Please would someone be kind enough to advise me on how best to locate a rainwater leak in rear of my ZX avantage 1.9 TD. My better half noticed the carpet in rear was soaking the other day, whilst out shopping. Further investigation reveals sopping wet carpet in hatchback area.
Many thanks,
Foxy!
Advice please ! Rainwater leak in ZX
Moderator: RichardW
Hi Foxy,
I suggest you take the carpet out and dry it.
Wipe the whole area with an old towel to get it dry, and look for any areas that seem indicated.
Put down some dry newspaper.
Use the garden hose or a watering can to pour some water over the roof near the back for a couple of mins.
Check for leaks.
Spray water at the back
Check for leaks.
Spray water under the wheel arches, under the chassis, keep sprayiing and keep checking until you find out how the the stuff gets in.
If this all fails, try your rear windscreen washers: if a pipe comes off somewhere or leaks this can be a beggar to find..
Maybe try this first..!
Cheers
Russell [:)][:)]
I suggest you take the carpet out and dry it.
Wipe the whole area with an old towel to get it dry, and look for any areas that seem indicated.
Put down some dry newspaper.
Use the garden hose or a watering can to pour some water over the roof near the back for a couple of mins.
Check for leaks.
Spray water at the back
Check for leaks.
Spray water under the wheel arches, under the chassis, keep sprayiing and keep checking until you find out how the the stuff gets in.
If this all fails, try your rear windscreen washers: if a pipe comes off somewhere or leaks this can be a beggar to find..
Maybe try this first..!
Cheers
Russell [:)][:)]
-
Guru Meditation
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Common leak causes in ZX:
Sunroof drain pipes can get blocked or actually pop off. To test open the sunroof (slide it) and with the car on a slight slope (back end down to test rear drains, front end down to test front drains) pour water onto the tray inside the sunroof. The drains are at each corner of the car and if water doesn't pour out freely the drain may be clogged or the pipe come off. You can attempt to clean by poking some wire like a bicycle brake cable up the tube to remove clogging. If the pipe has actually become disconnected or perished you may need to remove the headlining to replace.
Other leak spots are in the tailgate failed parcel shelf strings let water leak in through tailgate seal, water can also leak in through where the wiper arm is.
Also if in the rear of the car check the rear door seals. When I got my ZX it had a flood in rear pasenger footwells, it was blocked sunroof drains.
Also you can do a search as this topic has been covered in some detail in the past.
Thanks
Guru Meditation.
Sunroof drain pipes can get blocked or actually pop off. To test open the sunroof (slide it) and with the car on a slight slope (back end down to test rear drains, front end down to test front drains) pour water onto the tray inside the sunroof. The drains are at each corner of the car and if water doesn't pour out freely the drain may be clogged or the pipe come off. You can attempt to clean by poking some wire like a bicycle brake cable up the tube to remove clogging. If the pipe has actually become disconnected or perished you may need to remove the headlining to replace.
Other leak spots are in the tailgate failed parcel shelf strings let water leak in through tailgate seal, water can also leak in through where the wiper arm is.
Also if in the rear of the car check the rear door seals. When I got my ZX it had a flood in rear pasenger footwells, it was blocked sunroof drains.
Also you can do a search as this topic has been covered in some detail in the past.
Thanks
Guru Meditation.
Thanks for your reply Guru Meditation! I took out the carpet and underlay and removed the plastic surrounds in the tailgate area. Then I got inside the back whilst the missus sprayed water all over the rear of the car. After about 5 mins I spotted water coming through the offside seal roughly around the rubber stop and plunger switch area (these are next to one another) the water ran down the metal interior and onto the boot area! Bingo I located the leak and I assume that the water is entering underneath the seal, somewhere on the radius of the bend. I lifted off the seal and noticed wires concealed on the outer edge and where they leave the seal seems to be roughly the area of concern. I also noticed some sort of sealant used at the factory along the swaged edge which the seal fits onto had started to come off and stuck to the inside of seal. Please do you have any suggestions on how to solve the problem? I also noticed that the interior courtesy light only operates in one position i.e. manually. When I push the plastic plunger down with the light in operational mode - nothing works. Do I need to replace the plunger switch whilst I'm at it?
Many thanks,
Foxy
Many thanks,
Foxy