Hi All,
I have a 2007 3.0si coupe and I noticed it smelled kind of bad when I got in it the last couple days so I started poking around seeing if I had somehow left a grocery bag in it or something and on a whim pulled the battery compartment tray off the floor and found about an inch of water in the compartment. I took the battery out and cleaned up all the water then started searching around for the leak.
What I found was that none of the carpet was wet from what I can tell, other than condensation on the under side of the battery compartment cover, and any carpet that directly touched that tray has also wicked water on the edges. But no dampness anywhere around the hatch or under the taillights as far as I could tell. So I started searching and it appears to be a common issue, I think I've read about 50 different threads on trunk leaks in the last 24 hours. I know at some point the best thing to do is probably start hosing it down and see if I can isolate it, but it's supposed to rain here for basically the next week straight and I wanted to get a head start on this.
So, a few questions after reading all the threads I could find:
1) As I said above, I see that the taillights are a very common leak point. I didn't find any water under or around them, but it had probably also been a couple days since it was in the rain. Is it possible for them to leak in somewhere under the carpet so it wouldn't be wet? Should I replace the seals just to be sure?
2) I've seen many references in other threads to air vents behind the bumper being a common leak point, however I've not been able to find any information on what anyone does to actually fix that, or even how to access them other than some mention of them being behind carpet somewhere. I've looked on RealOEM and can't seem to find the part either. Do those leak into the battery compartment?
3) It looks like the convertibles have a lot of problems with drains behind the soft top becoming clogged and backing up into the trunk. Since I have a coupe I can't have that issue, but are there other backed up drains that could be causing the problem? I saw a mention in a post about something around the fuel cap, but I don't see anything that looks promising on any of the parts diagrams. I also assume I would probably have wet carpet if that were the case. I just don't see how so much water got in without wetting the carpet anywhere that I can find.
4) When cleaning, I did notice some water sitting in the bottom of the big rubber grommet that the battery cables go in to head towards the front of the car. Now, it's totally possible the water already in the compartment just sloshed up in there when I was driving, or even that I splashed it up in there while cleaning, but I just don't know for sure. I found one post, that referenced another (unlinked) post, that said some people have driven through puddles and had water forced up into that channel and out the grommet into the battery compartment. It has been very wet here lately and, while I haven't driven through anything remotely dangerously high, I've certainly driven through a lot of puddles. Is this a thing that happens and is considered okay? Is there something I should be sealing to prevent it? In searching, I read horror stories of whole wiring harnesses becoming corroded from moisture and requiring thousands of dollars in repair, I certainly don't want that!
Anyway, sorry for the novel, I just wanted to provide as much information as I could. I appreciate any help you can offer.
Thanks,
Colin
I have a 2007 3.0si coupe and I noticed it smelled kind of bad when I got in it the last couple days so I started poking around seeing if I had somehow left a grocery bag in it or something and on a whim pulled the battery compartment tray off the floor and found about an inch of water in the compartment. I took the battery out and cleaned up all the water then started searching around for the leak.
What I found was that none of the carpet was wet from what I can tell, other than condensation on the under side of the battery compartment cover, and any carpet that directly touched that tray has also wicked water on the edges. But no dampness anywhere around the hatch or under the taillights as far as I could tell. So I started searching and it appears to be a common issue, I think I've read about 50 different threads on trunk leaks in the last 24 hours. I know at some point the best thing to do is probably start hosing it down and see if I can isolate it, but it's supposed to rain here for basically the next week straight and I wanted to get a head start on this.
So, a few questions after reading all the threads I could find:
1) As I said above, I see that the taillights are a very common leak point. I didn't find any water under or around them, but it had probably also been a couple days since it was in the rain. Is it possible for them to leak in somewhere under the carpet so it wouldn't be wet? Should I replace the seals just to be sure?
2) I've seen many references in other threads to air vents behind the bumper being a common leak point, however I've not been able to find any information on what anyone does to actually fix that, or even how to access them other than some mention of them being behind carpet somewhere. I've looked on RealOEM and can't seem to find the part either. Do those leak into the battery compartment?
3) It looks like the convertibles have a lot of problems with drains behind the soft top becoming clogged and backing up into the trunk. Since I have a coupe I can't have that issue, but are there other backed up drains that could be causing the problem? I saw a mention in a post about something around the fuel cap, but I don't see anything that looks promising on any of the parts diagrams. I also assume I would probably have wet carpet if that were the case. I just don't see how so much water got in without wetting the carpet anywhere that I can find.
4) When cleaning, I did notice some water sitting in the bottom of the big rubber grommet that the battery cables go in to head towards the front of the car. Now, it's totally possible the water already in the compartment just sloshed up in there when I was driving, or even that I splashed it up in there while cleaning, but I just don't know for sure. I found one post, that referenced another (unlinked) post, that said some people have driven through puddles and had water forced up into that channel and out the grommet into the battery compartment. It has been very wet here lately and, while I haven't driven through anything remotely dangerously high, I've certainly driven through a lot of puddles. Is this a thing that happens and is considered okay? Is there something I should be sealing to prevent it? In searching, I read horror stories of whole wiring harnesses becoming corroded from moisture and requiring thousands of dollars in repair, I certainly don't want that!
Anyway, sorry for the novel, I just wanted to provide as much information as I could. I appreciate any help you can offer.
Thanks,
Colin
I found removing the rear bumper (easy to do) was the best method to replace them.
