Water ingress / wet carpets

[pbaran]

I've always had soaking wet carpets on the driver's side after heavy rain and have tried all the usual tricks to alleviate the problem, such as completely removing the bungs in the plenum chamber, resealing the ECU box and generally keeping the whole area clean of leaves and other debris. I was surprised that even after all this the carpet has still been getting consistently wet.

So I've done some more investigation and found that the water is entering in an area just below the ECU box/behind the dash that's previously suffered accident damage and has been rather messily patched with big globs of sealant. We know that the wing on this side has been previously replaced but were not aware that the damage extended behind it. The sealant is not holding the water back and I've verified this by spraying the outside of the car with water whilst observing this area from the inside with an endoscope, and I can physically see the water coming in.

I need some advice on how to tackle this. In my mind it seems like the whole dashboard has to come out; at the moment access is impossible and I've hurt my neck and back contorting myself to get a look in there. Might there be access from the other side with the wing removed?

Photos attached and you can see my futile attempts to solve the problem by sealing the ECU box in from above with transparent sealant.

I'd also be interested to know if this is a normal way to repair this kind of damage that has unfortunately failed, or if it's a bodge.

 

[NHN]

Remove the wing, but the issue is, they've not prepared the panel before sealing, so its rusted up & thus bad seal.

Its obviously a bad diy job.

I would remove the panel, remove all sealant, see how bad the damage is & assess, if its not chassis reliant, then either remove rusted metal, clean, treat, prime, paint, dry & seal or reweld & repair.

 

[pbaran]

Remove the wing, but the issue is, they've not prepared the panel before sealing, so its rusted up & thus bad seal.

Its obviously a bad diy job.

I would remove the panel, remove all sealant, see how bad the damage is & assess, if its not chassis reliant, then either remove rusted metal, clean, treat, prime, paint, dry & seal or reweld & repair.

Are you confident that there is access from the outside with the wing removed? Because the sealant is on the inside of the car, facing into back of the dash.

 

[pbaran]

It's just inside the ECU box opening, in the corner shown. I wonder if they did the sealing job through the hole.

 

[pbaran]

Remove the wing, but the issue is, they've not prepared the panel before sealing, so its rusted up & thus bad seal.

Its obviously a bad diy job.

I would remove the panel, remove all sealant, see how bad the damage is & assess, if its not chassis reliant, then either remove rusted metal, clean, treat, prime, paint, dry & seal or reweld & repair.

What kind of sealant would I use to fill the cracks after prepping the rusted metal?

 

[Manics]

Here's a pic of mine with the wing off (ECU under he tray as you know). Not sure it's going to help you or not....

 

[Stonedofmoo]

Here's a pic of mine with the wing off (ECU under he tray as you know). Not sure it's going to help you or not....

Unrelated, but what is that triangle like box in the foreground for?

 

[pbaran]

Update - I've got decent access to the firewall now. I've been scraping away at the sealant with a chisel and it all looks a bit mangled, it's almost as if someone has stuck in a mending plate but not sealed it in properly.

I emptied a bottle of water onto my windscreen and some of it leaked in along the join at the top of the affected area. My plan now is to remove as much sealant and rust as I can, then treat with red oxide primer and use JB Weld to close up the gap all the way around the edge.

T

 

[Manics]

Unrelated, but what is that triangle like box in the foreground for?

It's the charcoal cannister/filter.