Wet floor in rear passenger side

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
I found a link about putting in some absorbant foam or something under the carpet.

But I want to know what the problem is and how to fix it.

On both the Jetta and now the Golf, my wife and I are having the rear passenger floor become wet.

Hers was at first damp, then increasingly wet. I've pulled the carpet and dried under, on top of and tried to treat any mildew.

Felt like I did pretty good, hers actually hasn't been bad lately.

But I got into my Golf this morning, and Holy Crap! The rear passenger floorboard was soaked. I mean like push on a sponge water comes out wet.

It could have been that way for a day or two, I don't normally feel anything check back there.

What could I look at? I looked high and low for sunroof drain openings with the sunroof opened, and didn't see anything that made sense.

Anybody have any links on how to find the drains, or remedies on wha tto clear it out?

Mine must be messed up bad to put that much water in my floorboard.

Thanks,
Blair
 

wjdell

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 17, 2006
Location
Central Florida
TDI
06 Jetta TDI DSG PKG 1 17" VV Campy White/Beige
Yes you need to fix this as in time the damage can be extensive. The water is more than likely coming in the cowl firewall area. There are specialist that fix leaks. Contact your dealer and he may have a company that you can call. look in the yellow pages.
 
Joined
Apr 27, 2003
Location
Stafford Virginia 22556
TDI
96 glx variant tdi
It could be: The vapor barrier inside the door is ripped allowing water to run into the interior. Get the hose and have someone spray the outside of that door while you're inside feeling both door sills on that side to see if water is entering there. Could also be the sunroof drain as you suspected. There are four of them, one at each corner. Once you find them, snake something like a thick weedwacker string through them to ensure they are clear. It could also be the A/C drain being plugged up and the condensation is running into the interior. Run the A/C and ensure it is dripping profusely under the car. Just for the heck of it, check the drain in the firewall to make sure there are no leaves in it.
 

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
Would the Bentley manual have a pic to look for regarding the drain in the firewall?

The A/C runs onto the pavement. I've seen that recently, I'll check the sills with the garden hose.

I have no moisture stains, nor does my wife in the ceiling or pillars of the car. Could I rule out the sunroof drains in that case?

I found the stuff on Vortex after posting here regarding the sunroof drains. I'll try them if I can't figure anything else out.

We have trees at our property, the firewall drain sounds like a logiacl place to start, just need to find it.

Thanks,
Blair
 

40X40

Experienced
Joined
Feb 12, 2006
Location
Kansas City area, MO
TDI
2013 Passat SEL Premium
The AC drain is likely working fine, you get a musty smell when it clogs.

The right rear drain for your sunroof is probably the culprit.


I saw some light green plastic tubing running over the inner wheel well in the rear behind the inner pannel when I installed my Phatnoise where the CD changer goes in its cubby in the trunk. I belive that is one of the four sunroof drain tubes, so if that is the case, running a long thin wire through the sunroof drain should be O.K. The tube terminates into a rubber piece that only opens due to water pressure (weight) to keep dirt from plugging the opening
.

The same rubber pieces can be seen on the car body where the front door hinges are. You can probally use a shorter wire and run it up from where the water drains out and run it down from the sunroof.

--Nate
from the thread #
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=93823 page 3 near the bottom.....

I use weed-whacker cord (preferable a heavy gauge cord) to clean the sunroof drains. There is a black rubber nipple on the door post that has a tiny hole in it to bleed the water out. Try to kneed that to break up any little leave pieces. Be sure to drain some water into the sunroof drain to be sure the path is clear.


HTH

Bill
 

2004STARWARSTDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 19, 2004
Location
LAKELAND, FL
TDI
2004 Platinum Gray GLS Jetta / 2006 Silver Jetta with DSG
moon/sun roof drains

There are 4 drains 2 on left side and 2 on right saide. The front drains are on the front hinge area of the front doors. The rear drains are much smaller -about size of pencils and are on underbody of car half way between rear wheel well and bumper. An easy way to check for draining is to open moon roof and pour some water in the trough around opening. Check where the water drains out. No water plugged drains!:eek:
 

Huweth

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 8, 2006
Location
Devon, UK
TDI
2001 Passat TDI PD Sport
It's quite common for the seal around the pollen/cabin air filter to fail. This causes water to get into the carpets. Shouldn't be that difficult to fix if it is.

I've heard stories of people having water sloshing around their footwells after a heavy rainstorm. When they sort the pollen filter out, no more water!
 

wrenching40plus

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2004
Location
Sparkle City, SC 29306
TDI
Jetta 2000 (given to bro-in-law)
Have you said for sure that you have a SUNROOF? To fix the front drains, remove the wheel well liner and clean out what will be a few pounds of rotting leaves and general schmutz from the rear of the wheel wells. What has been said (above) for the rears worked well for a Type 2... I don't recall if there are rear wheel well liners.
 

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
Dammit, a pool in my rear pass floor

Well, I checked the sunroof lines, got a wee drible out of them, so I figure they are clear. I have no staining anywhere up high to help rule out the sunroof drains.

We are having some rain in Virginia. Noticed the floor is soaked again.

What is the likelyhood of the pollen filter getting water to the rear floor board but nowhere else?

Sucks, I pulled the carpet up in the rear and tied it to the backs of the front seats to put a fan and heater in there last week.

Dammmmmmit. Soaked again.

ON edit, I didn't realize that the pollen filter vent duct came out under the front passenger seat.

I'm going to break out the Bentley book and go to town and see how well it seals.

Also, a cowl drain was mentioned. I'm thinking this could also be backing up and coming into the car.

Is it a tube/duct going behind the fender?

THanks
Blair
 
Last edited:

genghis

Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2006
Location
Huddersfield, UK
TDI
Passat
UK Passat Rear Footwell has a swimming pool!

Hi i have a Passat 2001 4 Door 110BHP S TDI (UK). Just noticed that the rear passenger Footwell has lots of water there.

I need a step by step (not technical guide) of things to check. PLease post links to photos and instructions for things i need to check.

I dont really want to pay a small fortune to dealerships in the UK who are extorting us normal hard working members of the public.

Please HELP!
 

BMWRich58

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 19, 2003
Location
Chicago \
TDI
none yet but I do have a 2003 gasser
Since the sun roof checks out to be "OK", remove the door trim panel on the passenger rear and check to see if the "vapor barrier" is kinked or damaged in any way from the factory.
I posted some time ago about having the same exact problem which the Dealer couldn't find. I found the "vapor barrier" under the door trim panel to have been installed "improperly" from the factory,it had a wrinkle in the corner where the water pooled and leaked. My wife ran the garden hose over the window while I sat in the car with the door panel removed to varify the leak.
Of course I'm the second owner and the warranty was expired.
VW shows no part # for this vapor barrier. So, I used plastic sheeting/visqueen(sp) and made my own. Be careful when removing the old factory barrier because you have to use it as a template for size and hole locations. Two sided tape is used to reinstall the new barrier. 3M makes an excellant auto based two sided tape used for these type of applications.
Make sure the metal door ssurface is clean before application of the double sided tape. Works great!!!
Oh,and since this was on a '98 VW Golf,as I removed the door panel trim, the plastic clips will "break"(one use only) so new one's will also be needed!
Goodluck!!
 

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
Rich has some good info there.

I sprayed the doors on that side, but that was before I found the "fresh" air duct dumping out under the front passenger seat.

Whoever mentioned the pollen filter and associated duct was right in my case.

I got out the Bentley, and went to it. It was raining so I didn't take pics, but it's pretty straight forward.

I pulled the air dam/deflector. 4 screws to remove.

I pulled the top frame piece of the pollen filter and the filter itself as one piece together, only two retaining tabs at front of filter housing to depress and it will release.

That left the base, which is mounted to the steel body by two plastic hex nuts, there are studs that come up through the bottom of the filter base.

A 10mm socket with extendtion worked perfect. I was careful not to drop the hexnuts down the ductwork.

Now it was difficult for the next step. I wanted to pull the base from the car and inspect the gasket/grommet, to see it's condition.

It was tight, but I squeezed it out with some gentle tugging from between the cowling and the ridge for the weatherstripping.

I turned it upside down and the gasket/grommet appeared dated and worn, so I broke out a tube of RTV sealant.

I put a thick (width), maybe 1/8" tall bead around the whole gasket, where it mounts to the car body.

I let it skin over some, then very, very, gently as to not disturb the sealant, dropped it back into place, and then proceeded to crank the plastic hexnuts back into place.

The RTV seemed to seal outwards and hopefully created a better seal.

I reinstalled the filter and housing top, then screwed in the air dam/deflector.

Two mistakes:

1.) Dropped two screws into the gravel drive. I blame it on the heavy rain coming down.

2.) While mounting the air dam, I cracked the cowling really bad. No extraneous pieces are missing, so it's a matter of replacement, or a light coating of RTV or the like to seal the crack. I think I must have leaned to much with one hand near the cowling and had all my weight on my palm right there. Who knows, I'll blame it on the rain. It wsa pouring out while I worked at it.

It has poured today and most of the night, my plan is to go check the car at lunch since the rear carpet is still loose, and see if the floorboard is wet.

Blair
 

weedeater

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 17, 2001
Location
Reston, VA
TDI
Jetta, 2001, Baltic Green
People who report problems with their sunroof drains don't necessarily have stains in ceiling. The best way to check for this is to put the garden hose on the roof and see if the floor gets wet.
 

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
I thought it had all worked out.

Apparently not. The floor is not soaked, but it's wet back there again.

I'll verify that the roof drains are indeed free 100%.

I still have a belief that the cowl area is a culprit in my problems. But the sunroof drains are going to get indepth inspections.
 

Judson

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2001
Location
Cheyenne, WY
TDI
2001 Jetta
Did our cars come with body undercarriage plugs?

Seems to me that the old VWs did. If one came out, one would get
water splashing up from the road into the car.
 

genghis

Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2006
Location
Huddersfield, UK
TDI
Passat
hi Guys,

Ive just lifted the battery out my passat (51 saloon 110BHP) and then checked the drains they were fine. Poured water into the area, water did not leak into the passenger footwell.

I put everything back and closed everything off. Then decided to do another test, using the garden hose, i put water on the car windscreen, low and behold, water was coming thro the passenger footwell under the glove compartment at the side where all the electrics are.

Ive decided to take it to VW dealership who are willing to do a water test for 65pounds (approx 100 dollars) have booked it in for tomorrw. They are already suggesting the pollen filter 'housing'. No Idea what this means. They stated that if it is indeed that, they will charge 300 pounds (450 dollars to fix!) EXTORTION springs to mind.

Does anyone know if this is easy to replace? and if so any links to step by step guides?
 

wrenching40plus

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2004
Location
Sparkle City, SC 29306
TDI
Jetta 2000 (given to bro-in-law)
Judson said:
Did our cars come with body undercarriage plugs?
In our A4 they are oval in shape. If the car needed body work, it's possible the shop would pull one or more of the plugs, to attach various jigs for alignment. Meticulous (joke) craftsmen did not replace them, in our case... though I don't see how you would get large volumes of rainwater unless the car is driven in particular conditions.

As to the £65 charge at the stealership... If you have any (safe!) way of jacking the wheel, then removing the fender-well liner, you might find the root of the problem. In addition to jack and stand, you'll need a Torx bit for the screws. A rechargeable battery powered electric drill is a big help. It's an easy but dirty and time-consuming job... hence the dealer estimate. My bro-in-law paid $47 for replacing a stop-light bulb... go figure :-((
 

blthomas

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Location
Culpeper, Virginia
TDI
00' Golf GLS
I'm going to soak the car this weekend and see what I come up with.

This is getting hard to figure out, I did the trimmer string trick on the sunroof vents, it went through unobstructed for a good bit, but eventually binds, I think becuase it wants to curl up.

To boot, my wifes Jetta is leaking in the trunk.

I plan on trying to striaghten some trimmer line and get it all the way through the sunroof drains.

I still believe mine comes through the pollen vent area.

I'm going to pull the fender inner and see if it's clear behind it.

I dumped water down it and it dribbled out the undercarriage, but I think the flow could be better.
 

owr084

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 20, 2004
Location
Northern Virginia (NoVA)
TDI
Passat GLS, 2005, Stonehenge Gray
Instead of trimmer string, try a bicycle brake or gear cable. Make sure it has the little tip on it to prevent the end from fraying. Also, it is possible for the sunroof drains to become disconnected internally... Double check to make sure the water that is dripping out is coming out of the end only and not from somewhere else...

blthomas said:
I'm going to soak the car this weekend and see what I come up with.

This is getting hard to figure out, I did the trimmer string trick on the sunroof vents, it went through unobstructed for a good bit, but eventually binds, I think becuase it wants to curl up.

To boot, my wifes Jetta is leaking in the trunk.

I plan on trying to striaghten some trimmer line and get it all the way through the sunroof drains.

I still believe mine comes through the pollen vent area.

I'm going to pull the fender inner and see if it's clear behind it.

I dumped water down it and it dribbled out the undercarriage, but I think the flow could be better.
 
Last edited:

Spike Strip

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 4, 2008
Location
San Fernando Valley, CA
TDI
2005 Golf GLS TDI Automatic !
As and addendum to this thread -- After these heavy rains in So. Calif, I found a half-inch of standing water in the rear passenger foot area. Nothing in the front. Nothing on the headliner.

I checked the sunroof drains and they were fine.

Per other threads I removed the pollen filter and housing and resealed the housing with RTV.

What I think is happening here: if the pollen filter is clogged (mine was) when you turn on the fresh air intake (on high), it creates a small but present vacuum in the intake housing, under the pollen filter. If the seal is at all leaking, when water (rain) is channeled by it, it "sucks" the water in and down the vent and out the vent under the passenger seat.

I had to take out the passenger seat, cut the carpet along the crossmember, fold the carpet back and remove the jute backing to wring it out... I couldn't believe the amt of water that squeezed out! And good thing I did, the carpet on top felt dry.

'05 Golf GLS TDI 46K
 

Gpwoman

New member
Joined
May 20, 2014
Location
Atlanta
TDI
06 Jetta
2006 Jetta TDI rear footwell water

Hello, can anyone help me with finding location of rear sunroof drains? I can clearly find the two front drains. The passenger side dribbles while the drivers side runs immediately out of the drain. I used the weed wacker thread and was able go down the tubes very far but, both sides stop at a certain point.

Any suggestions?
 
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