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Convertible trunk Leaks! Help!

20K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  mach.schnell 
#1 ·
I absolutely love my car but I am tired of the trunk flooding every time it rains hard or for a long period. :banghead: I have cleared the drainage tubes for the convertible top storage compartment as this is where the trunk leak is coming from and these drains are now working. It appears that water builds up in the storage compartment and then leaks into the trunk. I have ordered all of the gaskets & seals for the trunk area including the storage compartment and all of the light fixture gaskets and should have those replaced soon. The top storage compartment lid also looks to be sitting lower on the passenger side so maybe it is not sealing properly and too much water may be finding it's way into the storage compartment so it cannot drain fast enough.

Any help here is greatly appreciated! :thumbup:
 
#2 ·
Bump for help!
 
#3 ·
Since you ordered new gaskets install them and see what happens...no need to guess what the issue is as there are 2 . How is the water getting in and why wont it drain out...if you cleared the drainage holes then one can assume that so much water in coming in at once that it is overwhelming the capacity of those drain to remove water quick enough so that the well won't overflow into you trunk. The next place would be the deck gasket...replace and see what happens next. How did you clear the drain holes? How do you know they are both working?
 
#4 ·
I'm having similar problems, and was surprised to find that water collects underneath the rubbers seal along the entire edge of the top's storage compartment. Just push the rubber a bit, and you'll see a water channel underneath. It looks like this is to drain into the gear wells and then out the drain hole, but ... while driving, inertia tends to slosh the water around inside the TSC (top's storage compartment). With the compartment lid up, you will see thin black plastic "plugs" about an inch in diameter. Water will leak into the trunk through there.

First time I had about an inch of water in the spare tire well (was driving). Second time I had the passenger's gear well fill up, but no water in the trunk (wasn't driving). The drainage design puzzles me, but I haven't had time to took very closely (it's raining right now). In the meanwhile I've been using a car cover when it rains, and so far both trunk and TSC have been dry.
 
#6 ·
OK so I replaced all of the gaskets for the light fixtures and of course the main one for the convertible top storage compartment. It has rained several times since then and it looks like I have found the main problem since the trunk is dry!

The trunk is dry! The trunk is dry! :woot:

I have not yet had a real long nasty rain yet so I am still waiting to make sure it is indeed fixed. Checked the drains for the top compartment when replacing the gasket and it was also dry. Just to be clear - I did essentially what was in the link on how to clear the drains - and when you put water into the compartment it indeed runs out the drains as you can see it drain out under the car. I was pretty optimistic that the storage compartment gasket would help since the lid is now level when closed and looks to form a tight seal in the closed position. You could also tell how much the old gasket was worn when looking at the new one as the new one is much more pliable and firm. It's night and day when you compare the old one to the new one. Best $64 ever spent. :clap:

I'll let you all know if anything changes one way or the other.

Now if I can just figure out how to stop the convertible top from leaking in the front corners I will indeed be a very happy camper. I have already replaced all of the windshield / headliner gaskets and it is better but it still leaks. Sometimes it will leak on the driver side, others the passenger, and sometimes both. Sometimes it will not leak until you open the door during a rain storm and sometimes it just leaks. Seems like a weird design. I have had other convertibles (Miata, Sebring) and they either did not leak (Old Miata) or the leak was easy to fix (Sebring). The Sebring had drains in the A pillars that would clong but once they were cleared everything was dry.

I am open to recomendations on what to do next. Many thanks for your help. :thumbup:
 
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