L322 Water ingress, boot electrics

Ok so....
I’ve noticed some moisture in the boot, what looks like condensation really, in the wheel well and also on the carpet by the cubby on the left with all the audio etc, I know there are plenty of threads to read but I thought I’d ask the obvious (maybe) question,
My roof bar fixing covers in the roof rails ( the ones that lift up I presume, to expose the bolt holes) are missing, all 6, could water be getting in through them?

Is there a tow bar as that can cause a leak if not sealed properly, iirc tailgate seal you tweak the flange the seal goes on it was in the service bulletins
iirc @holidaychicken went through it with the leaks

No towbar but am fitting one and read about making sure it’s sealed correctly,
Would that cause water to be in the electrics cubby and the boot floor to get wet??
I’d say it’s a new issue with my car as I checked when I bought it and there was no damp, I’ve only had it a month so wondered if it used to have a roof rack and was removed before selling and now I’m getting water inside, was just a thought

I had deep puddles in my boot from fitting an OEM towbar and that was th sealing along the top of the mounting brackets.
I don’t know anything about the roof rack but if something is missing I would replace it. The boot seal is another common one and as you have a wet carpet then it has to be coming from somewhere high up so I would check the seal. @anorakmark had a long term leak that was coming from a seam in the bodywork near the hinges I believe of the upper tailgate and if the electrics are wet high up then the side windows could be leaking and the land rover official solution is a bag to cover them

I checked the boot seal and it looks ok, nothing obviously wrong, I want to replace the bolt hole covers on the roof but can’t find just the covers, looks like I might have replace the weather strips both sides, not sure why anyone would actually snap off the covers, seems a bit pointless but hey ho

Sounds very technical, a bag to cover wet electrics lol, might be a good short term fix though I guess

Dry the boot carefully ... chuck a load of talc over it ... play a hose over the tailgate and rear lights ... check for water tracks to try and find a flow route ...

Good point, I did that but used flour which made my boot look like I was a very messy drug smuggler and eventually turned into a big biscuit looking mess in the bottom of my spare wheel well.
If @tomcat59alan offers to show you a soggy biscuit you need to decline as that is something entirely different ...

Sounds like a plan, it’s definitely coming from higher than the rear bumper mounts or as well as, if I put my hand down the carpet in the n/s Cubby I can feel it’s wet at the bottom, oddly doesn’t seem wet under the ecu’s but I need to have a closer inspection, definitely water in the boot, looks more like condensation as it’s all around the boot and spare wheel but not puddles anywhere

youmitegetian said:

Sounds like a plan, it’s definitely coming from higher than the rear bumper mounts or as well as, if I put my hand down the carpet in the n/s Cubby I can feel it’s wet at the bottom, oddly doesn’t seem wet under the ecu’s but I need to have a closer inspection, definitely water in the boot, looks more like condensation as it’s all around the boot and spare wheel but not puddles anywhere

Click to expand...

Can be seam joins not sealed fully, or sealer failure ... even the floor seams may suffer ....

youmitegetian said:

Ok so....
I’ve noticed some moisture in the boot, what looks like condensation really, in the wheel well and also on the carpet by the cubby on the left with all the audio etc, I know there are plenty of threads to read but I thought I’d ask the obvious (maybe) question,
My roof bar fixing covers in the roof rails ( the ones that lift up I presume, to expose the bolt holes) are missing, all 6, could water be getting in through them?

Click to expand...

Don't the covers push in and slide back to reveal the bolts ?

Yeah they push down and slide under But on mine they’ve been snapped off for some strange reason

youmitegetian said:

Yeah they push down and slide under But on mine they’ve been snapped off for some strange reason

Click to expand...

Sounds like someone made a boo boo trying to shift 'em ....

Or was just lazy

make some and neatly seal them in place or fit some roof bars or a sexy roof box.
failing that fit an expedition roof rack and you have somewhere for the wife and kids to sit on long journeys

Grrrrrrrrrrrr @holidaychicken the dreaded water in the boot!!!!
OK here is my story that @holidaychicken knows so well.
Boot spare wheel well like a pond, all I needed was a few ducks to compliment the situation.
First I started with a new genuine LR boot seal thinking this would cure the problem, but no it didn't.
My good and extremely helpful friend @holidaychicken was kind enough to remove the rear bumper and re-seal where the mating flanges meet and the tow bar (thank you Andy) Water still entering after a good pee down.
Now here's the strange part. My drive way is on a fairly steep gradient and funny enough depending on which way I parked the beast made a big difference to if I was greeted with a pond of water or a nice dry desert.
Parked with arse in the air and nose pointing down, no water seemed to enter the boot well even after having the wife stand with the hose on full pelt.
Now with the car parked facing in the opposite direction, nose in the air and arse on the floor things were a lot different.
Each morning I was greeted with a boot full of water in the spare wheel well, lucky my electric cupboards were always dry.
After more extensive tests with the hose pipe I can confirm water was not breaching the boot seal, so well the hell was this coming in.
Upon further investigation the only place I could pin point was the near side upper tailgate hinge flange. Water was entering underneath the mating face of the flange to the body and travelling left underneath the seem and down inside the rear pillar behind the speaker to the boot well.
Anyway to cut a long story and stressful saga short the upper tailgate was removed and a gasket made to an exact fit, with the aid of some high quality sealant tailgate refitted and I can now confirm my boot is dry as a Nuns you know what and has been for the last 3 months.
I still can't get out of the habit of checking it after a good down pour but no more water is entering the boot well. So this area around the upper tailgate hinges is worth a check.
I have attached pictures below of where the water was entering in the boot well after travelling from the upper tailgate via the rear pillar

Nice one Mark, glad you are still dry !
Definitely try the talc method that Dippy mentioned with everything taken out the boot that you can

Well this is today’s job, sounds like you had a nightmare,
My leaks seems different, not a great deal under the boot floor, some is getting in as its damp all around the wheel well but no puddled water, I do seem to have water in the electrics compartment on the passenger side, but oddly only on the side carpet and only at the bottom, I’ll strip out what I can and see where we go, I was wondering if it could be coming in by the rear light, but hopefully I’ll find out today

@holidaychicken ,you just carn't resist mating flanges (#post 16) can you Andy. Not the photos I was expecting.

Do not google wet flange...that be a slippery slope..