Water leaking drivers side front

[GXR]

Hi Guys

My AU3 XR6 leaks water into the drivers front.
When sitting in the car driving water falls onto my ankle.
(I have just had the airbag/seatbelt pretensioner sorted by the local Ford dealer after the light came on the dash. I spoke to the mechanic who said there was water coming into the A pillar that had corroded the connections.)
There is an obvious water problem as my carpet is slightly damp. I suspect it will be the windscreen. Does anyone have any ideas?

[Trevor 57]

There is another thread on a similar problem here, my thoughts are posted in there:

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=11200959

[RspecAU]

Originally Posted by GXR

Hi Guys

My AU3 XR6 leaks water into the drivers front.
When sitting in the car driving water falls onto my ankle.
(I have just had the airbag/seatbelt pretensioner sorted by the local Ford dealer after the light came on the dash. I spoke to the mechanic who said there was water coming into the A pillar that had corroded the connections.)
There is an obvious water problem as my carpet is slightly damp. I suspect it will be the windscreen. Does anyone have any ideas?

I have found my water leak that i have in the drivers side which sounds exactly like ur's. Remove the plastic cover above the windscreen wiper motor and check to see if none of the spot welds that holds the steering colomn bracket to the body have broken. I have had two that has broken through and need to be rewelded. Hope u understand what i mean

[Eu-GenixX]

when does it leak water?... when the air con is on?.. does the air con work well?

[ebxr82nv]

Originally Posted by RspecAU

I have found my water leak that i have in the drivers side which sounds exactly like ur's. Remove the plastic cover above the windscreen wiper motor and check to see if none of the spot welds that holds the steering colomn bracket to the body have broken. I have had two that has broken through and need to be rewelded. Hope u understand what i mean

or silicon!

[FRDGAL]

Originally Posted by ebxr82nv

or silicon!

No way!!! This is a major part of the car it should be rewelded

RspecAU

[GXR]

Hi all
I appreciate all the advice. I am getting my panel beater to have a look this week, possibly will reseal the front windscreen if needed. If no luck I'll look at what you guys have suggested, probably over the Christmas break. Thanks again

[stiddy]

Originally Posted by FRDGAL

No way!!! This is a major part of the car it should be rewelded

RspecAU

And it will crack again!! Silicon allows it to flex in that spot without cracking. Just drill a hole each end of the crack to prevent it from cracking futher and silicon it.
Stops the water leak which is the issue here.

[RspecAU]

Originally Posted by stiddy

And it will crack again!! Silicon allows it to flex in that spot without cracking. Just drill a hole each end of the crack to prevent it from cracking futher and silicon it.
Stops the water leak which is the issue here.

There not cracked they have actually been pulled though. This i think happened when i had my first accident in the car and the air bags went off creating to much stress on the welds.

[GXR]

Hi Guys

Well I picked up my car from my panel beater yesterday.

(NOTE: He said to find the source of the water leak, DO NOT USE A HOSE. To isloate the location of a water leak he said use a watering can. Have a person looking under the dash while you pour water. Start low, ie. plenum chamber, then work up the side of the windscreen very, very slowly. When it starts to leak, this is the level (area) where water enters your car).

Anyway:
My windscreen & seal were OK.
A grommet in the firewall was not fitted properly due to someone previously stuffing around. He siliconed this. This was not the cause of my leak.

The cause of my leak was the plenum chamber.
He explained to me the plenum chamber sits under the wiper assembly catching all the water from the windscreen (like a gutter on a roof). The brake & clutch bracket are spot welded to the underside of the plenum chamber. 3 out of the 4 spot welds are broken. He has siliconed this to stop the leak. As it is a structural problem it needs to be welded. Fortunately my car is just in warranty and the dealer I purchased my car from has OK they will fix (?MIG weld) this under warranty. They have acknowledged this is a know problem with AU Falcons. This should then be a long term fix.

Again thanks for your input, you guys were right.

[GXR]

I forgot to mention, again you guys are right.

Apparently this only occurs with MANUALS. This must be with repetitive clutch use the brake & clutch bracket eventually breaking the spot welds on the plenum chamber +/- firewall. As my panel beater said poor engineering & design (bean counters no doubt).

[BLACKAUXR8]

I have the same problem in my Auto XR8. Maybe the extra torque of the V8 cause's it as well???