The dreaded wet carpet. Help!!! B7 saloon

[Qasim]

Dear forum Members

I've got the dreaded wet carpet in my Audi b7 drivers side only. Iv used the search function and the drain holes on the bulkhead (one under the battery, the near the MC) have been mentioned, these have been checked and cleared (jet washed) I have used heaters to dry the carpet. I thought I may have fixed the issue until today and water has returned after some heavy rain. I'm out of ideas at this moment in time , the car does not have a sunroof so no idea how the water is getting in! Any thing else worth checking?

cheers!

 

[Wagon Wheels]

I had this on passenger side, never got to the bottom of it. Had an Audi tech go through it outside and in, couldn't find fault. There is more than one place where water can collect in the engine bay if I remember correctly. Cabin filter housing can leak. Mine stopped end of summer, hasn't happened since. Something to do with running cold air con I thought, but all that was checked at the time. Good luck!

 

[Donfero]

Hey قاسم،
Welcome to the forum.
If you have a sunroof check the drain pipes.

Sent from my RMX2170 using Tapatalk

 

[Qasim]

I had this on passenger side, never got to the bottom of it. Had an Audi tech go through it outside and in, couldn't find fault. There is more than one place where water can collect in the engine bay if I remember correctly. Cabin filter housing can leak. Mine stopped end of summer, hasn't happened since. Something to do with running cold air con I thought, but all that was checked at the time. Good luck!

I think mine is somehow making it through to the driver's side footwell and then to the back carpet, really struggling to see how it's getting in!

 

[Qasim]

Hey قاسم،
Welcome to the forum.
If you have a sunroof check the drain pipes.

Sent from my RMX2170 using Tapatalk

Thanks @Donfero my car doesn't have a sunroof so it rules that out

 

[Charlie Farley]

Do you park on level ground or on a camber?

 

[Qasim]

Do you park on level ground or on a camber?

Hi @I'm Just Rob. Yes I do park on camber but not too extreme a slight slope

 

[Charlie Farley]

Is it towards the drivers side by some chance?

 

[Qasim]

Is it towards the drivers side by some chance?

@I'm Just Rob. Yes coming through drivers side , well drivers side carpet near pedals are soaking and it looks likes it's making its way to the rear

 

[Charlie Farley]

Double-check both the drain bungs are clear for a start, don't rely on jet blasting them, get in there manually and check they are totally clear.

Also, something to keep in mind is this.
There is a large aperture beneath the cabin air filter box and also the same under the ECU box on the divers side , both are the same size apertures as they are swapped depending on lh or rhd designation.

water ingress can be from either side and if there is a sudden large volume of water running down the windscreen it can easily swamp either side before it has time to drain away into the lower areas and drain plug.
If you are getting a lot of water in the driver's footwell then maybe look at the area underneath the ECU box, if the seal has failed for whatever reason water can find its way in very quickly and with more serious damage to electrical circuits.
There are only a few possible ways water can get in to be honest, just a process of elimination.

 

[NHN]

Door seals, try adjusting the striker plates for a tighter close.

 

[Qasim]

Double-check both the drain bungs are clear for a start, don't rely on jet blasting them, get in there manually and check they are totally clear.
View attachment 217116

Also, something to keep in mind is this.
There is a large aperture beneath the cabin air filter box and also the same under the ECU box on the divers side , both are the same size apertures as they are swapped depending on lh or rhd designation.

water ingress can be from either side and if there is a sudden large volume of water running down the windscreen it can easily swamp either side before it has time to drain away into the lower areas and drain plug.
If you are getting a lot of water in the driver's footwell then maybe look at the area underneath the ECU box, if the seal has failed for whatever reason water can find its way in very quickly and with more serious damage to electrical circuits.
There are only a few possible ways water can get in to be honest, just a process of elimination.

@I'm Just Rob. I'll check the bung holes again, maybe try and get a longish screwdriver just to make sure, can these be checked from the bottom also?

In terms of the seal on the ECU,. There is a black box on the driver's side with around 5 screws holding it down, are you suggesting that water is making its way under under? Would I need to completely remove the black box and the seal sitting directly under it? Assuming I'll need to replace the seal or would I need to apply some sort of sealing agent?

 

[Dan_Avant]

The black box on the drivers side is the ECU housing.

You need to remove the drivers side wiper blade and lift the plastic cover to get to one of the screws. Removing the wiper blade can be a pain.

Once in the ECU is easy to remove. There’s a metal clip that holds it in place. Remove that and you can lift the ECU out and take a look

 

[Dan_Avant]

Here’s a link to some with similar problem. Check ECU housing for cracks and trapped wires causing gaps:

Water ingress and Cracked ECU cover

Got round to checking my ECU box for water ingress. Seems like someone has had reason before to try and remove the ECU cover and box! Whilst removing the screws I noticed that one corner was snapped off....yes in the corner under the window/wiper trim! Snapped corner: Missing screw...

www.audi-sport.net

 

[Stonedofmoo]

Double-check both the drain bungs are clear for a start, don't rely on jet blasting them, get in there manually and check they are totally clear.
View attachment 217116

Also, something to keep in mind is this.
There is a large aperture beneath the cabin air filter box and also the same under the ECU box on the divers side , both are the same size apertures as they are swapped depending on lh or rhd designation.

water ingress can be from either side and if there is a sudden large volume of water running down the windscreen it can easily swamp either side before it has time to drain away into the lower areas and drain plug.
If you are getting a lot of water in the driver's footwell then maybe look at the area underneath the ECU box, if the seal has failed for whatever reason water can find its way in very quickly and with more serious damage to electrical circuits.
There are only a few possible ways water can get in to be honest, just a process of elimination.

I'm looking at this diagram and I'm struggling to understand what it represents. If this the engine bay?, inside the cabin?

 

[Charlie Farley]

engine bay, the section between the bulkhead and engine.
bungs are beneath the battery etc.

 

[Stonedofmoo]

engine bay, the section between the bulkhead and engine.
bungs are beneath the battery etc.

Much obliged fella