PSA: Found a pool of water under spare tire in trunk
 

It's been raining all week where I am. I was installing a rear strut tower brace this evening and noticed a pool of water under the spare. It was the only area of the trunk that was wet. Looking around, I couldn't see where water could be getting in from, until I removed the styrofoam trays for the jack and tools.


There are several small holes under those trays covered by what seem like circles of electrical tape material. A few had either moved out of place over time or were not installed correctly at the factory. I re-positioned the stray ones and covered all of them with the metallic tape that I use to secure the balancing weights on my wheels. It's still raining steadily now and rain is forecast for tomorrow, so I'll check under the spare tomorrow after driving a while to see if there's any water collecting under it again.

I reckon the trunk monkey got bored and pealed them off -:iono:


humfrz

Lol maybe :)


The water doesn't seem to have been getting in through those holes -- I found fresh water in the spare's well after my drive to work. I think it's getting through the line of caulk at the rear of the spare's well.

Welp, that's an easy fix - just get the old calking gun out and go hunting - ;)


humfrz

Just go with it.

Here ya go:


http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11523

Thanks -- yeah I've read that thread. I have aftermarket rear top mounts and have never noticed water in or near them. I've also confirmed that I have the frame rail plugs installed.


I used to remove my spare for every auto-x and never noticed water there before. But this year, I've gotten lazy and have left the spare in for auto-x's. I don't know how long the leak's been there -- it seems like it's coming in from that caulk seam. But I'll hose up the spare well with water over the weekend and try to see where it drains from. I'll also hose the trunk area from underneath and try to see where the water's getting in from.


Edit: just went out and checked to make sure the frame rail plugs are still there -- they are.

Was worth a shot.

Well, now I'm kinda stumped. I took the spare out, hosed down its well, and waited to see if the water would drain through that caulk line. Nope, not a drop.



I drained the water out through the two drain plugs shown in the fourth pic of the OP and toweled the well dry. Plugged the drain holes, closed the trunk, and sprayed all around the trunk perimeter, under the bumper and exhaust, up into the wheel wells by the shock towers. Opened the trunk after spraying each area, and closed it before spraying the next one -- never saw a drop of water inside each time.


The only other thing I can think of is condensation. It's humid as heck here 9 months out of the year, and the last time I looked under the spare before this week was probably sometime last summer or fall. Maybe 9 to 10 month's worth of condensation might account for a pool of water's accumulating under the spare. But the odd thing is, I've never found water anywhere else in the interior. I've never found the trunk mat or any of the interior mats and upholstery wet (except of course the driver's floormat when it's raining and I track water onto it).


Any ideas?

Trunk monkey spunk.

I don't have any ideas except the water may be getting in around the trunk hinges. I don't think your condensation theory will hold water.


:iono:


humfrz

I see what you did there :)



I wanted to test this again today, so I sprayed the whole perimeter of the trunk, including the top edge, pointing the hose gun down the rear windshield; up into the shock mounts; and around the tail lights. I sprayed on full blast for a minute or two.



No water by the shock towers.



Looking at the trunk, it seems like the weather stripping is doing its job and not letting water past.



I looked behind the tail lights and no water there either.


Now the only other thing I can think of is that the trunk monkey made it so the drain plugs beneath the spare were not fully seated. They are a tight fit and it would be easy for them not to be fully seated. I made sure they were this time after draining the spare's well yesterday. I guess this is just something I will have to keep an eye on from time to time, especially after a heavy rain.

Lol.