WhydidhebuyaP38?

New Member
Hi Guys

The saga of the wet driver footwell continues.......

Long long ago in a galaxy far far away.......A Range rover P38 Xreg 4.6 was bought. Alas it suffered from a wet drivers footwell. This was solved(so we thought!) with the assistance of the RR jedi masters on the forum by replacing the O rings(They were buggered).

What joy..... Nope, still wet footwell.

So the pollen filters were the next suspect. Aha wet pollen filter must be leaking in through to the footwell. New pollen filters, covers and seals bought and fitted.
Car dried out and joy!

Alas with the recent state of wind, snow, hail rain and generally nasty weather, the problem has reoccurred.

Any ideas, please???
 
Does it have a sunroof? If so, could be blocked drainage channels, perhaps. Is the roof lining damp?

If not, heater matrix or air con? Perhaps those new O-rings are not seated correctly?
 
Aircon drains run either side of the transmission tunnel and vent under the floor either side of the gearbox, these can get clogged and leak in the footwell.

Also check the sunroof drains, these run down the Windscreen A pillars and discharge from the frontwings in front of the doors. Check by opening the sunroof and get a cup of water and pour it into the sunroof well, near to the drain points and watch for it to expell under the car, or into it..!!!

Also check your windscreen for correct sealing...mine was leaking at the top corner passanger side, took the trim pieces off and covered the whole top and sides of the windscreen with a shed load of silicon sealant, fingers crossed, not leaked since.

It has also been noted by a couple on here that the fold and weld joint under the roof rack rails can be a culprit for leaks too.

If you can lift the carpets and check the actual floor of the footwell, or get under it with an inspection lamp and see if it isn't coming up from a hole in the metalwork rather than down from above..!!!!
 
Does it have a sunroof? If so, could be blocked drainage channels, perhaps. Is the roof lining damp?

If not, heater matrix or air con? Perhaps those new O-rings are not seated correctly?

Yes it has a sunroof and we have checked all the drains on those and they are ok, the O rings were done in a garage about 3 months ago, and the car did dry out after we did the pollen filters before Xmas. Looking at info could it be the PLenum filter, cos basically there isnt one there any more or the seals at the bottom of the pollen filter housing?

As we're not really experiencd enough for taking the whole car apart and putting it back together again correctly, any ideas so we can get someone to do it or know where to look would be greatly appreciated.:D
 
HI Saint, yep have checked the aircon drains too. Carpet seems to be welded down so cant get that up without the need for a new carpet as well.
 
What is the level of wetness??

1. Few drips - drys quickly, not hanging around for days
2. Slight dampness - doesn't seem to dry out
3. Wet to touch
4. Squelchy carpet
5. Could bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Swimming Events
 
What is the level of wetness??

1. Few drips - drys quickly, not hanging around for days
2. Slight dampness - doesn't seem to dry out
3. Wet to touch
4. Squelchy carpet
5. Could bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Swimming Events

Well it started off as definitely 5, maybe even a 6 (the Atlantic Ocean), Then went to 4 before pollen filter and now its about a 3 and a half if that makes sense. When we did the pollen filters, we dried the car out and it was ok for a couple of weeks but its been stood and not driven since just after Xmas so I'm guessing that its something thats weather related.
 
I know this sounds odd, but taste it....

If it is reasonably tasteless I would say either rain water or aircon drain....if it has a sweet/bitter taste, it is coolant.
 
So if its coolant could that mean that the O rings are still dodgy?

And the rain water could be the non existent plenum filter? When we took out the old pollen filter, you would have thought it was a pond filter it was that wet!"!
 
Water ****es into mine when it rains if I park it facing the wrong way (no sunroof). I think its coming in from the roof strip above the screen, but it could be the pollen filter drains. Too busy to look at the moment. If I park it nose down on the slope which also means the drivers side is high, the water does not come in. P38's are designed to be kept in airconditioned garages and used only in sunny weather.:rolleyes:
 
P38's are designed to be kept in airconditioned garages and used only in sunny weather.:rolleyes:

OKaaayyy......:cool:

unfortunately, the garage along is non existent. And the weather?? Well, for the one sunny day each year it will be driven with feet firmly in a puddle of water lol
 
When the O rings were replaced, did you/they use the newer bolt to hold it all together , as the originals were crap apparently and didn't really pull the two halves together very well...also (I know this from Hydraulic O rings) if they are installed 'dry' they can leak, and with oil seals you always wet them first with oil or an O Ring lube....not sure if this is pertinant on the P38 Heater rings....
 
When the O rings were replaced, did you/they use the newer bolt to hold it all together , as the originals were crap apparently and didn't really pull the two halves together very well...also (I know this from Hydraulic O rings) if they are installed 'dry' they can leak, and with oil seals you always wet them first with oil or an O Ring lube....not sure if this is pertinant on the P38 Heater rings....

Not really sure to be honest. Guy who fitted them was a Landy guy though not main dealer. Think he had a few problems fitting them at the time. Maybe we should just take it back and see what he says? It was only about 3 months ago and i would hope that the repair should last longer than that!!
 
Give the dampness a taste to check if it is coolant or clear water as this will tell you if you need to take it back or not, it may save you

1. Time taking it back
2. Embarrasment when you realise it isn't from his/her repair
3. His/Her time looking for a fault in the wrong location.
4. Your money.

(I like lists):D
 
So if its coolant could that mean that the O rings are still dodgy?

And the rain water could be the non existent plenum filter? When we took out the old pollen filter, you would have thought it was a pond filter it was that wet!"!

The lack of a plenum filter shouldn't have any effect. It's whether or not the drains at either end are clear. A simple check would be to remove the pollen filters and see if they're still dry. It's always a good place to start with this problem as it's only a couple of screws.

:D
 
When i did my O rings i got a large sheet of plastic and slid it under the heater matrix and over the carpet to see if the rings were still leaking and left it there so the coolant would run down the plastic into the drivers footwell rather than be soaked up by the carpet before it was noticed luckily so far there has been no leaks. So you might try and get the plastic under there to see if O rings or matrix is leaking
 
Water ****es into mine when it rains if I park it facing the wrong way (no sunroof). I think its coming in from the roof strip above the screen, but it could be the pollen filter drains. Too busy to look at the moment. If I park it nose down on the slope which also means the drivers side is high, the water does not come in. P38's are designed to be kept in airconditioned garages and used only in sunny weather.:rolleyes:
Did you ever fix this?
 
When the O rings were replaced, did you/they use the newer bolt to hold it all together , as the originals were crap apparently and didn't really pull the two halves together very well...also (I know this from Hydraulic O rings) if they are installed 'dry' they can leak, and with oil seals you always wet them first with oil or an O Ring lube....not sure if this is pertinant on the P38 Heater rings....
Think they should be lubricated with neat anti freeze.
 

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