Focus under water

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Mon 2 Dec 2002 00:09
Focus under water - grahamE
I have been looking for a Focus hatchback and went to view one at a local Ford dealer. The carpet on the front passenger side was a little wet. Salesman said "it is coming from the pollen filter, it has not been put back correctly after it was checked" Is this b.....it or an example of the standard of service to be expected? When I checked the rear carpets we were talking serious flooding, definitely not caused by an ill fitting pollen filter. Is the Focus leaky or have I just found a bad one?
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 00:22
Focus under water - puntoo
Never had a problem on my Focus, its a T reg. Walk away as there a plenty more out there.

p.s the chassis is the best I have ever driven, but watch out for electrical problems.
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 07:41
Focus under water - TrevorP
"it is coming from the pollen filter, it has not been put back correctly after it was checked"

suggesting tricky job - I have heard same from other quarters.

But WHY was it not done correctly?
At a Main Dealer?
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 09:21
Focus under water - Chas{P}
GrahamE

There is a TSB (Technical Service Bulletin) about this problem issued in July 99.

The fix involves modifying the cowl grille and additional sealing.

To be fair the dealer would probably have done this fix before the car was delivered to the customer.

HTH

Charles
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 10:03
Focus under water - Baskerville
Ok, but would you want to buy a car that you *know* has been soaking inside for some unspecified time? When will the rot set in? Early, no doubt.
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 13:13
Focus under water - BrianW
Is a main dealer actually trying to sell the car?

Surely it's in their interest to :
1. Put the filter back correctly
2. Dry out the interior

BEFORE putting it on the forecourt.

That type of reply would have me walking away from that dealer PDQ.
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 13:44
Focus under water - AR-CoolC
Yes the pollen filter has been leaking. this is caused by the scuttle panel cover not being replaced properly.
The pollen filter is on the passenger side of the vehicle, check that the cover on that half is fitting tight against the screen with no signs of damage. It should be sealed with a butyle tape.
But as puntoo says walk away plenty more out there.
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Mon 2 Dec 2002 17:54
Focus under water - timp
Charles is correct, there was a TSB about this on early cars, e.g. 1998-1999(+?).

I bought a 99T Focus recently, and this TSB had been carried out - apparent by shiny metal rivets on the pollen filter cover (between rear of bonnet and bottom of windscreen). I was suspicious about this at first, but found out about the TSB, and many other cars of a similar age have had this fix.

I took this as a good sign - they had bothered to carry out the TSBs/recalls. The carpet in the passenger footwell was dry, and has remained completely dry despite the car being parked out in the rain for the wettest November for a long time(!)
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Tue 3 Dec 2002 00:02
Focus under water - mutley
This is a known problem especially for cars not serviced by Ford agents.The pollen filter housing should be sealed when replaced and most don't bother.
Mutley
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Thu 5 Dec 2002 03:59
Focus under water - L'escargot
I had this happen on my 99T Focus during really heavy rain. My dealer said it was because the pollen filter had not been sealed properly after the filter had been changed during a service. It subsequently still happened during heavy rain. Eventually I found that it only happened if I parked across a slope (i.e. not up or down the slope) and then only if the right hand side of the car was lower than the left. The only place that I had to park across a slope was at work, so all I had to do was ensure that I was facing the right way for the right hand side of the car to be higher than the left. Problem solved. I wash my car on level ground, and no matter how much water I squirt on the windscreen none ever leaks into the car. Strange but true !!
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Thu 5 Dec 2002 17:20
Focus under water - Blue {P}
Charles, do you know if there's anything similar for the Fiesta(99 - 02)? I'm not getting any leaking, well at least I don't think so, I've never checked.

But I did inspect the pollen filter a little while back, it looked like a straightforward job to change, and I was suspicous that it wasn't fitted right as I sometimes got strange smells etc. So I had a look and it seemed fine, but I didn't do any sealing or anyting, is this necessary?

Blue
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Mon 9 Jun 2003 09:52
Focus under water - Snakey
Exactly the same thing has happened to my 99T Focus, it remains watertight until parked with the right hand side lower then leaks heavily into the passenger footwell.

Being covered by a Ford Dealers warranty appears to be of no use either as they insist on charging an 'inspection' fee.

Is it simply a case of putting some of this tape on the plastic cover on the bulkhead? Easier to do myself then leave the car at the dealer for a week and be liable for any cost they can conjure up!
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Fri 14 Feb 2003 21:16
Focus under water - thinker
My Y Focus recently had a leak through the windscreen and pollen filter, due to broken mastic under the winscreen seal, a common problem according to the RAC Windscreen man who kindly filled the seal with mastic to prevent a recurrence. The plloen filter allows the water to enter the inside and drip down into the passenger well.
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