2017 S214 - Water in drivers side footwell (Source?) - Pics!

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Hi all,
I've been away for a month, car sat idle.

Went for a drive last week, parked on a wheel and I noticed behind the driver seat (RHD), the passenger footwell was soaked. In total took about 1.5 litres out. Then noticed the front footwell, while the carpet was dry, the underlay / sponge was wet.

Took out the drivers side carpet and traced the highest point of moisture / water droplets to just underneath this round black plastic cover. The sponge around this black plastic cover is wet to half way, then dry. So, I am assuming that is the highest point of moisture.

The windscreen was replaced last year, but I don't see any moisture above half-way of this black plastic cover. That said, the next step once everything has dried out is to put a hose on the windscreen and look for water ingress.

However, I suspect the water is coming from behind this black plastic cover with a sponge seal / rim. What's behind this? I have been Googling and read about air-con drains coming loose etc. - So, what's behind this and could this be my problem? It looks like it'll be quite hard to remove (more trim under the steering wheel / brake pedal area to take off?) before I can access is.

I'd be quite grateful for any info. For now, I have heater / dehumidifier in there drying things out but obviously I need to find the source of the leak before putting the (in a few days dry!) carpet back before tacking the rear section (I want to do this in stages).

See pic below. As mentioned, the sponge / seal around the black cover is wet up to half way. Underneath I can see droplets (almost condensation) but it's a trail so guessing that's the source.

Thanks all!

 

[Blobcat]

I’d always check scuttle drains first to see if they’re empty and flowing freely - very easy for them to block leading to water ingress

 

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I’d always check scuttle drains first to see if they’re empty and flowing freely - very easy for them to block leading to water ingress

Thanks for the info. Do you refer to the windscreen drains? Just checked them, they appear to be free. When I pour water down the windscreen, I can see them draining down the bottom of the car (wheel arch area)

 

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Part no. for that black plastic cover: A205 680 04 08

 

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On further investigation regarding the windscreen drains, something seems really wrong here. See the video below.... when I pour water it just goes straight down, between the firewall / engine bulkhead... I suspect this is where my problem is.

Surely there's drain hoses missing here? I had the windscreen replaced a while back, possibly they didn't put them back?

Can someone confirm that this is NOT right?

Video:

 

[Blobcat]

On further investigation regarding the windscreen drains, something seems really wrong here. See the video below.... when I pour water it just goes straight down, between the firewall / engine bulkhead... I suspect this is where my problem is.

Surely there's drain hoses missing here? I had the windscreen replaced a while back, possibly they didn't put them back?

Can someone confirm that this is NOT right?

Video:

That is how it should drain, I thought I could see some leaves and the like in there as well though

 

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That is how it should drain, I thought I could see some leaves and the like in there as well though

So you're saying it SHOULD just drain down between the firewall / bulkhead? I've look down there and it's all wet.... surely not? I have the drains cleared of any debris but what was there, no way it would block the drains....

Someone on another forum is saying there SHOULD be a drain pipe there? On further investigation, the outer drains again just drain into the engine bay... that can't be right? On the passenger side (LHD) it leaves a pool of water under the battery... sounds mad?

I suspect that drain hoses were never installed from new (I've found someone that happened to, but car under warranty) - I just find it hard to believe that the way it's currently draining is normal? This is for sure where the water is coming from (going by how far I can reach my hand up the centre console in the car... the lining there is also wet, leading to water ingress from the centre of the car)

Thanks again for your help.

 

[Blobcat]

So you're saying it SHOULD just drain down between the firewall / bulkhead? I've look down there and it's all wet.... surely not? I have the drains cleared of any debris but what was there, no way it would block the drains....

Someone on another forum is saying there SHOULD be a drain pipe there? On further investigation, the outer drains again just drain into the engine bay... that can't be right? On the passenger side (LHD) it leaves a pool of water under the battery... sounds mad?

I suspect that drain hoses were never installed from new (I've found someone that happened to, but car under warranty) - I just find it hard to believe that the way it's currently draining is normal? This is for sure where the water is coming from (going by how far I can reach my hand up the centre console in the car... the lining there is also wet, leading to water ingress from the centre of the car)

Thanks again for your help.

If there’s water pooling under the battery then one of the drains is blocked

 

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OK so I am confident that the water is entering via the sheering shaft.... i'm of the opinion it shouldn't be able to get in there (I will remove the remaining panels tomorrow to get proper access to this as they need to be dried regardless).

So, it turns out, there's 3 drains on my windshield deflector (all normal) What's NOT normal is that there are no drain hoses (could be solid plastic, but you get the idea) on any of these 3! When I pour water, it just goes straight down to the firewall / bulkhead - surely this isin't normal?

 

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If there’s water pooling under the battery then one of the drains is blocked

It's not that it's blocked, there's no drain hose! So basically that drain is just a hole! See the end of my video above... at the end of the video thats the passenger side (left side) drain hole - it's a single hole, as opposed to 2 grilles in the middle and 1 grille on the right (drivers side)

 

[peterws1957]

It's not that it's blocked, there's no drain hose! So basically that drain is just a hole! See the end of my video above... at the end of the video thats the passenger side (left side) drain hole - it's a single hole, as opposed to 2 grilles in the middle and 1 grille on the right (drivers side)

Have a look on one of the parts diagrams on the internet to what drain pipes there should be. Seems ridiculous to me that rainwater just drains down the bulkhead. On my CL there are 4 pipes on the bulkhead draining water to under the car.

 

[brandwooddixon]

Did you also check the drain for the heater, air intake box? The one that tends be under the offside bonnet vent? Not uncommon for it to block and then let water in via the footwell heater pipes. There may also be a bonnet mounted drain as well.

 

[alexanderfoti]

There is no central drain pipe. The scuttle panel drains via tubes on each end, but not in the middle. The water is designed to drop down along heat shielding at the back of the engine bay (in the middle drain).

The plastic Tubes are more like moulded square channels that should route the water to the wheel arches. I think its possible that these are misfitted, and that maybe the windscreen fitter has broken the trim, introduced a crack on the inside that is routing water into the wrong place.

No heater box drain (on the inlet side at least) on these, but do make sure that the the intake is seated correctly, as water can get in here.

 

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Thanks for that - Weird that a US forum is saying there IS a central drain, talk about confusing! It seems crazy that water drains down along the heat shielding, making the area wet? - Not that I don't believe you, just sounds mad!

Re. the side drains - yes i've seen pics, they're plastic tubes, i'm just calling them 'hoses' - My car does NOT have these! I'm guessing these should be there? Don't suppose anyone has pictures so that if I get them, I can at least know how they should be routed... that would be amazing.

The heater filter box is indeed fitted correctly and no moisture in there.

I really don't know WHY they're missing - I had the windscreen changed over a year ago, not much point in going back there.... it's going to lead to nowhere... That said, once everything is dried out, it's a case of leaving a hose on the windscreen and keeping an eye on things.

Thanks again for your assistance and if anyone does have a picture of these drain tubes i'd be very grateful

 

[alexanderfoti]

They aren't really tubes. They are square profile and hard plastic.

If there is a central drain, I've never seen it and it's not in EPC anywhere. If you can link to a us forum I might be able to locate them. Unfortunately I can't post pictures of EPC on here, or MB solicitors will hunt me down for including a picture of the MB star on some document

On most MBs the central drain is a short one and just sticks past so it runs in between the engine and bulkhead.

The only one I know that has central drains are W221, which have two pipes that run all the way down.

 

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Sorry it may have actually been a miscommunication on my side re. central drain. A poster mentioned a central drain but when I was given screenshots, there's no sign of a central drain.

I've seen the pictures of the drain tubes you mention, the problem is I don't see where they would mount on my windshield deflector! The 'inserts' for them don't make sense... on my driver side (RHD) there is one rectangular drain and on the passenger side, there's just one tiny hole... these just drain straight into the engine bay! As an example, on the passenger side, the small hole just drains to an area rear of the battery... that doesn't seem normal.

The part numbers you (and the other forum) I guess are referring to are:
A253 832 05 00 - Drain valve left
A253 832 06 00 - Drain valve right

I have attached images of these - I just don't see how these would fit! If I had a picture (i've been Googling for the past few days!) it would be so much clearer... i'm at a total loss!!

 

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Did you also check the drain for the heater, air intake box? The one that tends be under the offside bonnet vent? Not uncommon for it to block and then let water in via the footwell heater pipes. There may also be a bonnet mounted drain as well.

There is no drain as far as I can see. But having looked in there (removed the filter and housing), completely dry.

 

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Have a look on one of the parts diagrams on the internet to what drain pipes there should be. Seems ridiculous to me that rainwater just drains down the bulkhead. On my CL there are 4 pipes on the bulkhead draining water to under the car.

Couldn't agree more! Parts diagrams to seem to show a left / right drain tube (plastic, rather than a rubber tube) - these are not present and from looking at pictures I can't make sense of how they'd fit / route. Also no drain tube on the central tube, but as poster above said this is normal (although crazy!!!)

 

[daibevan]

When my front well filled with water it was due to a leak around the grommet for the bonnet release cable. I sealed it with silicon sealer and no further problems.
Have a look here.
https://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/index.php?threads/water-drip.184167/

 

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When my front well filled with water it was due to a leak around the grommet for the bonnet release cable. I sealed it with silicon sealer and no further problems.
Have a look here.
https://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/index.php?threads/water-drip.184167/

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I doubt it's that as the bonnet release pull (and surrounding area) were completely dry, however i'll give it another look.

The car is currently drying out for the next few days. With everything exposed, I was hoping to see if more water comes in but as luck would have it, no rain the past few days. I'm going to give the carpets another few days to dry out (removed) along with the car itself and then leave the hose on the roof, sit in the car for an hour and see if any water enters.

I suspect it could have been a once off fluke of bad luck when I was away for 6 weeks and the drains blocked up.

On a side note, found another E W213 today passing by... went over and told them the situation and asked if I could have a look under their bonnet.... their car doesn't have any drain tubes either.... the drains on the window shield just drain straight down... weird!