Odd problem.... Water in the rear passenger area?

May 13, 2006 8 Replies

This morning, I got into my 2002 530 and wnet to put something in the back. The carpeting in the rear passenger seat was wet. I took the floor mat out and it was soaking wet. It did rain hard last night here in the NY area, but all the windows, and sunroof were closed tight and everything else was dry. There was not thing to indicate what happened. Any one have a clue? this is really bizzare. thanks.



John



Door seal or trim membrane?

Quite likely. See TSB # 510400, "Door Sound/Vapor Barrier - Water Leaks."

I would bet on the vapor barrier problem. I'm assuming he's already ruled out incontinent rear-seat passengers...

Ed

Do you have a sunroof? Cars with sunroofs have a drainage system so that water that leaks around the seals can exit out the bottom of the car. If this gets clogged...

I do have a sunrooof, I i saw posts on this last night. But I can not see the drains... I must be blind. Can anyone help me out?

Also the car had sat during the rainstorms the previous night, I was not driving. And Yes, there were no passengers with problems back there.

Also, Where can I get a hold of TSB # 510400, "Door Sound/Vapor Barrier

- Water Leaks."

Thanks for the help.

I think you would see plain evidence of water ingress through the sunroof. It's always *possible* that's where it came from but I'll bet dollars to donuts it's not.

With great difficulty, if at all. BMW TSBs are not officially made available to average Joes like you and me. You can google up lists of them by number and name but I never found the contents of them anywhere on line.

The fix is a new vapor barrier, tape and a couple of hours labor if the car is out of warranty.

You can test the drainage system by opening the sunroof and poring water into the area where rainwater would get into. It should drain out the bottom the car. If it doesn't, you've identified your problem.

I have had the same problem with my 2002 325. So far the local dealer has replaced the vapor barrier, refitted the door seals, replaced the windows seals, reseated the hinge grommets, and most recently replaced the vapor barrier again, each time believeing this to "definitely be the problem". I am now waitng for the next lot of rain to check it out

- needless to say I am not confident. If anyone has any other bright ideas I would really welcome the input.

Chris

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