Leak from Driver side Footwell

[sviswan]

Hello,

As most of us on this forum, i enjoy attacking on and off ramps, and definitely push the car on there a bit. I have noticed starting this summer (it has happened twice) that there is some liquid that starts dripping/seeping out of the Drivers side footwell underneath the center instrument panel. It is a cold liquid.

And i have only felt a few drops both times while cornering. The carpet is not very moist. I can't put my finger on what exactly it could be. Is it some condensation due to the AC on hot summer days, anyone else experienced this?

Thanks!

[thekurgan]

Maybe your evaporator drains are clogged. They are located under the vehicle. Have you ever had the windshield replaced?

[sviswan]

Yes, i had my windshield replaced last year, due to a rock chip. Thanks for the quick reply thekurgan

[thekurgan]

Originally Posted by sviswan

Yes, i had my windshield replaced last year, due to a rock chip. Thanks for the quick reply thekurgan

The cowl cover may not be attached properly, and if it is, you may want to remove it to check the windshield seal. Water leaking from the seals or the door vapor barriers is more common then near the console so I suspect the windshield.

[delirium330]

Originally Posted by thekurgan

The cowl cover may not be attached properly, and if it is, you may want to remove it to check the windshield seal. Water leaking from the seals or the door vapor barriers is more common then near the console so I suspect the windshield.

This. I just had mine replaced and the seal was bent up in several areas. Frankly I don't know how you could replace the windshield and get a flush seal back from the cowl.

I just replaced the lower windshield cowl... took me about 2 hours going slow. It is definitely the most involved lower cowl I've ever done. Compared to doing it on an Acura MDX that took all of 15 minutes.

If you want any tips on replacement let me know. Part is about $85.

[sviswan]

Thanks for the info guys. I will look into that, and hopefully my problem will be solved.

[sviswan]

So, cowl cover looks really good, had my windshield re-installed. Now my AC no longer blows cold air....could it be that my evaporators are clogged and i need to unclog or is this more of an AC Evap replacement issue?

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by delirium330

This. I just had mine replaced and the seal was bent up in several areas. Frankly I don't know how you could replace the windshield and get a flush seal back from the cowl.

I just replaced the lower windshield cowl... took me about 2 hours going slow. It is definitely the most involved lower cowl I've ever done. Compared to doing it on an Acura MDX that took all of 15 minutes.

If you want any tips on replacement let me know. Part is about $85.

Delirium, had my windshield changed recently. Are you saying the cowl itself should keep tight on the windshield to prevent water sipping in, or you mean the glass sealing under the cowl is doing that job? I assume the latter but wanted to double check as my cowl certainly will let some water pass. The guys doing the job did seem pretty handy at what their were doing.

Thanks

[delirium330]

Originally Posted by Helmsman

Delirium, had my windshield changed recently. Are you saying the cowl itself should keep tight on the windshield to prevent water sipping in, or you mean the glass sealing under the cowl is doing that job? I assume the latter but wanted to double check as my cowl certainly will let some water pass. The guys doing the job did seem pretty handy at what their were doing.

Thanks

Technically both. There is another seal, as you referenced, on the underside of the cowl that the glass gets sort of inserted on/around. I think both are important, but the seal on the underside of the cowl is most important.

Optimally the seal on the top of the cowl that sits on top of the glass and that you can see should also form a nice tight seal so 99% of the water gets pushed to the sides and never has to touch that underside cowl seal. The seal on the top of my cowl was nice and tight against the glass until they replaced my windshield. When I got it back it was no longer tight and there was an obvious gap that all of the water would flow under/into. This bothered me for three reasons: 1. It looked horrible with a gap and 2. It made me concerned that they potentially didn't get a good seal on the underside of the cowl and 3. I don't like not being able to see on the underside of the cowl so if water does get past the underside seal it will be too late and end up in a bunch of bad places.

I should have taken a bunch of pictures when I replaced the cowl to show what the underside seal situation looks like. It is a bit tricky to install/re-install if removed and I have trust issues with other people touching my car. They seems to always mess something up or they don't do it perfectly.

Also, it was only a $85 part (cheap I thought considering it is a large part for a M car) and while a bit annoying to install, I sort of enjoy DIY jobs. Like I mentioned, if anyone decides to tackle this, send me a PM and I can share a few tips. Takes about 1-2 hours.

[Helmsman]

Originally Posted by delirium330

Technically both. There is another seal, as you referenced, on the underside of the cowl that the glass gets sort of inserted on/around. I think both are important, but the seal on the underside of the cowl is most important.

Optimally the seal on the top of the cowl that sits on top of the glass and that you can see should also form a nice tight seal so 99% of the water gets pushed to the sides and never has to touch that underside cowl seal. The seal on the top of my cowl was nice and tight against the glass until they replaced my windshield. When I got it back it was no longer tight and there was an obvious gap that all of the water would flow under/into. This bothered me for three reasons: 1. It looked horrible with a gap and 2. It made me concerned that they potentially didn't get a good seal on the underside of the cowl and 3. I don't like not being able to see on the underside of the cowl so if water does get past the underside seal it will be too late and end up in a bunch of bad places.

I should have taken a bunch of pictures when I replaced the cowl to show what the underside seal situation looks like. It is a bit tricky to install/re-install if removed and I have trust issues with other people touching my car. They seems to always mess something up or they don't do it perfectly.

Also, it was only a $85 part (cheap I thought considering it is a large part for a M car) and while a bit annoying to install, I sort of enjoy DIY jobs. Like I mentioned, if anyone decides to tackle this, send me a PM and I can share a few tips. Takes about 1-2 hours.

Thanks Delirium,

again the guys doing the job was really careful, to the point they sent me Pictures from the process without being asked etc, but yes the cowl isn't completely tight on but still look good. I'll have Another look at this. Are you sealing with silicon or something here..?

Cheers

[delirium330]

Originally Posted by Helmsman

Thanks Delirium,

again the guys doing the job was really careful, to the point they sent me Pictures from the process without being asked etc, but yes the cowl isn't completely tight on but still look good. I'll have Another look at this. Are you sealing with silicon or something here..?

Cheers

Yeah sounds like they did a good job. I didn't use any silicon or anything. The shape of the cowl is such that it should pin the windshield rubber seal tightly against the windshield. The guys who did my windshield must have used some sort of prying tools that bent the plastic cowl enough to cause a gap to exist.