I have a very solid rust free 1991 sedan. I am getting water into the car on the front passenger side floor of the car. The carpet gets very wet. There are no holes below this area. Window gaskets are good. Does anyone know how the water is getting into the car and how to prevent it.

Thanks

Dale Miller

Are you sure it isn't your windshield gasket? I had my windshield replaced - bad seal, and in heavy rain water got into my fuse box. Got another windshield and resealed and it was gone...

... of what Manolo described. This is how Volvo intended it to work. If the sills clog up with leaves etc. the water will have to go somewhere, and that is into the compartment.



Erling.
--
My 240 Page

can create rust and skanky odors.

The under-carpet pad (in my 1988 it is sponge rubber) will hold water until it rusts a hole in the floorbaords and the water can drain. It will not evaporate because of the rubber scrim top of the pad.

Also, when the RF pad is full, it can drain into the seat foot well, and start rusting things in there.

Been There Done That on an entire 245. Even had to learn now to drain the pond that is between the front and rear foot wells. Used rolled up newspapers.

Check the front pad and the rear pad to see how big a drying out job you need to do. Pull the door sills and lift the carpet so you can get a hand under the pad and feel for wet.

Hope you're pretty dry, but knowing is better than not.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)

Other posts identified the most likely culprits.

Your fuel injection control module and relay are near the passengers feet and can get wet if the wiper motor gromet leaks. They don't like water.

If the problem is not one of the three common leak points previously identified, it could be the windshield seal, though this is unlikely on a '91.

Also could be water backing up in the rail below the doorsill. Run your hose into the air intake at the base of your windshield, You should see several strong streams of water drain out below the front doors. If not, pull up the plastic doorsills and pull back the carpet and pop out the big plastic plugs and dig the dirt and leaves out of that hollow rail. Much easier if seats are out, but seat removal is not mandatory. I used a 1/2" plastic hose on my vacuum cleaner. Poke a wire up in the drains from beneath to loosen the debris in the drains.

Pull up the carpet and dry out the cavity below the passenger floorboard as well. That is the low point and you don't want water sloshing around in there.

This may be a dumb question, but does the car have a sunroof? If yes, clear out the front drain tubes that run down the A-pillars with compressed air. If it doesn't have a sunroof, then the wiper motor seal or ECU harness seal is suspect.

jorrell
--
89 244 171K miles, 92 245 241K miles, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup

Can you give a little more information about the drain tubes that you mentioned? I just bought an 83 244 with a sunroof yesterday, and this morning I was bummed to feel water drop on my head during certain turn and water drops on my left knee during others.

Thanks,
JS

Seems that with a sunroof it's not all that water-tight even with new seals, so there are drains at each corner.

After a rain or a wash, have a look at the outlet ends of the front drains. You should see about 1/2 inch of tube sticking out of the "A" pillar between the hinges. There should be a bit of a drip on the tube ends.

The rear drains are connected to the drains from the under-the-rear-window air vent. Look in the trunk front corners for them, sunroof drains are "Y" connected to them.

Check the FAQs for tips on how to clean the drains.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)

Remove the glove box and the carpet underneath it - very easy to do. Then contort yourself and look at where the windshield wiper motor comes through the firewall - is there a rubber washer surrounding the shaft, or can you see space around it?

Water flows right down that path, the only thing keeping it out of your passenger compartment is a washer that often gets tossed with a wiper motor replacement. Dealer part - about $4, tops.

Good luck, do it quick - it can kill a brick much faster than engine neglect. Rust kills.
--
Sean - now frolicking in the Land of a Thousand 240's (aka, Fredericksburg) thrice a week.