MessyJesse

I have noticed the carpet on my 96 right under the driver's feet is usually damp. Not good obviously. I've read every thread on wet carpet (insert joke). My door weatherstripping is the suspected culprit, which I have just replaced. I have a good seal now and don't see any drips coming in like I used to. I have removed the floor mat. I ran a fan and left the windows open for 48 hours on some dry (not too warm though in PA) days. Somehow, this carpet just never dries. I've tried a shop vac, and put one of those damp-rid containers in the footwell. No good. Still damp. The carpet is completely dry further up by the pedals, and further back under the seat and everywhere else in the interior. It is just the at driver's floor. This has me suspect that I have fixed the leak and it isn't coming from under the dash or windshield (replaced within a year).

Anyone have a suggestion for getting the carpet to dry out or if there is something I'm missing that may be re-wetting it?

Thanks!

tech

I would remove the carpet and let it dry and then you can see if any and where water is coming from .

lawsoncl

I would at least pull up the carpet to inspect for rust.

MessyJesse

Ok, that's what I needed, some encouragement to actually get in there and check it out. Rust is a bit worse than I thought, but nothing too scary. There is one bad spot, but good metal all around. I think I can confirm that this is leftover damage from years of a leaking door and maybe the previous owners not having a good floor mat with their wet shoes. I'll cut out all the rot, clean it up, cut a new panel to fit, weld it in, and finish it up with some POR and a top-coat.

If I remember I'll post up some pics of the repair when I get to it.

Idunno

The fix for the leak is a bit of trouble accessing and repairing. I have a 96 and a 98 I'm going to fix in about a week. The video nails the problem.

treemonkee

Could the water be coming form under the cowl. Is there a drain line from the cavity that may be plugged?

MessyJesse

My leak is on the driver's side, so I don't think it would be from that blower vent. I have read about holes in the cowl for drainage that may be plugged, I will check it out. I need to figure out how the wiper arms come off on a 96. I'm sure it is simple, but I couldn't figure it out the last time I tried and got impatient.

I'd love some advice on the floor repair. I would like to weld in the patch panel, but because much of the section I'd be cutting is above the unibody frame rail, I will not be able to come in later to use POR-15. If I painted the bottom first, I'm sure it will burn off right where the spot welds go. Any suggestions?

lawsoncl

Rivets and 3M body seam filler would also work. I've seen guys just use fiberglass resin as well. If you have an air compressor, buy or borrow an air nibbler (about $30 at Harbor Freight). They are awesome for trimming out the bad sections and cutting new metal to fit. Much better then trying to use a grinder above the fuel lines on the drivers side. :}

boxburn

I use a weld thru primer spray on areas where you'd never be able to get anything else on after welding. It does a good job to coat the steel, along with sealant to cover the seams of the repair.

Spencer_P

x2 on weld thru primer. Also, I would paint any sections you can see inside the frame rail.
To remove the wiper arms you pull the blade up and then pry/pull out the silver tab near the bottom then it should slide off the splines with a little wiggling.

MessyJesse

Thanks all. I'll keep you posted.

Idunno

I had leaks on both sides of my 98. Turned out to be the windshield on the driver's side. At the top left corner one wet day I saw drips falling onto the control panel on the driver's door, which also explained the burned circuit board traces on it. To fix that I used silicone caulking on the outside, carefully applied and cleaned up. I caulked all around the windshield molding along the gap on both sides of the molding. It's an easy job if the gaps are masked off before caulking. That stopped the driver's side leak but did not stop the right side leak. That remains a fix I need to make.

I repaired the floorboards in the meantime by grinding away all the rust to bare bright metal - left lots of holes - above and below the floorboards. Then I applied several layers of fiberglass cloth with polyester resin, just like a boat hull repair, above and below the floorboards. Not only did that repair the floor, it made it stronger, waterproof and more sound attenuating. After the repairs were completed I applied a couple coats of POR-15 to it and all exposed metal. It's an alkyd enamel paint that dries but cures harder in a moist environment. The right side still leaks, waiting for me to repair the cowling leak, but that floor will never rust again. It wasn't till after I made the floorboard repairs when research showed me the source of the right side leak to be the cowl air intake. All in the name of fun, right?

MessyJesse

One benefit to the leftovers of Hurricane Zeta hitting us is I DID locate another leak source, possible the primary source this whole time. I happened to still have the carpet up so I could see it was dripping from the fuse panel! Popping the hood (while getting soaked myself) I realized that it was dripping from the area in the picture, hitting that big wire loom, and dripping onto/past the clutch MC right onto the fuse block connector.

I plan to spackle up the connector with caulk or RTV. I also would like to find a way to divert the flow of water to drain off somewhere else.

Spencer_P

That's exactly what the water looks like dripping in mine, although I've never noticed the fuse panel being wet and I already redid the seam sealer in those corners.

rgs80074

hello,

I am having the same problem. But I also have a hood that does not close correctly. right at the drivers side top its about an inch or so popped up compared to the passenger side. so I wonder if somewhere between that and what you had is where my water is coming from.

been driving me nuts how the driver side is getting soaked yet the passenger side with a window that don't roll up with loosely done tarp is always bone dry.

ryan