macabethiel
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2008
- Messages
- 4,412
Water leaks.
Water leaks are often very difficult to find & then go on to fix successfully. (When I worked for an Audi dealer in the 1970's we used an Ultra Sound generator placed in the vehicle, a microphone was then run round the outer edge of the door frame to listen for excessive noise leaks on a Electronic Display. It was an expensive bit of kit that rarely worked!! lol)
It is often something less obvious that has been missed like a rust pin hole or even a broken upper door frame that moves when it is shut, poor accident repair in the past? The post reads as though you can see where the water is coming through but that is probably not where the actual issue is it will be further up somewhere. If you have lots of sealant in place that could actually make it worse.
Most door seals do not actually completely seal the gap between the door and the body frame as this would not work for very long as the seals would soon loose compression and it would leak all the time when a car is a few years old. Most door seal designs act as a sort of flexible channel where the seal fit. The seal then acts like a sort of guttering directing the water away. Some door seal designs have inner and outer seals so you can have a seal on the door and also on the body frame. I can't remember my Terrano design but I would concentrate on the fit of the seal. I would then thoroughly clean all the paintwork and give it some wax polish and the proper silicone weatherstrip grease that helps the seal repel water rather than absorb it.
I would check the less obvious such as does it look like the original door? Checking the hinges usually is a give away if it has been replaced in the past. Is the bodywork sound and rigid as rusty sills can cause body flexing. Has the vehicle been on a wheel free ramp recently?
I am not aware of the vehicle history have you had it long? Has the leak started after an MoT etc ?
I am just trying to think of ideas outside the box.
Water leaks are often very difficult to find & then go on to fix successfully. (When I worked for an Audi dealer in the 1970's we used an Ultra Sound generator placed in the vehicle, a microphone was then run round the outer edge of the door frame to listen for excessive noise leaks on a Electronic Display. It was an expensive bit of kit that rarely worked!! lol)
It is often something less obvious that has been missed like a rust pin hole or even a broken upper door frame that moves when it is shut, poor accident repair in the past? The post reads as though you can see where the water is coming through but that is probably not where the actual issue is it will be further up somewhere. If you have lots of sealant in place that could actually make it worse.
Most door seals do not actually completely seal the gap between the door and the body frame as this would not work for very long as the seals would soon loose compression and it would leak all the time when a car is a few years old. Most door seal designs act as a sort of flexible channel where the seal fit. The seal then acts like a sort of guttering directing the water away. Some door seal designs have inner and outer seals so you can have a seal on the door and also on the body frame. I can't remember my Terrano design but I would concentrate on the fit of the seal. I would then thoroughly clean all the paintwork and give it some wax polish and the proper silicone weatherstrip grease that helps the seal repel water rather than absorb it.
I would check the less obvious such as does it look like the original door? Checking the hinges usually is a give away if it has been replaced in the past. Is the bodywork sound and rigid as rusty sills can cause body flexing. Has the vehicle been on a wheel free ramp recently?
I am not aware of the vehicle history have you had it long? Has the leak started after an MoT etc ?
I am just trying to think of ideas outside the box.
