18 replies to this topic

[Someone called James]

Hello Guys and Girls,

 

I'm sure this will come as no surprise to many of you but rain is getting inside my mini and soaking the carpets in the driver's side front footwell and I'm not completely sure where it could be coming from. I know it's not spraying up from driving in the rain because the mini hasn't moved for nearly a week. There was probably about 1-1.5mm depth of water in the rectangular flat part of the footwell so I don't think it's not a small leak either.

 

It is fitted with a sunroof and checked the seal around it and that's OK so I'm not sure where else it could be coming from, Door Seals maybe? The rain looks like it's been running down the carpet that covers the front wheel arch section so could it be coming from the Check Strap hole? I know the windscreen used to leak but a new seal has been fitted and no longer leaks. 

 

My mini is a 1989 Racing Flame 998cc and is my daily driver. The rain has been leaking in since I bought it about a year ago and is really starting to get on my nerves and I don't want my floorpan to rot through any quicker than it needs to! It's only been leaking on the driver's side, passenger side seems fine.

 

Any other suggestions on where the leak could be coming from would be greatly appreciated. 

 

James C. 

[Van13]

The only way I found my leaks was to remove or peal back carpet have a torch get some one with hose pipe start at top of windscreen and work down you should see where it's coming in with yourself in car,could not believe where water was getting in on my corrado

[lerry]

Door seal would be my guess, try hose pipe test as Van 13 suggests starting at top of door frame

[CityEPete]

The favourite mystery one is blocked drain holes in the bottom of the door then once the door is full it comes in from behind the interior door trim panel (door card), this is made even worse by people removing the plastic weather sheet.

[jamesquintin]

if its getting wet from just sitting there, then its the door seal and/or check strap seal.

 

Had the same problem on my MPI, but just a few drops here and there. Replace the door seal and the door check with another foam one (the MPI's had foam seals) and its been fine since.

 

The seals were 15 years old, so not surprised they didn't work anymore. Also replaced the rear quarter windows ones too as they had shrunk and leaked

[dyshipfakta]

Another one I have seen is windscreen seals that look ok but leak down bulkhead. Also check if your car has oversills or not

[pusb]

On mine it was where the window regulator joins the door frame. There was a sort of putty in there that had gone hard with age.

[Quincy Sparks]

Our 88 Designer leaks in the lower corners of the windscreen seals, water collects ends up where you mention. The rubber is just old and brittle so not forming a proper seal anymore. Hose pipe test as mentioned above probably the best way to identify, good luck!

[panky]

Try Captain Tollies Creeping Crack Cure on the screen seal, fantastic stuff

[Northernpower]

Just because you've fitted a new windscreen seal don't automatically assume its not leaking.

[absx2]

Usually the water comes in from the screen, the bulkhead around the master cylinders, the door cards or the rear lights.

On the rear lights water goes through the boot, across the back seat and follows the floor pan until it arrives at the front foot wells.

Also check your filler neck seal.

[roblightbody]

My Mum's 1989 Mini Racing green leaked like crazy into the footwells when it was brand new - ponds would form overnight.  We had a sloped driveway, and discovered that parking it facing downhill solved the problem!

 

My 1995 Mini did the same, but not quite so bad.

 

The Minis I've had recently (a 1994 and a 1990) have both had properly sealed front windscreens - just a fresh seal fitted by someone who knows what they're doing (McDonald Minis) and have never leaked once.  Avoid the later MPi type seals like the plague...

[Mini Manannán]

It was the windscreen seal on mine (well, that was one of the leaks )  It was capillarying (is that a word?) down under then up the back of the glass.

 

Try Captain Tollies Creeping Crack Cure on the screen seal, fantastic stuff

 

That sounded so rude I had to look it up! http://www.captaintolley.com/  Looks like handy stuff.

 

Looks like Captain Tolley's used a mini windscreen as an example: http://www.captaintolley.com/uses/

Edited by Mini Manannán, 15 January 2017 - 02:46 PM.

[panky]

Sorry for spelling it wrongly

It's  a comedy name but it really does work. It disappears between the glass and seal and leaves virtually no trace that it's there, not like silicone sealants. Looks like milk and is just as runny, I got some for my Morris traveller which was leaking quite badly in the corners of the screen but a few applications of Capt'n Tolleys sorted it - used it on my campers too

They seem to have modified the product name in that link, shame.

Edited by panky, 15 January 2017 - 05:18 PM.

[felixy69]

I had the same problem
Just found out where it's leaking from on my car

And it's from the chrome window seal / moulding, water is going from there to inside the door then coming out from the interior door panels and into the interior floors