X5 E53 Rear Footwell Flooded with Water - Where is it coming from (Not the Doors)?
 

The dreaded water problem struck my car. Every time it rains, the rear-left footwell (behind the passenger seat) fills with water.

At first, I thought it could be the door vapor barrier, so I opened it and it was a little bit torn above so I fixed it. I tested it, no water came in. Next time it rained, water flooded the rear-right footwell, so I took it to BMW here in Mass. They said the sunroof drains were clogged, they cleaned them and charged me $130. It rained again and guess what; the floor behind the passenger seat was flooded...

After reading some forum posts, I opened the hood and cleaned the carbon filter area that had some leaves. It didn't do any good as next time it rained, water flooded the same right rear footwell.

I've blasted a hose over the entire car - including directly inside the rear quarter window, and came up empty handed - no water appeared inside.

Any suggestions before I take it to BMW again?

Are you talking the left rear cubby in the trunk? Could be a body seam has opened and water from the road is getting in versus water falling from the sky.

Are you the original owner? If not did you do a carfax report to determine if perhaps the X was in a rear end collision with another vehicle?

No, the trunk is clean. I'm talking about the carpet on the right-rear side of the cabin (behind the passenger seat). The water seems to concentrate towards the back - see the red markup in the attached images, I just removed the door sill trim to dry it out.

Check your sunroof drains!

SUNROOF DRAIN

Too bad that they didn't check after cleaning the "clogged" sunroof drains and taking your $130 to see if the issue still existed...or if one of the drains were disconnected or torn.

Unfortunately, you don't have any model/model year/build date info in a signature...so we don't know if this is the regular sunroof or the Pano sunroof. Help us help you better, consider creating a signature that includes your model/model year/build date. A signature can be created by clicking the USER CP link found at the top right of the page...then clicking on the EDIT SIGNATURE link that appears along the left side. :)

Yeah, you're right about the signature Qsilver. It's a 2006 X5 4.4i Sport with the panoramic sunroof - at BMW they said they did the water test after the un-clogging and everything was fine.

Where does the rear sunroof drain pipe(s) run through? Can I check it out?

I have the non-pano sunroof, but check out this thread - I posted pics of the rear drains for mine. They are near the upper hinges for the tailgate - not a terribly intuitive place.

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...s-realoem.html

130 bucks and it still leaks???? Don't they warranty their work???

I still don't get how the floor can get wet from the sunroof, unless there's a pipe running through or nearby - could it be something else?

Check the rear air conditioner drains. You have to remove centre console. This happened to mine and the Rear ac was where the water came from.

This.

I thought the rear was just a blower from the front. I have AC that blows cold front and rear and I get two drain puddles under the X from under the console area.

RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 4.4i BLOWER REAR

Anyone have pics/schematics of rear drains if they exist? Because if they do, mine are plugged :)

The drain holes at the front are clogged. the rear being the lowest point allows the condensation to collect until it overflows into the rear carpet area. With the blower on all the condensation is moved along the air duct to the rear.

Since you are getting some drainage, it may be that there is a kink in the plastic drain tubing that does not allow free drainage and the overflow is being blown to the rear. The drains are located by the front centre console. Remove the carpet panel at the passenger front and you should be a plastic tube ; it may have a kink in there.

Thanks for all the responses. Just to make it clear, only the right side of the rear passenger floor floods, NOT both.

Yesterday, I rechecked the panoramic sunroof drain-holes (all four of them) by pouring water and it came out from the designated holes – nothing appeared inside. I also re-re-re checked the door by pouring water inside the rear quarter window – nothing.

It's driving me crazy as I can't pinpoint the area from which the water comes in when it rains. For the A/C drains – and before I dismantling the console, if this is to blame, wouldn't water flood both footwells, not only one side, and wouldn’t this happen without rain – because the rear right footwell only floods when it rains.

Might be the ‪vapor barrier (rear passenger door)
EDIT: realoem -> SOUND INSULATING DOOR

Am I reading this correctly...you only poured water over the small rear quarter section of the door...not the entire length of window? When it's raining...the entire length of the door is getting wet...and water that isn't turned away by the gasket running the length of the entire window runs down the inside of the door...and that water is supposed to be deflected by the vapor barrier to the drains in the bottom of the door.

If the vapor barrier has failed along any of it's length that is supposed to be adhered to the interior door frame...then that water will follow the path of least resistance...which is the interior foot well.

Just asking so that we all are clear as to what you did to check this out...since we aren't there to see what actually occurred...we only have what you write to go on as to what you did. :)

X5 E53 Rear Footwell Flooded with Water - Where is it coming from (Not the Do...
 

This happened to me. It was AC drainage. On daytime. Thwres 2 hose that drains next to each other when AC is on. Check that one as the car is running if its dripping on both hoses. Had this repaired on my bmw 2300 later from the Olivin green one 4yrs agohttp://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/07/03/8eryjyna.jpg
If not AC i do have wvery bit of molding seals by doors lol. Just in case you need some lol

Modified Driver/ Barn Tunned

mine was leaking in the same area only when it rained. had me baffled for a long time.

I tested the sunroof by completely taping it off at the edges on a day before I knew it would rain and then drove it in the rain.

still got water even with the sunroof taped off so that eliminated it and its drains.

obviously if its the a/c system being clogged...you'll get water accumulation any time you run your a/c for an extended time period regardless of rain or not. the system creates condensation by itself.

I thought my vapor barrier was fine. I ended up getting a garden hose with a nozzle that had the jet function. pulled my door panel off and closed the door. sprayed the ever loving heck out of the door for about 5 minutes in all kinds of positions and such.

opened the door and then I was able to see the drips.

There were a few small tears that LOOKED just fine normally that leaked like a faucet. Also, there was a screw retainer that leaked as well. I replaced the original door gasket completely with my own method stolen from ford vehicles.

used headliner adhesive at all contact points and then a clear plastic trash bag which I then trimmed down. then I added some of the original bmw goo squished into the screw retainer hole.

checked everything with the garden hose again and all is well. then tossed my original liner back on top of all that for extra sound deadening. I've done this with 3 of my 4 doors so far and no issues. also, I dont have to worry about buying a new bmw vapor barrier even if mine is torn. gotta go into the door? ok, just rip off the plastic liner and toss a new one on.

I've poured gallons of water with a hose (used a pressure gun too) all over the car, but I still can't pinpoint the leak as no water comes in. If I take it to the dealer, they'll probably just follow the book eliminating known issues and charging me each time without any guarantee that the problem is solved - just like it happened last time.

Those of you who had an AC drainage leak, did water appear on both sides of the rear carpet or only one?

the only other way to find a leak would be to removing rug,interior panels ect. which would be a pita . I ripped out alot of interiors on doge caravans years ago looking for leaks . there would be wet carpet in the front of these vans ,but they were leaking from the rear . leaks are a big pain to find sometimes. but I would look at the common places for now that other members here have had leaks before de gutting the whole interior. you might start breaking clips or even crack panels taking them off.

Just had this problem. It was the a/c drains. Only wet on passenger side. I'd explain why that is but too much to type. There's an easy way to check. Dissasemble the center storage bin until you see the duct. It pops off. Chances are it's full of water. Then go under the car find the aforementioned drains and unclog them. I used a 1/4 piece of tubing as a snake. I also plunged the tube with my finger by plugging it and pushing back and forth(makes more sense when you are doing it. Tons of water came out and problem solved

Ps it only does that when it rains because whenever it rains it's also super humid!!

#Jgold47 - did your front or rear passenger side carpet get wet? On mine it's the rear passenger side only.

By center storage bin you mean the one behind the parking brake (the red circle in the picture)?

http://i.imgur.com/OEnHwNJ.jpg

yes to the picture. Yes to the rear passenger only.

if you move the passenger seat all the way forward, there is a carpet piece along the center consolse. It can be pried out from the back to the front (dont take it all the way out as the front portion is separate from the back portion and has to come out first), but you can pop the rear section of the rear piece out enough to see behind it. Feel for moisture inside that console. that should answer the question pretty definitively.

Thanks JG, I'll check it out as soon as it stops raining and update. Going under the car to find the A/C drains might be an issue though - did you use a lift?

I'm far from svelte, and I did it from the ground, no ramps. the hoses are on either side of the transmission. I see you have a sport, so your gonna be a little lower than me.

I get two distinct puddles under mine from the AC. You should see the same if both drains are working.

:iagree: Ditto about the two puddles (or rows) of condensate.

On an aside...if I forget to turn off the AC a mile or so before getting home...and see the two puddles or two streams of condensate on the driveway where I stopped to raise the garage door...I make sure I use the OBC's aux vent feature to help prevent the growth of bacteria which causes the blast of AC stank. :cool: This feature runs the HVAC blower for 30 minutes (without the key being in the ignition)...which helps prevent a wet/dark environment which is the birthing ground for bacteria & mold. :kiss:

Good call on aux vent. There is a way to do this for those of us without the Nav screen, but I can't recall. I'll look it up when I'm back tonight and post.

Nope, without the OBC, I can't access that feature to activate the post fan operation. I can for heat with the Max AC button, but only when temp is below 15 deg C (59 deg F).

Off chance anyone know if I could toss in a radio with the OBC and it will just work? I have a row of pixels missing so a good excuse as any to find one at the wreckers.

Cheers.

For those with the MID you have to select the timer functions (press the clock face button on the lower right side of MID)...and you'll see VENT ON & 1 TIMER 2 :

FYI: the VENT ON as well as the Nav's AUX VENT (direct mode) can only be accessed when the ignition is in KL R (ignition position 1)

http://www.bimmerboard.com/members/q...imer%20Pic.jpg

-Update -

Looks like JG was right - I left the X5 running with the A/C on for about 20 minutes, came back, no water under the car, but the rear-right passenger footwell had a big puddle. Maybe it was a combination of things - the a/c, the door barrier and the clogged sunroof drains (cleaned by BMW during my last visit)...

Besides trying to unclog the a/c drains from under the car next to the transmission, do I have to do anything else, like under/next the center console inside?

There was a LOT of water in the system I vaccumed out. You may want to yank the center console and let everything dry out. You can drive the entire car without the console. Good opportunity to vinyl wrap your wood trim. If your rich, you could preventively replace the FSR both in the front and rear.

PS, I seem to have only been able to get the drivers side tube unclogged, I'm getting nothing from the passenger tube. I think it's longer and makes an extra turn, so I've been unsuccessful in clearing it from the ground. I'll put the car up this weekend do I can really get at it. The good news is that I haven't had any water in the car with just the one tube unclogged, but I'd rather not find out the hard way.

The carpet backing acts as a super sponge. Unless you take it up, to dry out the excess water, your car will soon begin to smell moldy. The process is not too difficult. I took out the front seat to raise the carpet . 4 Bolts holding the front seat .

Another note....

I pulled the pane in the interior- Passenger side (where the FSR) console to see if I could find where the drain exited the condenser...its right there, but when I squeezed the hose as it exited the condenser, there was something 'IN' the hose. sort of felt like a check valve or something, but hard. the tube was cold above this obstruction, but warm below it(obviously not draining). Now I'm intrigued, and if I could figure out how to disconnect that tube from the condenser (very little room to work) without yanking the dash, I would be very curious to know what that is.

I was doing youtube surfing and found this technique -> How To Fix a Water Leak: Aston Martin DB7 - Wheeler Dealers - YouTube

Update - Seems to be fixed


So, we took the car to BMW in Boston and told them the A/C was flooding the rear footwell and that no water was dripping from under the car. They said they checked it out and it was fine - we insisted, they said there's no issue and that upon a third inspection, they purportedly found that water was coming from the door vapor barrier (which I had patched up). They didn't charge us a dime for the visit (happy about that ofc) and told us to bring the car the following day so they can replace the vapor barrier charging me parts only ($70ish), because this would be my third visit for the same issue.

Funny thing is that, when we took the car back home with the A/C on, there was no water leaking inside and when we parked, miraculously, the drains worked for the first time this summer... Fine with me.

I took it the next day, they dried out the carpet and replaced the vapor barrier.

Thanks for the follow up and the opti coat looks great on the X!