Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

I searched for this, but none seem to match my particular issue.

We received an unusually high amount of rain here in Socal last few days. My XF sits outside, and I checked this morning just in case for water leaks. I found some carpet dampness on the carpet floor just behind the seats and maybe a foot up on the bulkhead carpet. This was on both driver and passenger sides. I also found some dampness on the carpet on the driver's side, just above the pedals. Even though it rained just a few hours later, no heavy water, just light dampness.

However everything else was bone dry. The carpet on the floorboards in front of both seats were dry, head liner was dry, back cargo area, etc. I have no idea where this moisture could have come from, I don't see any entry point.

Anyone else have this issue or ideas on where this dampness could be coming from?

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Your drain vents under the cowl are likely clogged with leaf matter etc. The heavy rain caused it to overflow into the cabin. Your gonna have to remove the the wipers and the cowl and clean out both sides. I bet when you stick your hand down there your going to pull out a. bunch of leaves and dirt.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

If your drains under the cowel below the wipers are clogged the floorboards in front of your seats is the first place that becomes wet
Not sure about the moisture you have discovered behind your seats

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Thanks for the suggestions. I think the slight dampness on the carpet above the gas pedal, on the bottom of the engine fire wall is likely the start of the blocked vents you mention.

However, the floorboards in front of the seats are bone dry. The moisture that worries me the most is coming from behind the seats, the carpets in that area are moist, which means its likely from another source. I can only think of something from the roof, but the head liner is dry, no idea where the water is coming from.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Here is another possible cause. In my old Coupe the area I circled in the below picture cause water to get into my cabin.
CHeck that hose and where the rubber gasket meets the metal. Sometimes the hose is cracked or the rubber gasket not properly sealed anymore. Especially possible if you car sits outside in the sun quite a bit.
THat would then explain why it's wet in front of the bulkhead behind the seats. Water will run down the roof line and drip down behind the seat. Leaks are tricky. Sometimes the water finds it's way into the cabin through the weirdest of places and then runs down somewhere, even though the leak isn't really right above it.


https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cro...108421bd6f.jpg

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Thanks for the suggestion, I took a look and the rubber seems to be in good shape and well seated, but I may put some light grease around the edges just in case. I totally agree the leak can come from some far away location, hopefully will figure it out soon, it's expected to rain soon.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

The light grease won't hurt. How does the weather stripping look? Is it damaged anywhere? Also is your window "adjusted" right. I know these cars had issues with wind noise and it was due to the window not being "tight" and creating a seal.
What you could do is sit in your car and have someone hold a garden hose to your car and/or drive through the car wash and see if you can find where the water is entering the car.
Hope you find it. I know water in the interior can be a challenge to locate where it's coming from.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

They are here on Amazon, you'll have to type in:- 60 inch flexible drain cleaning brushes. I can't post the link it won't work

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cro...a2ddb3ab5a.jpg
60 Inch Flexible Drain Tube Cleaning Brush

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Those drain tubes cleaning brushes work great. I have used a coat hanger in the past to "push through" the dirt in the vents. Then I run peroxide through it, let that sink in and dissolve the grime for a few minutes and then I run clear water through it till it drops out off the drain openings on the underside of the car.
If water does not drain from multiple openings you know it's still clogged.
There are three drains under the windshield wiper cowl - on on each side and one in the middle near the alarm siren. Make sure all are free of debris.
There is a thread on here where someone cut a small hole into the cowl so he would be able to clear the drain periodically without having to loosen the wipers and pulling up on the cover. He then used a rubber plug or cap to cover it. There is a DIY in the forum. Pretty cool idea. Most people clean the drains once a year. Good luck.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

There are four drains under the cowl, one at each end and two in the centre. One of which exits visibly on the front face of the firewall and the other unseen on top of the transmission.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Thanks for correcting me. It's been a moment since I took a look under there. ;)

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

That's all I need to hear. When I had to park my Graphite outside, I cleaned the drains every two years and even that was not really enough.

Seems like a poor design to me, my Ranger is set up such that there is no issue with clogged drains.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Why not just park it in a garage or carport and avoid the hassle with debris?

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

There is obviously lots of people who don't have either or else they would resort to that simple solution don't you think?

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Thanks everyone for the great suggestions and links, I'll be using them soon, I plan on checking the cowl this weekend in dry weather. I still have no idea where the rear water leak is coming from, luckily the front leak is very minor in comparison.

It's been raining these last few days, and the interior is staying dry, though the rain has been kinda light.

I wished I could park this car inside, but our garage has become essentially a man cave and motorcycle storage. We do have a couple of car ports, but my wife's car gets priority for one spot and my new truck gets the other. I would put a car cover on the Crossfire, but with it's 18 year old paint, I risk damaging the clear coat from water being trapped between the cover and paint. I found out about this issue last year, the paint was permanently damaged in a couple of spots because of it. So the car cover only goes on during the dry summer.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

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Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

I actually did buy one of the best (and expensive) fitted car covers for the Crossfire. However, they will tell you there isn't anything completely waterproof, water will get beyond the car cover if it rains enough, either directly or due to condensation build up.

The problem is the old paint on these cars are usually very porous. What will happen is that the water that is trapped under the cover, if enough of it, will stain the paint, sometimes permanently if it gets deep enough.

I found that out the hard way last year. Luckily only one small area was stained enough to require repaint, the rest was buffed off. I do use the cover during the heat of the summer, great way to protect the paint.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

Interesting! If was of the opinion a car cover shouldn't be completed waterproof as it should allow moisture and ventilation to get through and evaporate on the surface. Was always told if it was a rubber cover that completely blocks out water that would be a bad thing.
That being said my NA Coupe used to be outside for 12 years. Always used a cover here in Florida to protected from sun and rain and debris etc. Never had an issue. I find the paint to be highly sturdy and durable. There is a Crossfire that sits out 24/7 and all year round in my neighborhood. While the other vehicles next to it are all washed up that Crossfire looks great. Emblems were faded but besides that looked great.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

I have an SRT Coupe that rarely gets driven. It sits in my back driveway which is partially shaded, I have a fitted cover on it and a Seal Skin cover over that that goes all the way to the ground all around. It has been parked like that since 2015 and still looks like new. I will add that it is very dry here, seldom does it rain and the humidity stays quite low. I have replaced the Seal Skin cover a couple times.

Re: Cabin moisture on carpet at the rear of seat floor after heavy rain?
 

ok I get it, but then second question, why not park in a different location. You’ve indicated on more than one occasion that your vehicle is “low mile like new condition”. How does a, like new car, get plugged tubes in a year or less of ownership? I have never have an issue with any vehicle left outside, cover or not. Just moving it would be a cost effective solution.

Where do you park so that is gets plugged often. How did it happen so quickly?