Focus ST, water in boot

[studabear]

Hi guys, this could be 1 for monkey or mr benz

The wifes st is getting some water in the boot, deffo know its not the boot seal, google comes up with boot hinges with a handy video a chap has done on youtube.

So the re sealing of the boot hinges, I presume it involves support the tail gate, unbolt a hinge at a time and run a bead of tiger seal or similar around the gap/edge of the boot hinge recess??

Any other tips, boot carpet is currently removed so it doesn't start stinking so any water that does get in is easily wiped away.

Cheers
Stu

[natedog]

rear washer pipe leaking? it did on both of ours

[studabear]

Could be a shout, although I'm not sure the wife has even used the washer, its also lashed it down pretty much everyday since the car was purchased.

[Karl]

Yes stu do the hinges first.
Used to do loads on 05/06/07 model year
Get a pal/the mrs/or a broom handle to support the hatch
Unbolt the 2x 10 mm bolts do one catch at a time
Fold the hinge down
Fully dry/clean the area
Apply the body sealer right around the hinge panel joints
The trick is to put a blob on your finger to apply it along the top inner joint


Other common areas are the roof gutter seals


Or behind the bumper

[studabear]

Cheers bud, sounds like a job for the weekend, the water is coming from high up, don't think its the bumper due to where I've spotted some droplets of water in the boot area.

[Deleted]

Use a washing up liquid squeezy bottle and a drop of washing up liquid so you can see the water coming in more clearly.

I always start at the lowest possible point so theres no doubt where its coming in. Just rules things out quickly without drying off or wondering if its taking a long route in. Theres often a surprising entry point.

[bikenut]

Hi everyone,I had one of these recently in the workshop, it wasnt a ST but im sure it will be the same.I stripped out the trim,found that a little sealing rubber ring was missing from the plastic plugs that the 2 screws go into for fixing the rear lamp units to the body.Water was dripping down the plug into the NSR wheel arch area.Very hard to find but so easy to fix(as usual).Hope this helps you.

[studabear]

Thanks and welcome bikenut,

I'm gonna have a look over it at the weekend

[bikenut]

They are plastic rawl plug type things,should have a little sealing washer but on this car they were missing,turned out car had had a rear end repair in past so i assume someone left them off.what a lot of work for two tint items,cos the water went under rear seat along to front passenger footwell.

[krashbandikoot]

Water in the boot isn't always a leak. Loads of people with BMW's make the same 'complaint' about water in the boot. Even my wife's Megan is suffering the same fate.

With all the wet weather we've had in the UK over the past year or so there's high levels of humidity so it's condensation collecting at the lowest point. Put a couple of sponges in there or do a weekly check and get any water that's collecting out with a wet/dry vac, a sponge or a terry cloth.

If the sun ever comes out people will find there's little or no water present in the boot. But with the warmer days and cold nights it's ideal conditions for condensation to gather.

[studabear]

I had thoughts along them lines, I have seen droplets of water on the carpet/side trim of the C post.

Funnily enough my focus estate has started smelling quite musty I need to get to the bottom of that too, all the carpets feel dry at the minute, pollen filter is about a year old.

[Monkey]

Feckin hate water leaks!

[bikenut]

Strip out interior trim and carpet as necessary then carry out a water ingress test to see the leak.This is the only way to trace and rectify a water leak.Bmw,s do get condensation in boot floor,due to no carpet etc so cold metal produces condensation,but this is different to a water leak,its only droplets of moisture not gallons of stinking pond water.There is no easy quick way to fix a water ingress problem,tell the customer it will take several hours labour to trace it,plus several hours to refit and dry out trim etc.Always a big job.

[french crap fanatic]

Jan 5, 2013 21:21:44 GMT 1 bikenut said:

Strip out interior trim and carpet as necessary then carry out a water ingress test to see the leak.This is the only way to trace and rectify a water leak.Bmw,s do get condensation in boot floor,due to no carpet etc so cold metal produces condensation,but this is different to a water leak,its only droplets of moisture not gallons of stinking pond water.There is no easy quick way to fix a water ingress problem,tell the customer it will take several hours labour to trace it,plus several hours to refit and dry out trim etc.Always a big job.

its his own/wifes car!!!

ive used different colours of antifreez poured into different places to find ingress before,poured blue around scuttle and red into sunroof aperture.....
red colour appered inside the car!!!

on xantia est we had a tech bullitin from citroen.
the plastic membrane inside tailgate must be intact.
the tailgate is designed to let in,then out through drains.
mechanics used to cut that membrane to get to cdl motor and then rain water would collect under back seat!!the carpet in boot was water proof and the water would run under it and then flow down to under back seat area.

[bikenut]

Ok its his own car!!! Still need to diagnose it.I personally would not bother sealing boot hinges without checking if they are leaking first is all i was trying to say.Sorry if I came across wrong.