End of the road?

[Faust]

Really appreciate all the suggestions.

Had a beer and chilled out a bit... got a few new things to check, and I've just ordered some more Tigerseal (gonna try sealing from the inside and see if that works).

I'll keep putting updates out there as and when.

Off to Whitby this weekend as it's 10 years since my missus and I got together. Hopefully, leaving the bloody car alone for a while will give me some breathing space.

Not too worried about the leaks in the meantime as the floor has been de-rusted and given 2 thick coats of POR15. Still don't want to be driving a mobile paddling pool though! (only got the drivers seat in at the moment).

[Nottinghamdave]

Hi
It doesn't help much but I'm chasing down leaks in my Amazon too. I'm in Nottingham also and if you just wanted someone different to hold the torch for an hour or two and moan to, just let me know! What's worked to improve things for me are: changing grommets in engine bay (as you have done already) / putting sealant around rear light clusters (good tip by Chris from Sheffield at the Sywell Amazon day thank you) but like you I still get puddles in the footwells (doors to blame? But I have replaced seals so I just don't know!) and a bit of a drip into the boot (rear window?) Anyway, sorry I can't be of more help than saying that you're not on your own. If anything that I do actually works I'll pass it on to you. Good luck. Stick with it.
Dave

[Faust]

Originally Posted by Nottinghamdave

Hi
It doesn't help much but I'm chasing down leaks in my Amazon too. I'm in Nottingham also and if you just wanted someone different to hold the torch for an hour or two and moan to, just let me know! What's worked to improve things for me are: changing grommets in engine bay (as you have done already) / putting sealant around rear light clusters (good tip by Chris from Sheffield at the Sywell Amazon day thank you) but like you I still get puddles in the footwells (doors to blame? But I have replaced seals so I just don't know!) and a bit of a drip into the boot (rear window?) Anyway, sorry I can't be of more help than saying that you're not on your own. If anything that I do actually works I'll pass it on to you. Good luck. Stick with it.
Dave

Cheers Dave.

May well take you up on that - door swings both ways though. Let me know if you ever need a hand with anything.

[Packard999]

Not what you want to hear I think, but recently sold my '99 Rangie, total pain in the neck, problems galore, sick of it, cut my losses, lost money on it, but am very glad it has gone - feels like a weight been lifted off my shoulders

[Derek UK]

Try to seal from the inside with mastic and you're on a hiding to nothing. Resist doing that. From the amounts of water you're quoting there is likely to be just one or two major routes for the water, Carefully, there can be sharp edges and snags, run your fingers along the bottom edge of the dash. If wet anywhere, the water flows to the outsides, I expect you to still have a leaky screen. having looked at the repair pictures I might be suspicious still of the repairs to the top of the A pillar where the cowl and the inner sections meet. It's a complex junction and not easy to get everything to join up in a leak proof way. You say you still have a seat in but do you have all of the mats out? With everything dried out you could tape in some brown paper to find out where the water first appears. Sprays of WD-40 which is then covered in talcum powder will also show the trails. You can get puffers for talc.
The inside heater box has a drain tube in the bottom that goes through the top of the tunnel. If that has broken off the water drains down each side of the tunnel under the mats. The big one in the engine bay that drains the intake box has been mentioned. The short metal piece that the hose goes onto can block with dirt and leaves and rust through. Worth a check. It should outflow any water you pour into the box as fast as you pour it in. Water under the rubber mats tends to flow into the rear foot wells. As Robert says if it drains down behind the nasty jute mat it goes backwards too.
Get your torch up under the dash and into the outer corners if you haven't been there. Check door drains and the plastic barrier sheets. I could go on but its long past bedtime. Good luck.
Yes it's frustrating but I think I'd rather be chasing a big leak than small ones.

[Faust]

I'll try to provide a bit more info.

I live on a narrow street. All the neighbours park with 2 wheels on the pavement so delivery trucks etc. can get through. My car is parked with the driver's side at the 'high' point.

Visualise the inside of an Amazon. Where the pedals are mounted, the body work 'slopes' upwards. Water is getting in here from somewhere… despite a LOT of sealant on the other side (i.e. inside the engine bay). The bonnet hinge bolts are tight with no sign of moisture.

Picture the bonnet release cable: the seam above where it is mounted is letting water in. I've sealed it from the engine bay side, yet it still leaks. I have used a powerful torch at night to look for gaps. No joy. I even lit up a cigar and tried blowing smoke from inside and outside the seam… no joy. All grommets have been replaced, all gaps have been sealed.

God alone knows what the old couple over the road must think!! ("Cedric, that long haired bloke is blowing smoke at his car again…At night. In the rain… 'e must be mad!")

Heater channel: I sat inside the car whilst my missus poured and sprinkled water around this whole area. It is bone dry directly under the heater and mesh intake grille (I cleared the drain hose etc. out last winter and made sure there were no obstructions when I fitted my uprated heater fan).

Windscreen: I inspected the surround before the screen was fitted and it looked very good to me (freely admit that I'm no bodywork expert though). The base of the screen is dry inside with no trace of moisture. Used kitchen roll and dabbed in small sections to try and find any sign of water - it appears to be totally dry. I've run a seam of Arbomast around the seal: between the rubber/body and the rubber/glass.

Passenger side: leaks, but nowhere near as bad as the driver side. Again, a small amount of water appears to be coming in via a seam somewhere. I have sealed everything I can find, the battery is out and the tray is OK. There is a tiny drip from the main loom where it runs through to the battery, and I'll address this ASAP.

There is no trim at all fitted around the dash area. No mats, sound deadening or cowl insulation. Only trim inside the car is the rear seat assembly, steering wheel, headliner and driver's seat. As the metal is freshly painted, I can clearly see water as it trickles down… I just can't find where it is *$!"ing coming from!

[Underdrive]

Did you have any leaks before the inner wings were replaced? Because it appears to be the area on both sides where your leaks are and the other main part replaced around that area is the windscreen and it looks like you have eliminated that.

[Faust]

Originally Posted by Underdrive

Did you have any leaks before the inner wings were replaced? Because it appears to be the area on both sides where your leaks are and the other main part replaced around that area is the windscreen and it looks like you have eliminated that.

Inner wings were replaced by bodyshop 1 in April 2015 (had new outers at the same time)

There were no major leaks after this was done.

Bodyshop 2 (from July-October this year) had the outers on and off a couple of times as part of the restoration, but they have not touched the inners.

[old fart]

I, too, have leaks on both sides that I can't find the sources of, so have taken a different approach to the problem for now, and drilled holes in the floor at the low points when it is on my drive, and these , together with some strategically placed splits in my already knackered floor mat, allow 99% of the water out, so at least I don't have to drive wearing wellies. When, if, I can stop the leaks, grommets can go in the holes, but until then, hopefully a good coating of Dinitrol will keep the rust away.Regards, Andy.

[Underdrive]

All you can do then is get everything as dry as possible and watch that area while a hose pipe is sprayed onto the outside. It seems unlikely that such a large quantity of water would come from anywhere in the engine bay because that should be dry and only slightly damp at worst. The amount of water you are getting (although you don't say how quick) suggests it is coming from a runoff area like the gutter. The sills aren't filling up and spilling out passed the plastic bungs are they?