2013 Cayenne water sloshing and wet footwell
Discussion
Hi all
I've got a significant amount of water in the passenger footwell (UK left side). There's also sloshing sound which sounds like around the passenger door area, or under the footwell, maybe the sills?
So I've cleared the front drains (black rubber nipples), but it was dry and clear. I tested the flow of water, thinking it was blocked up further back, but water flowed out freely.
I've tried the HVAC exit point under the glovebox, removing the rubber tube (and that clamp!), but no water flowed out.
Any thoughts on what to try next? If there is an exit point for the sills, I'd love to know. There is one for the older Cayenne and I've seen the video of someone poking a screwdriver and water flows out.. but no apparent exit point for the 2013 Cayenne.
I've got a significant amount of water in the passenger footwell (UK left side). There's also sloshing sound which sounds like around the passenger door area, or under the footwell, maybe the sills?
So I've cleared the front drains (black rubber nipples), but it was dry and clear. I tested the flow of water, thinking it was blocked up further back, but water flowed out freely.
I've tried the HVAC exit point under the glovebox, removing the rubber tube (and that clamp!), but no water flowed out.
Any thoughts on what to try next? If there is an exit point for the sills, I'd love to know. There is one for the older Cayenne and I've seen the video of someone poking a screwdriver and water flows out.. but no apparent exit point for the 2013 Cayenne.
I have a 2013 Cayenne which had the same issue. It was, as you suspect, the HVAC drain. I had to take the wheel arch liner partially out to get at the drain from the bottom. I also took the glove box out (US car) to go from the top. It has happened a couple of times now. On one occasion it splashed onto my bare (flip flop) foot.
Not had the pano one ... yet. Matter of time though.
Not had the pano one ... yet. Matter of time though.
I think I need to drain the sills but there's only one video on youtube which isn't clear at all...
https://youtu.be/XnOZBsYWH9s
..does anyone know how to do this?
Also if it's not the front cowels or the HVAC (the 2 major causes) I don't know what's causing the water to leak into the cabin.. really frustrating
https://youtu.be/XnOZBsYWH9s
..does anyone know how to do this?
Also if it's not the front cowels or the HVAC (the 2 major causes) I don't know what's causing the water to leak into the cabin.. really frustrating
Watched the video...... is he smashing something through the floor!??
The underside of the outer sills have drain bungs - they have a neat ball valve arrangement inside them that allows water out but not back in (when wading for example); unfortunately they can block with general dirt or even wax from the corrosion protection at build.
Remove the sill trims underneath the car and expose the bungs; remove them and either replace them or clean them out. Generally; the wet areas will be fine - but when they fill they tend to breach into dry areas and cause issues
The underside of the outer sills have drain bungs - they have a neat ball valve arrangement inside them that allows water out but not back in (when wading for example); unfortunately they can block with general dirt or even wax from the corrosion protection at build.
Remove the sill trims underneath the car and expose the bungs; remove them and either replace them or clean them out. Generally; the wet areas will be fine - but when they fill they tend to breach into dry areas and cause issues
Stop!
It's probably water in the gap between the bulkhead and engine bay. If the drains there are blocked, this space fills up and then starts coming into the car.
The design of the Cayenne is such that water runs down the windscreen into a space behind the engine bay that has two drains at the bottom. If these are blocked (usually with leaves) it fills up, then eventually the water starts coming into the car through the bulkhead holes for the wiring/heating matrix. Before then you can hear it sloshing about when you drive along, as you're effectively carrying around an open tank of water.
Our old V6 Cayenne did this, and when the water came in it ran under the seats, flooding the interor and ruining the electrics. About £20k of insurance claim later (electrics, wiring, carpets, etc) it was handed back with an explanation to check these drains every few months (which was a bit rich, as it had just been in for a service that should have cleared these).
If you take off the plastic at the bottom of the windscreen you can see it. The drains have rubber grommets in them, i had these modified to create a bigger hole and it needed doing less. Really poor design, unfortunately.
It's probably water in the gap between the bulkhead and engine bay. If the drains there are blocked, this space fills up and then starts coming into the car.
The design of the Cayenne is such that water runs down the windscreen into a space behind the engine bay that has two drains at the bottom. If these are blocked (usually with leaves) it fills up, then eventually the water starts coming into the car through the bulkhead holes for the wiring/heating matrix. Before then you can hear it sloshing about when you drive along, as you're effectively carrying around an open tank of water.
Our old V6 Cayenne did this, and when the water came in it ran under the seats, flooding the interor and ruining the electrics. About £20k of insurance claim later (electrics, wiring, carpets, etc) it was handed back with an explanation to check these drains every few months (which was a bit rich, as it had just been in for a service that should have cleared these).
If you take off the plastic at the bottom of the windscreen you can see it. The drains have rubber grommets in them, i had these modified to create a bigger hole and it needed doing less. Really poor design, unfortunately.
@gd.. thanks for the tip but as I was saying above (not very clearly), I’d checked those drains and the water runs freely out.. I did also clean the passenger side one out myself anyway and there was some debris in there but not much.. so I don’t know what’s causing the water ingress.. so other than those two front drains or a leaking HVAC, what else could it be? Maybe the sunroof drains?
@pope ..he’s removed the plastic trim between the carpet and sill, then punched out the rubber bung from above.. rather than remove the plastic trim from underneath and clear the bings from below.
I’m not sure which is easier but I’ll try the trim from underneath as it has screws. Getting at them from above and removing carpet trim looks tricky as it’s clamped down with clips which might break..
Still not worked out how the water is getting in though.. the £20k electrics bill is rather scary.. how did insurance cover that @gd ?
I’m not sure which is easier but I’ll try the trim from underneath as it has screws. Getting at them from above and removing carpet trim looks tricky as it’s clamped down with clips which might break..
Still not worked out how the water is getting in though.. the £20k electrics bill is rather scary.. how did insurance cover that @gd ?
I had exactly the same problem.
This video shows how to clear all the drain holes, my problem was the first one he clears in the video... the one behind the wheel arch liners.
Mine were both backed right up, several litres drained out.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0WSgpniOgYA
This video shows how to clear all the drain holes, my problem was the first one he clears in the video... the one behind the wheel arch liners.
Mine were both backed right up, several litres drained out.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0WSgpniOgYA
Sorry, I missed your earlier point about the drains.
There are a few more as stated above, the car seems to be designed to allow water to flow around the structure and out of drains, which is useful until the drains block. We also had one in the wheel arch behind the liner, and another in the sill (which seems to collect water from the chassis somehow).
On the insurance, we put in a claim for storm damage, which the broker guided us through, as it was rainwater that did the damage to the car. They paid out, which was good. It was Admiral.
There are a few more as stated above, the car seems to be designed to allow water to flow around the structure and out of drains, which is useful until the drains block. We also had one in the wheel arch behind the liner, and another in the sill (which seems to collect water from the chassis somehow).
On the insurance, we put in a claim for storm damage, which the broker guided us through, as it was rainwater that did the damage to the car. They paid out, which was good. It was Admiral.
Hi all.. and thanks for the replies..
Ok so as mentioned I’d already checked the windscreen drains behind the wheel arches and the HVAC outlet pipe in the front footwell, both being fine.
..so the problem was actually the sunroof drain.. I parked the car on a camber and poured some water into the sunroof lip and I could see the water struggling to drain away.. some overflowed and came down the A-pillar then into the footwell, I could see it leaking in the front of the passenger doorframe. Having been warned on the fragility of the drain hoses I used a long length of plastic strimmer string and pushed down about 1.2m on both sides. It’s running better but I’m inclined to also clear out from the exit point behind the front wheel arch but this means taking the liner out again..
So to sort out the actual water sloshing in the sills means getting the plug out from underneath.. I did try accessing the plugs from above as on that video (in my post above) but meant removing the carpet trim or passenger kickplate which doesn’t come up easily (you have to pull it up).. also I don’t want the plugs permanently out because water can get up and in if you go through a deep enough watercourse... so pinch Conf them out and losing them wasn’t appealing.
Having phoned an indie and facing a 4-6 week wait due to covid, I just got underneath and unscrewed the plastic sill coverings that run along the underside edge of the chassis.. I had been advised to be very careful pulling the coverings off as they push-fit into place with lugs which can easily break.. what I actually found was I could pull the trim down enough without removing it and, with a torch, could see the plug, just below the passenger kickplate. I had just enough room to get a screwdriver in and bingo, water flooding out of the sill - highly satisfying! ..I found the plug and pushed it back in (very fiddly with limited access) but all good now and car drying nicely.
Any more details needed, just PM me as it’s hard to describe.
Quite unbelievably, a little later that day I got the dreaded PCM failure, then stop/start failure on the dash warning system - could my electrics have rotted out?? ..the timing was maddening.. anyway, I restarted and the warnings didn’t reappear - that was yesterday so here’s hoping they don’t come back..
Ok so as mentioned I’d already checked the windscreen drains behind the wheel arches and the HVAC outlet pipe in the front footwell, both being fine.
..so the problem was actually the sunroof drain.. I parked the car on a camber and poured some water into the sunroof lip and I could see the water struggling to drain away.. some overflowed and came down the A-pillar then into the footwell, I could see it leaking in the front of the passenger doorframe. Having been warned on the fragility of the drain hoses I used a long length of plastic strimmer string and pushed down about 1.2m on both sides. It’s running better but I’m inclined to also clear out from the exit point behind the front wheel arch but this means taking the liner out again..
So to sort out the actual water sloshing in the sills means getting the plug out from underneath.. I did try accessing the plugs from above as on that video (in my post above) but meant removing the carpet trim or passenger kickplate which doesn’t come up easily (you have to pull it up).. also I don’t want the plugs permanently out because water can get up and in if you go through a deep enough watercourse... so pinch Conf them out and losing them wasn’t appealing.
Having phoned an indie and facing a 4-6 week wait due to covid, I just got underneath and unscrewed the plastic sill coverings that run along the underside edge of the chassis.. I had been advised to be very careful pulling the coverings off as they push-fit into place with lugs which can easily break.. what I actually found was I could pull the trim down enough without removing it and, with a torch, could see the plug, just below the passenger kickplate. I had just enough room to get a screwdriver in and bingo, water flooding out of the sill - highly satisfying! ..I found the plug and pushed it back in (very fiddly with limited access) but all good now and car drying nicely.
Any more details needed, just PM me as it’s hard to describe.
Quite unbelievably, a little later that day I got the dreaded PCM failure, then stop/start failure on the dash warning system - could my electrics have rotted out?? ..the timing was maddening.. anyway, I restarted and the warnings didn’t reappear - that was yesterday so here’s hoping they don’t come back..
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