Damp SLK

[Iwantpies]

I hope you fine correspondents can help a newbie out with this query.

I have a 2000 SLK 230. I've noticed that there is a large build up of condensation to the inside of the boot lid. So much in fact that the carpet is damp to the touch.

Of course, when I open the boot the water also runs off a bit until I can mop it off.

I've had the car from new. Unitl April last year it was garaged, but then got relegated to make way for something new (at the wifes insistence!), so this is the first winter we have had where it is exposed to the elements.

I'm fairly sure it is not rainwater gushing in since the car is covered when not in use. In fact, I left the cover off for a week or so in case it was the cover actually trapping moisture in, but this has made no difference.

Has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks!

 

[television]

With all of the rain that we have had, (more to come) not good leaving it out, the boot sweats because it is damp inside the boot,you have a lot of electrics in the boot so take care. Do check with MB about any updates or modified sealing rubbers.

Malcolm

 

[Iwantpies]

With all of the rain that we have had, (more to come) not good leaving it out, the boot sweats because it is damp inside the boot,you have a lot of electrics in the boot so take care. Do check with MB about any updates or modified sealing rubbers.

Malcolm

Thanks Malcolm.

When you say "sweats because it is damp inside the boot", is it known that it is just the natural state of the car in cold, damp weather, being what it is, or is it indicative of a problem with the seals?

The seals are (or at least "look") in reasonable order, and the channels around the boot opening are all clear and clean.

But not having any frame of reference I did wonder if it is "normal", not that I would have expected it to be, though for some reason it wouldn't surprise me to hear it said by a MB main agent.

To be honest, what with the shocking weather we've had and the annoyance of taking the cover off and fitting it again each time I use it, it's forced my hand for a new, double garage later in the year. I've had it nearly seven years (41K miles) and not had one problem with it (new battery aside), so I think it deserves the luxury.

Thanks again!

Marc

 

[television]

On all of these cars including my SL of the same type of construction there have been many mods re the seals, looking at them tell you nothing as many have changed in shape. I believe that there is a modified one to protect the rear. electronic components.

Re the sweating again, my car did not do very well in the down pour New years day when the M1 was down to 30mph limit. My rear carpet got damp and made the boot lid sweat, and I had to dry it off, with normal rain it is not a problem.

OK a tin roof on a building will sweat when the is a different temperture either side, but in the case of the car this should not be the case, if it does not sweat under the bonnet then equally it should not sweat in the boot.

Malcolm

 

[Iwantpies]

Thanks Malcolm!

 

[gary350]

If I was you I would check my PSE for water damage, its housed beside the spare wheel on the right hand side, pull it out and check for damp, its a known fault and is £550+ to replace.

gary

 

[television]

If I was you I would check my PSE for water damage, its housed beside the spare wheel on the right hand side, pull it out and check for damp, its a known fault and is £550+ to replace.

gary

Good point by Gary, the mod is to keep the water away from this pump, and prevention is much cheaper than the cure

Malcolm

 

[robs-mbz]

All this talk of the boot sweating is a load of old tosh! If it is damp in there then the water must have entered from outside, just think about it, if you could "generate" water in that way then you would be on to a sure winner selling the technology to the desert states!

Check any sunroof drains for blockages, dont know about the arrangement on your car, but on my W210, the drain tube for the fuel filler aperture was damaged and was leaking rain water into the boot.

 

[and11]

All this talk of the boot sweating is a load of old tosh! If it is damp in there then the water must have entered from outside, just think about it, if you could "generate" water in that way then you would be on to a sure winner selling the technology to the desert states!

Check any sunroof drains for blockages, dont know about the arrangement on your car, but on my W210, the drain tube for the fuel filler aperture was damaged and was leaking rain water into the boot.

When i open the boot after rain i always get water dripping in onto the carpet, more so if parked on a hill, not just a few drips ethier.

 

[television]

All this talk of the boot sweating is a load of old tosh! If it is damp in there then the water must have entered from outside, just think about it, if you could "generate" water in that way then you would be on to a sure winner selling the technology to the desert states!

Check any sunroof drains for blockages, dont know about the arrangement on your car, but on my W210, the drain tube for the fuel filler aperture was damaged and was leaking rain water into the boot.

Sorry to inform you that if you were stuck out in the desert and no water, you could put up a big plastic sheet a few feet off the ground and over night as the warm as the warm air rose from the sand it would condense on the sheet, and by putting a bowl underneath,this would catch the water that drips off, its been done for years.

If you have a garage or shed with a tin or asbestos roof, and you put a heater in,the roof will drip with the condensation.

your car is standing outside in the cold,all of the windows are clear, you get in and what happens, all of the windows mist up.

The constrution of the SLK,CLK and SL are unlike any other car, in that the boot opens both ways, thats means that there is only limited sealing from the rear screen to the front edge of the boot, also there is no sealed compartment like you have in a normal car. This means that if the inside of the car is hot, and you park up,the heat will leak into the boot,sinse the boot lid has no covering on the indside it can sweat.

Just as a side line I do study the building regs for the UK as many principles apply on threads like this, In the first place it was a matter of establishing the facts.

Malcolm

 

[Iwantpies]

All this talk of the boot sweating is a load of old tosh! If it is damp in there then the water must have entered from outside, just think about it, if you could "generate" water in that way then you would be on to a sure winner selling the technology to the desert states!

Check any sunroof drains for blockages, dont know about the arrangement on your car, but on my W210, the drain tube for the fuel filler aperture was damaged and was leaking rain water into the boot.

As I said above, the car is covered when not in use, all drains and channels are clean and clear.

When i open the boot after rain i always get water dripping in onto the carpet, more so if parked on a hill, not just a few drips ethier.

This is so true. Whenever the car has been out in a shower, if the boot is opened with standing water on it it invariably runs off down to the "horns" where the bootlid wraps around the rear screen and quite a bit finds its way into the boot (bit of genius design there!)...but I can't actually remeber the last time that happened.

So we've had a fine day, weather wise, in the south-east at least so I've manged to get it dried out (took spare wheel cover out, left it in the house) and put the car in the garage overnight. I'll have a look tomorrow to see if there is any reoccurence.

Thanks for the replies!

 

[robs-mbz]

Television.

You are correct in what you say about the plastic sheet in the desert scenario, but what you would be doing is allowing the water vapour trapped in the sand to condensate onto the colder surface of the plastic sheet in the same way that moisture trapped in the boot of the car condensates onto the colder surface of the underside of the boot lid, the water has to be in there to allow it to condensate. Its schoolboy science, you can not create nor destroy water!

As far as water forming on cold car windows, of course it does, do you realise how many litres of water you exhale during a day?

Maybe your building inspection regulations course does help you to establish the facts, just be sure of the facts first!

 

[television]

Television.

You are correct in what you say about the plastic sheet in the desert scenario, but what you would be doing is allowing the water vapour trapped in the sand to condensate onto the colder surface of the plastic sheet in the same way that moisture trapped in the boot of the car condensates onto the colder surface of the underside of the boot lid, the water has to be in there to allow it to condensate. Its schoolboy science, you can not create nor destroy water!

As far as water forming on cold car windows, of course it does, do you realise how many litres of water you exhale during a day?

I do agree with you, the problem is that the cab is not isolated from the boot, this makes it harder, Like on a house, where the water comes through the ceiling, the water could be comming from a long way off. We need some tiny people who could get into the boot for these faults. I notice the the water drain hole in my car has a raised rim, so it could never drain completely.

malcolm

 

[robs-mbz]

Yes, the water could be getting in anywhere, it just drips off the underneath of the boot lid because that happens to be the coldest surface. The only real solution is to lift all the carpets and trim panels to find a damp spot then hose the car down and look for leaks.

Takes me back to my Mk 3 Cortina Days!

 

[television]

Yes, the water could be getting in anywhere, it just drips off the underneath of the boot lid because that happens to be the coldest surface. The only real solution is to lift all the carpets and trim panels to find a damp spot then hose the car down and look for leaks.

Takes me back to my Mk 3 Cortina Days!

Rob, MB have a special shower system and the car must remain under for 15 mins. As you say the ideal would be to take out all of the trim and then test,maybe using dyed water. I cant do that as to remove the rear trim in mine the boot lid has to be partly detached and raised some 8 feet off the ground in a special jig. I can only remove my floor panel

maybe a camara would work, then maybe with global warming it will never rain again´, but I do know the the opposite to be true

Malcolm

 

[gary350]

The damage to my PSE came from water tracking down the wires and tubes to the PSE the cause was my son (who stole my R170 when I bought my R171) who went and power washed the car which is a big no no as is auto car washers.

gary

 

[television]

The damage to my PSE came from water tracking down the wires and tubes to the PSE the cause was my son (who stole my R170 when I bought my R171) who went and power washed the car which is a big no no as is auto car washers.

gary

Hi Gary, It does seem the the metal folding tops cope OK in normall rain but not when it just falls out of the sky.

Was it only the one lead that was modified on you car.

malcolm

 

[Iwantpies]

Problem solved! Touch wood.

Car has been outside all day, being rained upon. Bone dry inside.

Other than spending a couple of nights in the garage the only difference is that I removed the spare wheel cover. It was quite wet. (I believe there may have actually been a microclimate operating in my boot! )

Going to leave the cover in the house for a few more days to make sure it is really dried out before putting it back.

Now I'm just racking my brains trying to figure out how it got wet in the first place!

Thanks for the replies everyone!

 

[television]

Now I'm just racking my brains trying to figure out how it got wet in the first place!

Thanks for the replies everyone!

As I said my rear floor was wet over the New Year, I too took it into the house for a couple of days. Apart from a few drops of water I also do not know how it got in.
The tell tail signs are a little condensation at the bottom of the rear screen.

Malcolm

 

[syd harris]

Boot leak

Thank goodness somebody else has the same problem as me. My SLK boot sweats also. I have sealed the red light on the boot with mastic, I have sealed the trim on the boot with mastic and I have sealed the number plate screws. I have fitted new boot seals and cleared the drian top and bottom. I have locked myself in the boot with a light and got some body to pressure wash the car. Not a drop of water is getting in. Yet in the morning the top of the inside of the boot is full of condensation???