Ford Focus saloon wet back seat

[alan333]

Hi,
Ford Focus saloon 2006 is letting water in somewhere. It doesn't have a sunroof.

The boot carpet is soaked, worst towards the LHS front, plus the LHS boot side liner panel is wet, again mainly towards the front, about 3 inches up from the bottom. The LHS back seat is wet at the bottom of the backrest and the back of the base (ie where the boot carpet touches both).

The spare wheel well is completely dry, as are the carpets in the footwells and the headlining. The rear quarter light trim seems dry but it's probably well spaced out from the body so water could maybe run behind it un-noticed.

I removed the rear light and checked the seal but it seems ok and there's no water track marks. There's a vent at bumper height which had a drop of water at the bottom, and the vent itself can move a few mm fore/aft, but this is well behind where the wettest sections are. The whole of the metalwork underneath the boot opening is wet (but could be bad condensation).
I checked the other side and, if anything, the vent had two drops of water on it, and the vent moved the same few mm each way. The boot carpet here is dry.
There's a seam of mastic at the LHS of the boot floor where it meets the vertical, but this seems intact and sound.
The boot rubber seal seems well seated and intact. The drain run at the rear lights is clear.

Any suggestions learned people?

 

[Burnerman]

How are you testing the rubber boot seal Alan? Have you tried closing the lid, trapping some paper over the seal as you do so?
Is it possible to get into the boot from the back seat area easily?
John

 

[alan333]

Thanks John. I didn't test the boot seal but your trapped paper trick sounds like a good option. The back seats fold down so I can enter the boot ok, albeit a bit restricted. I was going to get inside and observe while someone hoses the car, but though I'd ask first, just in case threre is a common problem area to check.

 

[Burnerman]

It looks like being jammed in the boot whilst a hose is played on the lid is the best if somewhat claustrophobic solution
Typical areas are the rear lights, as you know, the lid seal and the aerial, if its a rear mounted one.
Have fun!
John

 

[alan333]

Had a look today from inside while my lovely assistant hosed the car. Both side vents let water in around the seals, worst on the LHS. I removed them, cleaned them up and added foam draught excluder to 'thicken' the seal. Further flooding with a hose showed a slight drip, but seemed to be coming from the rubber flaps of the vent itself rather than the seal. Hopefully it's cured, I'll let you know how it goes after some rain.
Thanks again John

 

[Burnerman]

Are these the vents that exit through the back panel into the bumper area, Alan? It sounds like you may have cracked it, but its a hell of a long way from there to the rear seats?
John

 

[alan333]

Yes that's the ones John. It sure is a long way for water to travel and I can't get my head round why the spare wheel well didn't also fill. The only thing I can think of is that the car is always parked on a flat street but with a slight left camber, maybe it's just enough for the water to run straight forward rather than a bit to the right? Other than the vents there was no sign of water ingress with a hose running for about 15 mins. I also checked the boot seal using a narrow piece of paper as you suggested, but it held tight in all positions. But I was wrong about the footwells, the LHS rear was a bit wet.

Thanks again for your help, I'll let you know how successflu it's been after some rain

 

[Burnerman]

Aye, lets see how it goes!
One thing....on occasion, water gets into the rear passenger door void, running down the door glass. Instead of draining to the outside, as its supposed to, the water runs over the door seal rubber and soaks the carpet - makes a pong too! There's usually a water trace over the inner sill, and some kitchen roll is handy just to see.
John

 

[alan333]

Thanks I'll check that out too

 

[alan333]

Just discovered I hadn't updated this old thread at the time.
Happy to say the problem hasn't returned since repairing the vents - maybe the info might help others in the future.