MR2 Roadster Owners Club

The Workshop => Maintenance, Problems & Troubleshooting => Topic started by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 11:18

Title: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 11:18
Morning all,

I always though that the initial dampness in the drivers side footwell was due to when I first bought the 2 with a tear in the roof, and that the dealer I bought it from left it out in the rain without patching it properly!

However, after this weeks heavy rain, once again the footwell on the drivers side has become wet again!

Now, I checked the drain plugs and indeed, the drivers side drain plug was blocked, and the inside of the 'boot' was full of water.  So I removed the side vent, cleared out the slug and removed all the water from the boot.

What I find strange is the the carpet at the back of the drivers seat is bone dry, and the carpet right at the front of the 2 (just under the steering column) is bone dry.  However, the carpet area right at the front of the square leather heel scuff 'thing' is soaking wet, while the area of carpet and sound deadening just in front the drivers seat is just 'damp'.

I've read a couple of the posts here and it seems others have experienced similar dampness.

I was wondering if the blocked drain could be the problem, and if so how, as I can't figure out how the water could bypass the back carpet, slightly dampen the area in front of the seat but soak the area just under the foot pedals!

I'm gonna carry on using the wet vac and hairdryer, as I'm not confident in removing the seat and carpets to get access to the sound absorber (unless I don't have to?  Can anyone advise on this?).

Has anyone experienced this recently, and if so, what did you do to rectify the problem?  Without jumping to any conclusion, do you think MrT should take a look at this issue?

Here's hoping the sun stays out today - it'll help to dry the footwell out  s:D :D s:D !

Cheers!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on August 28, 2010, 11:27
Have you been driving your car a lot? More than likely be the dampness from your feet not drying out. Take out your Mat and give it  a scrub with a cloth and let it get some air, then monitor it again by leaving it in the rain without driving it.

Quote from: "knightime"Morning all,

I always though that the initial dampness in the drivers side footwell was due to when I first bought the 2 with a tear in the roof, and that the dealer I bought it from left it out in the rain without patching it properly!

However, after this weeks heavy rain, once again the footwell on the drivers side has become wet again!

Now, I checked the drain plugs and indeed, the drivers side drain plug was blocked, and the inside of the 'boot' was full of water.  So I removed the side vent, cleared out the slug and removed all the water from the boot.

What I find strange is the the carpet at the back of the drivers seat is bone dry, and the carpet right at the front of the 2 (just under the steering column) is bone dry.  However, the carpet area right at the front of the square leather heel scuff 'thing' is soaking wet, while the area of carpet and sound deadening just in front the drivers seat is just 'damp'.

I've read a couple of the posts here and it seems others have experienced similar dampness.

I was wondering if the blocked drain could be the problem, and if so how, as I can't figure out how the water could bypass the back carpet, slightly dampen the area in front of the seat but soak the area just under the foot pedals!

I'm gonna carry on using the wet vac and hairdryer, as I'm not confident in removing the seat and carpets to get access to the sound absorber (unless I don't have to?  Can anyone advise on this?).

Has anyone experienced this recently, and if so, what did you do to rectify the problem?  Without jumping to any conclusion, do you think MrT should take a look at this issue?

Here's hoping the sun stays out today - it'll help to dry the footwell out  s:D :D s:D !

Cheers!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 12:12
Quote from: "Ilogik"Have you been driving your car a lot? More than likely be the dampness from your feet not drying out. Take out your Mat and give it  a scrub with a cloth and let it get some air, then monitor it again by leaving it in the rain without driving it.

Hey there buddy!

No, I had the brake discs and pads done on Monday, and hadn't driven the car since as I was on holiday and was using the Punto to ferry the wife and kids around!

The first time I drove it was yesterday, which was when I noticed it  s:( :( s:( !

The wet vac has been running for around 45 minutes, on the same spot, and there's still a ton of water coming out - the downpour this week was pretty heavy down here!!!

Just out of interest, If I wanna remove the sound deadening material, I take it I'll have to remove the seat???

Thanks for the reply man!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on August 28, 2010, 12:15
Strange that, could be a mechanic walking in and out of the rain, try using just a towel see how much water it absorbs. Strange to get getting that much water in drivers footwell. Other option is put some paper on the floor, get the hose pipe and start testing high pressure water around window and door seals see if anything goes in.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on August 28, 2010, 12:16
 l viewtopic.php?f=47&t=12582 (http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=12582) l
Edit:
Sorry didnt read properly,to remove the seats is dead easy as it is only 4 bolts and an electrical connector on each seat then you can remove the 4 center console screws to lift this up to disconnect electrical connectors and gear knob,then its just bits of trim to remove carpets but its probably just left over water from the blocked drain.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 12:46
Thanks for the advice guys!

Yeh, it's defo a good idea to sit in the car with the hose going over to see if there actually is a leak somewhere - just need to find a baby sitter to take the urchins off my hands - then my Mrs can help!

Thanks for that life of bryan - I think - judging by the amount of water still coming out, that I'll have no choice but to remove the seat and trims to remove the absorbant and dry it indoors!  Fingers crossed it was just a blocked drain!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 13:07
Quote from: "life of bryan"...lift this up to disconnect electrical connectors and gear knob,then its just bits of trim to remove carpets but its probably just left over water from the blocked drain.

Hey buddy - dumb question, but I should disconnect the battery before disconnecting the electrical connectors under the seat yeh?

Cheers!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on August 28, 2010, 13:12
This might help,although I can't get the pics to show on the second topic.
 l viewtopic.php?f=47&t=12545 (http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=12545) l
 l viewtopic.php?f=47&t=6370 (http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=47&t=6370) l
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 28, 2010, 13:21
Thanks for the links buddy!  Now to find some time...
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 30, 2010, 14:05
Ok, I was just gonna attempt to remove the carpet when I've hit on a snag.

How do you remove the footrest?  I unscrewed the four screws visable, but they just hold on the silver front plate.  The left of the foot rest is movable, but the right side won't budge.  There aren't any other screws visable.

Is it just a snap on, in which case I use brute force to remove it, of am I missing something?

Cheers!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on August 30, 2010, 15:46
Ah, just gave it some wellie and it popped off!

OMG - the whole section of sound absorber was saturated!!!  I'm guessing the initial soaking the front of the car took just before I bought it has meant it's never had a real chance of drying out properly.  That and the blocked vent!

Anyway, I've removed it and gave the car a good soaking from loads of angles with the hose for around 10 minutes, and so far there is no evidence of any leaks at all.

Incidentally I didn't have to remove the seat in the end (not that I could!!!) as it the absorber was a separate section from the rear, so all in all it's worked out ok - just need to let it dry and hope I can live with the smell  s:( :( s:(   s:) :) s:) !!!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on September 12, 2010, 16:44
Strangely im having this exact issue with a wet drivers side footwell. Going to inspect the front window drains.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on October 12, 2010, 20:59
Jesus Holy Christ - will this issue never end?!?

Well this weekend I thought, 'That sound absorber should really go back in!', so I removed the trim and lifted up the carpet and...Frak Me - there was a puddle of water under it   s:evil: :evil: s:evil:  !  I used the wet vack to remove most of it, then a towel, then I felt underneath, and right at the back of the drivers footwell, under the seat, it still felt wet.

So my wife says, 'Is the back behind the seat wet too?', and so I check by hand but couldn't feel anything.  But then I push down and blow me - there's a squelching sound!

Now, I tried removing the four bolts for the seat, but could only get the two at the rear and the one near the door.  'No probs' I thought, 'I can just lift the rear of the seat from the bodywork and pull out the sound absorber like I did the front'...except that the blasted sound absorber at the back is glued to the flippin carpet   s:evil: :evil: s:evil:    s:evil: :evil: s:evil:  !!!  Why did Toyota do this???  Why couldn't the rear be the same as the front i.e. separate???

Needless to say in order to dry the sound absorber proerly I'm now going to have to remove the whole carpet and dry it indoors.  This will more than likely put the car out of action for around a week I reckon, but I have some time off at the beginning of November so I'll just have to do it then.

I still think the water soakage issue is the remnants of when the drains blocked and overflowed into the luggage compartments - but the only way I'll really know is to remove the carpet, dry the sound absorber, make sure the drains are clear then wait for another downpour!!!

What a pain in the a$$ - bearing in mind that the carpet is 'plastic' backed, has anyone ever tried to dry this kind of heavy saturation without removing the carpet?  I have a wetvac, but it's not powerfull enough  s:( :( s:(  !  I'm concerned that I may have damaged the head of last bolt and may not be able to remove it - in which case I may have to pay MrT to do it - and 'financially!!!) I'm not that keen to venture down that route...
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on October 12, 2010, 21:19
If you get stuck for removing the bolt then these are pretty good.   m http://www.screwfix.com/prods/96028/Van ... emover-Set (http://www.screwfix.com/prods/96028/Van-Car-Accessories/Sockets-Hex/Irwin-5-Piece-Bolt-Grip-Nut-Remover-Set) m
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on October 12, 2010, 21:21
same symptoms as mine, can't work out what it is, strange that the problem tends to occure drivers side in most instances, is there any pipework or other known sources than could cause water to get in? my drains clear. Plus I have a hardtop/
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on October 13, 2010, 18:13
Quote from: "life of bryan"If you get stuck for removing the bolt then these are pretty good.   m http://www.screwfix.com/prods/96028/Van ... emover-Set (http://www.screwfix.com/prods/96028/Van-Car-Accessories/Sockets-Hex/Irwin-5-Piece-Bolt-Grip-Nut-Remover-Set) m

Buddy - thanks for that!  I knew there had to be something that could rescue impatient people like me   s:D :D s:D !  Picked up the set from Ebay for £14 - used my 'Plus' points to get £8 off - bargain!

Quote from: "Ilogik"same symptoms as mine, can't work out what it is, strange that the problem tends to occure drivers side in most instances, is there any pipework or other known sources than could cause water to get in? my drains clear.

That is weird!  I'm hopefull that it was just years of blocked drains and overspill that has caused my problem.  When I remove the carpet I'm gonna lay down some chaulk dust and then give the car a good soaking to see if anything apparent shows up.  I'm hopeing to be lucky, but you never know...Do you think you may have to go down the same route as me?
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: knightime on October 18, 2010, 10:52
Well, this weekend I removed the seats and managed to pull the carpet back - yep - the whole of the back sound absorber was saturated, to the point where I had to 'shave' it off the carpet for me to do it any good (I'll never understand why Toyota did that...).  Anywho, it's in the airing cupboard drying out, and I'm gonna put it back next week.

The wetness was only on the drivers side, which leads me to believe it was the rain coming through the tear in the roof last year - we'll find out when I give the car a good soaking!!!

On a related note - I wasn't able to remove the carpet entirely as a section was stuck under the plastic bit where the key goes in to lock the petrol cap and boot.  I was hesitant to undo the two nuts I could see holding the whole mechanism in, in case there was an easier way of removing it!  If anyone has removed their entire carpet can you please let me know if those bolts would do the job?

Cheers!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on October 28, 2010, 14:05
I had a similar experience. Basically where the steering column goes through into the front of the car there is a rubber boot.
On mine this had split allowing water in when driving through puddles.
Might be worth checking this is a ll in one peice.

Good luck.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: loadswine on February 27, 2011, 13:11
Bit of a thread resurrection, but just been out to my new 2 that's been sitting for a week and carpet is wet on both sides. I'm suspecting the entry is from the door seals somewhere. One particular piece of rubber trim on the leading edge of the door, below glass level isn't stuck to the door and I wonder if it could be that, or maybe it isn't meant to be stuck to the door at that point. I've cleaned out a couple of grooves in the rubbers.
Can someone do a check on their roadster at some point to see if the rubber trim is fixed to the door all the way down please? Thanks.  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: philster_d on February 27, 2011, 14:03
May not be relavent but for my mk2 t bar. I got some rubber rejuvenator and that made the rubber much more sealable and "rubbery" again. It might help, if thats realy your problem.

Phil
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on February 27, 2011, 16:46
I found mine leaking in from around the window, best bet is to get some tape and mask around the window area and spray with a hose, only real way to see the issue is to remove the carpet,  as the sound proofing is like a giant sponge, it could also be quite wet on the underside and starting to rust so for good measure iw ould remove the carpet on a dry weekend and make sure you have gotten rid of all the trapped water and work from there.


The rubber seal should be nice and right towards the dash area make sure there are no gaps, For some extra measure I used some rubber tape to make an extra seal. Will some pictures for you tomorrow.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: loadswine on February 27, 2011, 17:23
Cheers!  s:) :) s:)  
Ihave one or two ideas which I'm looking at , as places the water can get by the rubbers seals. Favourite at the minute is the one that has a very small lip, level with the steering wheel on the A pillar. Originally it was a little gummed up and didn't have any channel open at all. After a bit of cleaning, it does look more effective. We will see......   s:wink: :wink: s:wink:
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on February 27, 2011, 17:36
Which way round do you park it Nige?

If you remember when I backed mine onto the front it leaked in when it rained that time,the only time it seems to do it is when the water runs down hill forwards  s:? :? s:?
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: loadswine on February 27, 2011, 17:44
Its driven on , front towards the house Les, so the rain would mostly drain towards the rear.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: philster_d on February 27, 2011, 18:26
Oh and of course clean out your drains and water channels.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on February 27, 2011, 18:28
One thing i really hate about these cars is trying to find the leaks, took me a month haha had all the interior out, i also gave it a coat of rust proofing incase it happened again. The material they use under the carpet is like a rats nest, good to swap it out for some rubber if you get chance.  I used an old camping mat
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on June 24, 2011, 11:54
Thanks for share great idea keep it up!!!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Ilogik on June 24, 2011, 13:10
Will post some pictures when get homeof problem areas and how I cracked it.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Two's Company on January 16, 2012, 08:58
Drivers side carpet on mine was soaking wet through and I think it is because I parked it on a very slight incline in a car park with the front pointing up.  It has rained here nearly every day for months so I think this is the cause.  In the process of drying out the matt and the carpets but a rediculous amount of water in there.  Gone through rolls of kitchen roll soaking it up already.  

Need to double check the drains just in case, clean the seals then top up the Gummifledge at the weekend.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Two's Company on January 16, 2012, 13:15
How tight are your hoods against the window surround inside where the catches are?  I have maybe a 10mm gap and I'm sure the latches aren't pulling the hood as tight as they used to.  Can the catches be adjusted?

Thanks

Steve
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 16, 2012, 17:28
I bought my 56 plate MR2 TF300 at Easter and shortly after noticed a small amount of water in the well beside the bonnet release.  The hard top was fitted at this time.  Just back from two weeks holiday and the whole footwell on the drivers side is squelching with water.  Checked the drain visually from the top and it seems clear and when you pour water down it runs freely.  The storage lockers are totally dry too.  After the first time i noticed the water I mentioned it to the toyota garage and they said they had traced this to a weld that was incomplete but they hadn't fixed or sealed this as it should really be dried out properly and they would need to remove all the plastic under the bonnet.  Estimated cost of over £500 due to the fact the job was labour intensive.  Anyone else been offered this as a reason for water ingress?
Any suggestions would be gratefully received as the shine is fast coming off my new toy!

Many thanks,
Liz   s:) :) s:)
Title: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: AckersMR2 on July 16, 2012, 17:57
First of all, hi Liz, welcome along.

Would I be right in thinking the cars been standing on the drive while you've been away? I'd be surprised if a poor weld under the bonnet would be responsible for that if the car hasn't even moved?

Have you seen any signs of water running down the inside of the window? I noticed mine was wet down by the petrol/engine lid levers and then noticed the plastic window guide on the windscreen pillar had been bent in by the window creating a gap and allowing the water in.
If it is that you should see a small black plastic tab half way up the windscreen pillar, the window is supposed to be behind it when it's up but sometimes it gets the other side and traps the tab against the rubber allowing water in?
You just need to carefully bend it back out.

Let us know how you get on

Chris.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 17, 2012, 19:09
Yeah Chris the car was standing on the drive for over two weeks.  I've never noticed any water running down the window however yes it was in the small well for the levers I noticed the water first.  The hard top was fitted at this time.  The car has only done 25k and is pristine apart from this annoying problem so i would really like to get to the bottom of it.  I was surprised that my local dealer came up with this weld issue after a cursory look at it.  Still find it hard to believe unless they have inside knowledge.

Thanks again   s:? :? s:?
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 17, 2012, 20:07
I think you may need to have someone in the car with a bright light whilst you pour water from a watering can over the car to check door/roof seals etc and see if anything obvious shows.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 17, 2012, 20:14
You could always start the car put the blower on full speed (Not re-circulation), make sure the windows & doors are tight shut then get a watering can full of strong soapy water (Car shampoo will do) and go over the seals etc, the positive preasure in the car should show any obvious ones with a stream of bubbles  s:wink: :wink: s:wink:
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 17, 2012, 20:46
Will try anything guys!  Thanks for the advice.  If it dries up long enough I'll see if I can find it this weekend.  Will let you know how it goes  s:-D :-D s:-D
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: normanh on July 18, 2012, 06:56
So simple to adjust the catches  - release the catch then you will see the mechanism and a hexagonal fixing centrally placed, it has a retaining tab which is flipped back away from you once moved back just turn the hexagon to tighten, i think its a left handed thread so try either direction its clear when it adjusts up then pull locking tab back into position. I would just do a small amount at a time so as you dont over tighten the catch.

norman
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Two's Company on July 18, 2012, 12:50
Is your drive on an incline?  I have had a situation where the car was on an incline with the front pointing upwards and the footwell ended up damp after a downpour.  Otherwise there is no problem.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 19, 2012, 19:27
Update!   It rained here all day and all night yesterday...again today!   The car has not been moved from it's place in the drive (which is on the level) and it is not any wetter! The floor is touch dry after the towels newspapers etc!  Been out to it this afternoon.  Lined the floor area with dry brown paper tucked it under the pedals beneath the seat and behind the seat up towards the storage lockers.  Stood and sprayed it for almost half an hour with a hose  in all directions while my husband sat inside!   Not a drop!!!  Aargh!!!!!!

Frustrated doesn't come close!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 19, 2012, 19:50
Could it be the window wasnt all the way up?
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Essex_Nick on July 20, 2012, 17:17
I had a massive leak, my passenger side footwell was under about an inch of water. I suspect this was the cause of my radio and aerial problems. Anyway i found the leak. A plastic pipe that links to the drain holes had come away inside the storage bins.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 25, 2012, 17:54
A slight bit of success but not all the way there yet!  I rigged up a sprinkler on a telescopic bike stand and left it running over the car for about ninety minutes!  There was a slight drip from the mid window joint on the hood but that was pretty insignificant and the conditions were pretty extreme.  Noticed two fairly constant rivulets running down behind the relays next to the throttle.  The water is coming from way up above this so now I just have to find out where.  It's in a pretty inaccessible area so any tips would be appreciated.  Also if anyone has any good ideas on how to dry out the carpets as I've tried the wet vacuum towels under and newspapers under and the sound proofing is still soaking!  Is there an easy way to remove the front part of the carpet enough to get something under it?
Many thanks  :-) :-) :-)
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on July 25, 2012, 20:38
Ok so I have now stripped out everything under the bonnet. Removed the wipers and all plastics.  Right in the corner next to the door below the windscreen there is a small weld which appeared unfinished in that I can run a piece of wire into it which disappears somewhere into the car....can't see it.  I thought that I had found my problem as when I poured water over only this area it appeared in the footwell.  I then plugged this hole and poured water over the same area.  Again it appeared in the footwell.  At least I now know the area the leak is coming from!
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on August 1, 2012, 19:17
Time to thank everyone for all their advice!  My gorgeous little roadster is now fixed and drying out as we speak.  Directly above the brake linkage as it goes through the bulkhead there was a seam that the sealant had perished and was allowing a considerable amount of water into the footwell.  This has now been pumped full of silicone and is appearing watertight!  Only hoping now for some sun to reach the north of Scotland to allow me to enjoy driving around with the top down!  Fingers crossed for some summer!

Many thanks to all  :-) :-) :-)
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: Anonymous on August 1, 2012, 19:39
 s:) :) s:)  Thanks for posting the feedback. Not a common fault as far as I know.
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: steve b on April 11, 2013, 11:22
Fitting the bucket seats to mine I found sodden driverside footwell syndrome ...

Anyway mine I can see exactly where on the inside its coming from.  Right up front where the bulkhead meets the sill so it's water draining off the windscreen.  Thing is I have no idea where it's coming into the car I can't see any drains in that area to unblock??
Title: Re: Damp carpet in drivers side footwell
Post by: dcod on April 11, 2013, 12:13
oops, dummy post  s:( :( s:(