Wet drivers footwell

[Chris Chapman]

My wife’s 2003 1.4 TDI has recently developed a water leak in the drivers footwell. The car is not used a great deal having only done 91000 miles in 20 years, so tends to stand a lot. The carpet is wet but with no sign of water ingress. The water is clear, so not screenwash or cooling system. No cooling system leaks and the heater works fine. We have not driven through any floods. Have checked pipe from wiper arm to engine bay. I frequently clear the leaves out. Noticed it because of condensation on windscreen. I have run water around the screen, which is a possible suspect of course. Would be pleased with any suggestions and whether this is a common fault. Many thanks in advance

[Stevey Y]

1 hour ago, Chris Chapman said:

My wife’s 2003 1.4 TDI has recently developed a water leak in the drivers footwell. The car is not used a great deal having only done 91000 miles in 20 years, so tends to stand a lot. The carpet is wet but with no sign of water ingress. The water is clear, so not screenwash or cooling system. No cooling system leaks and the heater works fine. We have not driven through any floods. Have checked pipe from wiper arm to engine bay. I frequently clear the leaves out. Noticed it because of condensation on windscreen. I have run water around the screen, which is a possible suspect of course. Would be pleased with any suggestions and whether this is a common fault. Many thanks in advance

Hi if it was tap water you ran round the screen you won't find any leaks as tap water has a far higher surface tension than rain water has and won't do the low molecular creep found with rain water, get some water out of a water butt and if its a screen sealing issue it will go straight through.

Steve.

[Chris Chapman]

Yes it was tap water so that sounds like a good idea. I will try again and for longer and let you know how it goes. Thanks Chris 

[Chris Chapman]

Thanks for your advice Steve. It took a while to get around to fixing the problem. Seemed to be leak at the base of the windscreen. Used some sealant, put back the carpet and it seems fine now. Thanks again.

[Steve Q]

Glad you got sorted 🙂