
I called AutoWindscreens and Autoglass....Gues what, it's not covered by insurance - wear and tear.
Cost to remove and reseal £50+VAT, but here's the interesting part, they cannot guarantee not to break the screen getting it out, which would mean an insurance job to replace it on top of the fix price.
So, I've bought some Loctite Windscreen Sealant. I'm going to try it when it's dry.
By the way, I would thoroughly recommend a dehumidifier. I used one to dry out the car and it works a treat. I ran an extension lead into the car (shut the cable in the door) and had the unit on top of the passenger seat.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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There isn't a blocked drainage channel in the bottom of the scuttle area is there? This is a known problem on Cavalier's for water ingress.
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No. Drainage channels are fine. the water is coming in higher than the drainage channel, and the seal between the windscreen and car is definitely compromised. I'm hoping that the sealant will do the trick, once the weather is dry.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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Charles
That windscreen sealent won't fix it!! You don't know where the leak is.
The seals don't dissolve away, I would suspect that the screen has been replaced in the past at some time and hasn't been correctly fitted with a nice straight even bead of adhesive. This has left a gap somewhere.
Realisticly, the only way to fully garantee a full seal is to remove and refit the screen. but bear in mind that if you had a small crack in the screen, from say a small stone chip, then a replacement screen can be put through your insurance. This would of course come with a warantee.
(Glass-Tech)
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It's the original screen!!!!. I can see gaps at the top, and at the bottom, wheree the rubber strip does not meet the adhesive.
I know a replacement screen is the way to go...I need to tailgate some lorries on the way home, or if you have any suggestions...
but in the meantime I need to stop the water leaking in temporarily.
Thanks for the info though
Charles
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 19. TDI
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Masking tape? Outdoor grade sellotape?
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I wasna fu but just had plenty.
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It's the original screen!!!!.
Are you sure it's the screen then? it it has a gap now it has had one since new and so will have been leaking for 4 years!! The seals you can see around the edge don't have any sealing properties, they are just asthetic trims.
Do you have a sunroof?
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Yes. I'm quite sure now. The car does not have a sunroof, and for water to be between the windscreen and the dashboard does mean that either I've got a large rust hole in the roof or pillar, or the windscreen.
I think you are correct, it probably was not sealed from new, and gradually the weather/rain has made it worse.
I pulled back the rubber trim from both the drivers and passenger door and compared the seal, The windscreen sits on rubber strips and the rubber than sits on the car body (probably with sealant to ensure water tightness.
The drivers side rubber is flush with the car all the way down to the bottom.
The Passenger side has an increasing gap from about 4 inches from the bottom of the screen. Gap starts at about 1mm and becomdes 5mm by the time it gets to the corner of the screen.
The way that water runs off the roof of the bora, it goes into the rubber channel at the top of the windscreen and then down below the rubber door trim and runs down the windscreen edge to the bottom and out through the pollen filter area. A Lot of water can therefore pass next to the gap in the passenger side and get into the car.
Now the annonying (funny now though) part. I sealed the gap with some Loctite filler (£4.10 from Halfords) yesterday and let it dry thoroughly.
Pretty good, let's see some rain and cross fingers that the water stops coming in.
I had a small stone chip in the passenger side which has been there for some time.
This morning. It was a Hard frost in my area last night.
....the frost caused the stone chip to start a crack in the windscreen....I've called Autoglass for a replacement
Anecdote: Frost was also on the inside of the windscreen in the bottom passengerside corner of the screen., so I hadn't completely sealed the windscreen.
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VW Bora (51) 2.0 SE
VW Touran (54) 1.9 TDI
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