240 General: water leak around bonnet release

[PTJS]

Thanks Richard

I can see the water seeping through the existing seal around the bulkhead/cable release junction so I'm going to try to inject some sealant into the split to see if that will do the trick before I get to the dismantling stage. Will let you know how it works out.

Phil

[PTJS]

Thanks Richard & Alec

I can see the water seeping through the existing seal around the bulkhead/cable release junction so I'm going to try to inject some sealant into the split to see if that will do the trick before I get to the dismantling stage. Will let you know how it works out.

Phil

[PTJS]

Just an update to let you know how I managed to solve my above leak problem.

I studied the area the engine bay side of the bulkhead to see just how water was getting to the point where the bonnet release cable passes through to the car interior. I noticed that several panels meet in this area ie bulkhead, wing, wheelarch/inner wing and that there was a small gap between the panels near the bonnet hinge through which water from the drainage gutter above ran into. The cable for the bonnet release below this position dipped down to the point where it passes through the bulkhead and it seems water was dripping onto the cable and then tracking down it to the bulkhead. The original seal had obviously failed over the years by movement from operation of the bonnet release catch which waggles about when pulled.

I then had a look at the nearside end of the bulkhead to see if there was a similar gap between the panels which would allow water to drain through and was surprised to find there wasn't. I concluded that the gap causing the problem on the offside should have been filled at manufacture. I filled it with a mastic gun, therefore stopping the water from dripping onto the cable in the first place and hey presto - no leak! The water drains away around the bonnet hinge area instead. I will put some grease around the cable/bulkhead junction on the engine bay side to counter any corrosion that may have started to the cable. Hope others find my experience in solving this problem useful.

Now to check out those 'A' pillars ......

Phil

[Jungle_Jim]

Hi all

I am currently dealing with this issue of an enlarged corrosion hole in the firewall around the bonnet pull...

Unfortunately I haven't got any photos to show (can anybody suggest how to put images on this forum which aren't presented as low-res thumbnails at the bottom?)

On my car (92 estate) there is a creep of rusted-through corrosion (mostly) upwards of the bonnet pull hole on the inside of the firewall (RHD), which goes up into the seam sealer at the top corner of the inside of the firewall.

But - my car aside, I am bumping this 2006 discussion back to the top because there is really interesting information from Richard Clark (forum name classicracing) about how this was a known problem in 87-88 due to the panel pressings becoming so old, that the size of the firewall panel was slightly shorter, and they had to fill the right/off-side gap with sealer! He says that the problem was rectified in the factory in 1989 but I am wondering if it continued to exist later in production... Possibly they may have made sure that LHD bodies were fixed in this regard - whose bonnet pull is on the left side - but judging by my car, prehaps they didn't quite get RHD bodies right.

FAO Clifford Pope: did Richard ever send you this report?

Unfortunately for my car, during this rain, I have not yet managed to have this repaired, so there is a lot of water in the driver's footwell.

I guess this problem may be affecting most if not all 240s, and this will only have got a lot worse since this discussion in 2006.

John

[Big 240]

I'll be keeping an eye on this thread as I have recently purchased a 1989 Saloon, so potentially my model was from the new pressings...

[Clifford Pope]

Originally Posted by Jungle_Jim

FAO Clifford Pope: did Richard ever send you this report?


John

No. I didn't pursue this further as I sold the car and bought a 1991 model.

[Bob 1967]

Originally Posted by Jungle_Jim

Hi all



Unfortunately I haven't got any photos to show (can anybody suggest how to put images on this forum which aren't presented as low-res thumbnails at the bottom?)


John

Try imgur .
Use "huge thumbnails" and Direct Link.