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HELP! 2000 Passat leaking

My 2000 Passat with 22K miles has the most bizarre water leak.

It is only in the rear passenger well.

There is *NO* evidence of water from ceiling, sunroof, on walls or anywhere.

It is clear that is seeping up from below since the padding underneath the rug gets squishy before the rug is actually wet and occurs even after a night sitting out (in the rain of course).

It is *NOT* the drain holes at the bottom of the door as I have cleared these.

Obviously not from A/C condensation as A/C not running in winter (and not working anyway).

A few months ago I got scratched on the passenger door but small dent and cosmetic damage (I have not had this fixed yet).

I have called the dealer but I get the sense they will just start pulling stuff off - help me be an informed consumer!

Thanks (writing from Seattle so help soon)

Reply to
GR
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OK, here's the low down on Passat water leaks. Open your hood and dump a few gallons of water near the battery and master cylinder/brake booster area. You should see it drain out quickly and very little water should remain in the cowl. If it doesn't it means the water drains are plugged up with junk such as leaves and things. If it drains well then there is another area of leaks. The housing around the pollen filter can leak due to the seal not working well. As for the water being in the rear under the carpet you must look under the front carpet first as water runs down hill and the back is lower than the floor under your front feet. So pull the trim and check under the front carpet.

The above info presumes the car hasn't been wrecked or had a windshield replaced recently.

Reply to
Woodchuck

My first suspicion would be seepage around the rear window rubber frame which is hollow. From there seeps underneath padding and carpeting to collect in the rear well. To find out exactly where is coming from I'd suggest 2 ways. You decide if any is for you.

  1. The hard way: take down completely the rear seat (both parts), peel of the rear half of the carpeting and anchor it somehow to the back of the front seats in upward position. If the padding underneath the carpet is one piece continuos with the front, cut the rear part and take it out. (when you put everything back together it won't be noticeable anyway). Make sure everything is PERFECTLY dry and than circle around rear well with paper!!! adhesive tape (the wider the better). Leave the car outside in the rain and check when you have water in. The paper tape will show you exactly where the water is coming from. I know it sounds very laborious. It is.
  2. The easy way: It doesn't > My 2000 Passat with 22K miles has the most bizarre water leak.

If the water seeps inside the rear pillars which are double walled or underneath the padding, you'll never have any kind of visible exterior signs.

Reply to
Tom Resi

But GR states clearly:

"It is only in the rear passenger well."

That implies that he checked already the front floor. Or not?

Reply to
Tom Resi

My Jetta had the same problem - the sunroof drains were clogged and needed to be cleaned. Once I cleaned them out, no more leak There's 4 drains, one at each corner of the sunroof. Two drain forward to the hinge area of the door and two drain back rear of the rear wheels. I used a flexible fiberglass electrician's wire snake and worked it thru the drain tubes to clear them out.

Reply to
Erik Dillenkofer

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