Leak on Passenger Side Floor

[trooper99]

Thanks again Carolyn: I didn't even know the parcel shelf is supposed to move! There is a plastic trianlgular piece either end of the main shelf, there is a string cable going through them, but don't actually do anything! Its now looking like someone has had a go at the roof, and not had any clue what they were doing.....
I've just pulled the side bit out here:

[trooper99]

another shot with the 'flap' pulled out

[trooper99]

Its not east to take pics, I'm just hoping those of you with experience can make sense of them   s:mrgreen: :mrgreen: s:mrgreen:

[trooper99]

One last pic! What do these do, one each side directly behind the occupants heads:

[Carolyn]

That's where the strings from the sides of the parcel shelf attach to the roof.

Now you can see how the drainage works, make sure the run-off from the roof can't by-pass the system, and you'll be good.  You might have other small leaks (dribbles) that can be fixed, but guaranteed the flood came from the drainage system.

There are others on here who've replaced a roof, I haven't so there may be other tips to learn.

[trooper99]

Hi Carolyn, thanks for your input: I've now reconnected the ends of the parcel shelf   s:D s:D  
I've now found another 'spare' press stud or two. Right next to my head when sat in the drivers seat, there is a short strap, with a 'pinch fingers' warning on a yellow label.
Guess what...there's another on the passenger side, and I've just pulled out a length of webbing with matching press stud on, inside a pocket in the roof. Its a little too long to join the two end bits together, what is this bit for?   s:shock: :shock: s:shock:  
Now, back to the swimming pool behind the passenger seat! I've dried it out until just damp, then, with everything removed as you said, poured 3 watering cans of water along the passenger side, over the door, and halfway round the bottom of the back window...not a single drip inside   s:evil: :evil: s:evil:  
I can hear water flowing down the inside, and see it running out underneath, but thats it!
I have been parking the car so its pointing slightly downhill and listing over to the passenger side. It was the opposite way before, when it flooded, so I guess I'll just have to see what happens with it parked up this way...

[Carolyn]

Good progress!

If, when the roof is halfway down, you check the drain bags from the side of the car (you can now see them and get your hand inside), you can make sure they are properly attached (there are more poppers).  You can also check for splits or perforations that can be sealed up.  Still think the bags are the culprit.  You may well have sorted it with all your poking around.

Chilli Girl is going through the same thing (see her thread) but not as extreme.

The extra poppers are to attach the strap that runs through a pocket in the roof.  That strap pulls in what are known as the 'ears', which are the bits that stick out when the roof is down.  It's purely a cosmetic thing.  There are threads on how to get that lot sorted.  Look up 'ears'.

[Slice]

You're having the exact same problem as I had, which is now fixed.

The drain bags are the right place, and you're on the right track. My drain bag was leaking from a combination of the joint between the bag and plastic drain moulding, and from cracks in the bag itself which had stiffened with age.

As you've found, this allows water to collect in the area below the storage bins. There's then a rubber drain bung in the metalwork to release water to the ground. However, mine was grotty and didn't seal to the metal, and it allows water past the drain. It then leaks onto the pressing below, which drains to the joint here behind the seats:



That semicircular gap is where it comes from. I know this because I filled it with dumdum, and it promptly leaked from further along the joint, and when I took the dumdum out, drained all over the floor.

As a quick fix, re-seal the drain grommet to the metalwork under the bin, this will save the carpet stinking the place out. Long term, you might need new drain bags, which I fitted last night and it's now jetwash and bucket proof.

[trooper99]

Latest news...the front footwells are both soaking wet as well....
I lifted the carpet mats just to check, the whole floor is wet apart from the very back of the rear drivers side.   s:twisted: :twisted: s:twisted:

[trooper99]

I've tried parking the car pointing downhill, with the drivers side higher up.
We've had a lot of rain over the last 2 days, and I haven't moved the car. Today, I did drive it, I have to turn a tight circle to get out of my drive, it sounded like a small lake was swilling around behind my head!   s:shock: :shock: s:shock:  
The steel tray underneath the cubby box NS has got water in it, but nowhere near as much as I could hear swilling about!
The NS hood seems to be folded up incorrectly. I found 2 'female' press studs, one on a piece of fabric, and one on the end of a cord, but no male bits to clip them to.
I reckon the only way I'm going to fix this issue is to have a good look at a roof that has all the daft little pockets and folds in the right place: anyone volunteers around Manchester, let me have a good look at where mine is wrong!   s:mrgreen: :mrgreen: s:mrgreen:

[Slice]

It'll all be under your carpets... The MR2 has, comparatively, thin cheap (lightweight) carpets. The carpet itself is plastic backed and only slightly absorbent, but there are 4 pads made of that stuff that looks like recycled clothes that's used to stuff mattresses. One under each seat, one in each footwell. These will be utterly sodden and waterlogged, and as such the additional water is now just sloshing about.

You will need to remove the carpet... if only to clean and dry it, as even once you've fixed the leak, it won't dry out easily. Happily, it's a piece of  spiss piss spiss . You may need to do it to treat any rust that's now grown too.

Once you have the carpet out, and while the seats and plastics are out, towel dry the car, and either sit in it while someone hoses it down, or tape pieces of kitchen roll to the pedal box walls, rear bulkhead and such, and hose it down with a non direct, scattered style.


As per Carolyn's post, the straps and studs you're finding may be related to the 'ears strap' which acts to give a smooth appearance to the top when folded away, or related to features to hang the parcel shelf from. However, to the rear of the roof, there's nothing 'strappy' at all which helps to rainproof it. The roof is designed to drain into the bags all the time, not just as an emergency, or if it's badly fitted. Leaks from the roof specifically will come at the seals to the window and screen frame only.

Seek out CabbyDave, he's Manchester based and is a decent chap, he sorted me out with a spare wheel, drain bags and some other hard to find bits. Good man. He also has about 6 MR2's to look at!

[trooper99]

Thanks Slice, I'm going to strip it out and have a good look, the rain is flowing out through the drain behind the air intake panel, but collecting in the steel 'bucket' under the cubby box, then soaking through to the carpet. I'll check the drain itself is ok, I can poke a wire through it to the road, maybe its split?
Its easy to strip as you say: I've done a lot worse!
I'll try and contact Cabbydave, will be good to get the origami flaps back into their original positions   s:mrgreen: :mrgreen: s:mrgreen:

[Slice]

Thanks Slice, I'm going to strip it out and have a good look, the rain is flowing out through the drain behind the air intake panel, but collecting in the steel 'bucket' under the cubby box, then soaking through to the carpet. I'll check the drain itself is ok, I can poke a wire through it to the road, maybe its split?
Its easy to strip as you say: I've done a lot worse!
I'll try and contact Cabbydave, will be good to get the origami flaps back into their original positions   s:mrgreen: :mrgreen: s:mrgreen:

Yep, same as mine, the drains look like they're working, but are leaking too. Mine has a crack in the bag itself, and the plastic drain part was broken and leaking. It then dribbles into that steel pressing. From there it should go through a rubber drain hose to the road, but if it's missing, gummed up or badly sealed, it gets to the pressing beneath, and leaks out down the rear wall behind the seats.

That's the good thing about the MR2, the tininess and featherweight style means it's like stripping a Tamiya model. I've taken carpets out of an E38 BMW 7 series because someone spilt a tray of chicken satay into it and it stank the place out. Good sweet Christ that was a far bigger job than I thought possible, and the carpets were so heavy I reckon they were load bearing.

[Erudite]

Jonbill makes a good suggestion.
Check to see if the carpet high up in the foot-well is wet. Then it's coming from around the windshield or pillar (unlikely).
If that ain't it, then why not go on a little voyage of discovery?  Rather than 'get behind' the passenger seat - take it out (four bolts, five minutes).  Pop off the plastic sill cover (30 secs), remove the plastic liner at the outside of the foot-well (5 mins), remove the upright plastic behind the door (2 mins), remove the luggage compartment door (5 mins), remove the plastic liner at the out side of the compartment by popping the two little pull knobs (2 mins), remove the compartment liner (two more bolts and a bit of fiddling (5 mins) peel the edge of the carpet back. Sit in the driver's seat and get your mate to hose the car down.  Look for the dribble.
It all goes back together as easily as it comes apart and you'll get to see quite a lot of what's under the skin.
You can do it, just stay patient and you'll get there.

Hi Carolyn,

I'm in the process of stripping out the interior on the passenger side of the car as the passenger footwell is sodden.

I've got the seat out and some of the plastics but there are a couple of areas that I'm struggling with.

I've included all the photos here:

https://imgur.com/a/mf717HR

I'm struggling with the upright plastic behind the door. Do you pull it straight off? I notice some plastic heads up by the parcel shelf and am not sure if the law need removing first.

Secondly, the wiring running along the top of the door sill. Is this a case of just pulling it up and it unclips? I've tried but it seems to be fairly firmly held (didn't want to pull on it too hard in case I damaged something).

I've also noticed water pooled inside the back left hand fixing point for the seat (closest to the door).

The main are of water is in the foot well which makes me think that it's coming from the window which is hanging off (photographed). I tried sealing this but with the weather not being ideal it's not taken. I'll try again once conditions improve.

It's also damp towards the back of the passenger seat floor and as I say in the fixing point for the seat itself.

[Carolyn]

My JDM car is a little different, but I would remove those two fixings at the top - then the trim should pull off (gently does it!).

The wiring will move, again- gently does it!

That loose rubber round the A pillar is probably part of the problem.  I'd clean out that silicone and use a good rubber adhesive and glue the seal back in place.

Here's a link to an excellent adhesive:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Super-Glue-High-Impact-Flexible-Strong-Bond-Gap-Filling-Rubber-Toughened-BLACK/233013268330?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

[Gaz mr-s]

Hi, yes the top press clip does need released. If you haven't done one, press centre in by 2- 2.5mm with a screwdriver blade at a shallow angle. If you push straight down & it goes in 4mm, it's a gonner. But they get brittle with age, so it may break anyway...

The panel has two hidden fixings (maybe 3..?) & may take quite a tug to come free.

The wiring has natural/cream strips underneath the blue tape. A clip goes vertically down from the horizontal part. Use a stout body clip fork tool to prise it up.

There is wadding under the seat. It gets sodden, & after that the water spreads around with car movement. Have you checked your drain works?

[Erudite]

Thanks for the rubber adhesive recommendation Carolyn, I'll pick some up.

Thanks Gaz, I'll get a body clip fork tool. How/where would I check the drain?

I looked in under the luggage area behind the seats and there is a small amount of water gathering in there (looks like it's leaking from the black pipe):





Any tips on a fix for this?

[Carolyn]

That black pipe is the roof drain.  Using a plastic body tool, pry off the outer vent cover.  Behind that is the drain output.  It's almost certainly blocked.  You can unblock it from there and also the top of the pipe can be accessed with the roof halfway down. If you look with a torch you can see it. I make sure the outlet is clear and then flush from the top by pressing a hose nozzle on the top of the drain and turn on the tap.

[Gaz mr-s]

Sometimes the bags leak, sometimes it can be at the junction of canvas & pipe as you're suggesting.

You could try using talc or tissue to pinpoint it. Some type of silicon slathered over it perhaps. If it's towards the outside of the car it's more awkward. I wore a vinyl glove, cut another one up & plastered it with Tigerseal.

However, if you've only found a tiny amount of water, that's insignificant. (Both sides the same?)

You'll see there are two rubber circular things, one each side. They are extra drains in case of a leak above. They are short-length pipes. The 'hat' sticks up too high, & because the pipes are so narrow they silt-up.  I recommend hauling them out with a good pair of pliers. Any water getting there will escape far easier.

When the drains are working ok, if you pour some water at the bottom rear corners of the hood, it should immediatedly appear on the ground.

[Gaz mr-s]

Since your carpet was sodden your leak must be coming in the door aperture.  If the drain bags have a bad leak the metal bin area gets flooded.

[Erudite]

Thanks guys, I'll have a go at repairing the roof drain whie I have the interior apart. Many thanks for the tips on that.

I think you're right about it being the door seal. When I siliconed it initially and had taped it up, the carpet had definitely dried out slightly. Since the tape has come off and the gap has opened up, the carpets a lot worse again. I'll use the rubber adhesive and see if that does the job.

[Erudite]

I thought I'd fixed this but on lifting the carpet again it was sodden at the back. I've now found the culprit which is where the pipe joins the bag (on the outside - the difficult to get at bit). It's dripping down from here and then finding it's way down to the back off the passenger seat foot well from the bin. I'm going to try your tigerseal tip to stop the leak.

Does anyone know how these ears are supposed to be properly positioned (located directly above the drain holes on the indside of the car). Mine have lots of perished velcro on them and some press studs that aren't attached to anything.

Video here: imgur.com/a/MIKoMJw

[Gaz mr-s]

The various bits of canvas are a bit of a mystery to me....can't help you with that.  If the 'bin' area under the plastic is filling up, it means that the secondary drain isn't working. The round rubber thing in the bottom.... pull it out with good-sized pliers, or poke down it to see if you can clear it. They're about 6" long.  Put the Tigerseal on something to make a big 'plaster' & press into place.

[Erudite]

Think I've gotten to the bottom of this.

I opened up the drainage bag and somehow the plastic surrounding the drain hole has split in two:



Tried silicone, it helped but didn't do the job.

Would epoxy be a better bet? I've cleaned off a lot of the crud that was surrounding it now.

[Carolyn]

Think I've gotten to the bottom of this.

I opened up the drainage bag and somehow the plastic surrounding the drain hole has split in two:



Tried silicone, it helped but didn't do the job.

Would epoxy be a better bet? I've cleaned off a lot of the crud that was surrounding it now.

Tigerseal or Sikkoflex