Water leak on 1994 C180 Saloon

[ssilver]

Some more help is reqiured if possible.

When I first got my 1994 C180 saloon just over a month ago, I noticed that the boot carpet was damp, I first of all put this down to the car being valeted, but I then noticed that there was some rust under the carpet on the left hand side and this was also damp. I checked and cleaned both the boot seal and LHS light cluster seal, which seemed to be OK.

I didnt use the car for about a week, but when I checked the boot, there was some small pools of water again on the left hand side of the boot (it had been raining). any ideas as to where this could be coming from ? Cant be from underneath as the car has been standing still. I have noticed that the peice of trim/roof rail is not sitting cerrectly on this side of the car, could this be something to do with it? If so, how do you fit it back? its the rear part just before it drops down the back of the car, it springs back up if you try and push it down.

Looks like the leak has been there for a while judging by the rust spots under the carpet on the left hand side only.

Your help is appreciated.

Thanks

Steve

 

[sixpack]

wet boot

Hi Steve,

I got My 1995 C250D about a year ago & found similar problems. I found water leaked in at the electric aerial mounting on the O/S/R wing, cure- remove aerial, fill hole & use the old phone aerial on the other wing. I also found water leaked in at the boot lock push button, I filled the lock with grease as temp. measure (not totally effective). A much more serious water problem appeared several weks later, the pass. side floor, front & rear very wet, also a "sloshing" sound heard on braking. There are 2 drains on each sill (near the big rubber jacking points). Both were blocked & when freed several pints of water came out. This water then enters the cabin via holes in the inside of the sill. It took forever to dry out, I had to take out the seats & carpets.
Hope this helps. Ive never heard anyone complain of this before, But its easy to check & could save lots of work, & I hate musty smelling cars!

Peter

 

[brightwell]

Peter,

I have twice (November this year and November last year, following long periods of heavy rain and leaf fall) had water gushing into my passenger-side footwell (1996 C280). Traced this to a blocked drain tube high up close to the windscreen. In the left side of the engine compartment in a sort of box up against the bulkhead, under the bonnet hinge (you need flexible wrist and fingers to get in) there is a 3/4" drain pipe outlet which is closed by a rubber flap. Lifting this flap and poking my finger in released a deluge of water, mixed up with leaf debris which had obviously blocked the system. The water then exited through a drain hole in the bottom of this chamber, to emerge through a pipe under the sill. This pipe can also become blocked, I have heard. This is the route that water from the A/C takes, so the problem might not be confined to winter.

What baffled me for a while was the sheer quantity of water which filled the footwell. There is clearly a large reservoir above this flap-controlled pipe. Like you I heard a lot of sloshing and swishing immediately before the inundation. I am surprised that Mercedes let this design detail through - once somebody has soaked their passenger's feet with freezing water (it pours down from the glove compartment area above) they are not minded to buy another one, I should think.