V70 oily passenger footwell

[oilit]

Was cleaning the car today (first time in a year !) and after removing the mats I noticed that the floor was damp on pass side, it feels oily - which makes me wonder if this is the source of why my air con doesn’t work.

Could the two be linked? Is there anything in the cabin that could leak on pass side (Uk) with an oily feel to it?

Thanks in advance for ideas!

[Georgeandkira]

Perhaps your evaporator has sprung a leak and PAG oil is being sprayed about?

The other "oily" substance which ends up in our footwells is coolant.

[oragex]

These are the locations of the drains on LHD. https://youtu.be/aH5kWCXzM98 You may have a leak from the heater matrix seals, look up near the dash center with a flash light where the two alu tubes enter the matrix - may find a video on Youtube as well

[oilit]

Thanks guys - very helpful - will go on a hunt - at least I don’t have a sunroof....

[John97Tdi]

Press a piece of white kitchen roll to the 'oily' patch - the colour should give you an indication as to what you are looking at - I'd guess it's coolant since its generally the passenger footwell where it ends up when either the seals go or the heater matrix itself starts to leak.

[Nogbad the Bad]

If it is the heater matrix, the oily stuff should have a green or blue tint; whatever the colour of your coolant is.

My matrix started to leak where the flow and return pipes go into it, which is on the left hand side. I used silicon sealant on the joints and it hasn't leaked since; about 80,000 miles.

You'll know if it is these pipes when you expose that side of the matrix; there will be a telltale stain of coolant coming from the pipe joints.

[oilit]

Tried the white paper and it’s inconclusive on the colour front so I guess I am going to have to start ripping the side panel off to see what I can see !!

Will report back

[ASt85]

Originally Posted by oilit

Tried the white paper and it’s inconclusive on the colour front so I guess I am going to have to start ripping the side panel off to see what I can see !!

Will report back

The leak will almost certainly be coming from the "O" rings that seal the hoses and the inlet/outlet ports on the side of the matrix, they go dry after a few years and then start leaking.

There's a "how to" here https://youtu.be/xsDYdsbPfSg?t=245

[oilit]

Finally got tho this yesterday - and it’s definitely leaking around the pipes - so I have a box of o seals and will try to replace them later today, and will see what happens and will report back!

Thanks for the video ;-)

[Georgeandkira]

If your assortment (box o seals?) has the correct O-rings it'll be the coup of the century.
For a look: https://www.ipdusa.com/products/2112...8693268-139817