Re: Stag leaks

[PGAHOWELLS@domain.elided]

Hi all.
I have (hooray hooray) fixed the location of that water leak. Tenacity pays
off.
Here is where it comes in.
It is coming in the top of the windscreen rubber seal, between the rubber seal
and the body of the car.
It comes in where the rubber seal changes direction and goes from the
horizontal plane along the top into the vertical plane down the side of the
screen. 
It runs behind the windscreen rubber, and the slope takes it from the outside
part of the groove in the rubber to the inside. It drips out of the bottom
inside corner where you cannot see it, and around the end of the fascia. 
Depending how much gets in and the tolerances around the trim there, it runs
down the fuzzy weather trim or, if you are lucky, around the end of the fasia
padding and drips onto the floor mat where you see it.
It is an evil insidious leak, because it is not very obvious that it is there
at all, and its not very obvious when you find the wetness, where it comes in.
It will creep down behind the carpets at the side of your footwells without
you knowing, and along  the seam between the floor and the inner sill, and rot
that joint out.
The photo on pge 35 of James Taylors book tells me the leak is not just on
mine. Fortunately mine was seriously sealed and just gets wet under the
carpets. That is until Eureka, one day having  tried everything until I found
it, using  jugs of water tipped over various different parts  of the affected
area. 
I have used a thin creeping sealer by Comma to feed into the top and sides of
the rubber seal. It works to a point, but really heavy rain will drive through
it.
The answer must be to seal the rubber to the body all round the screen with a
silicone caulk.
Notes
1) The little tube you can get in Halfords is useless, because the tube
collapses as you caulk round.
2) I think it needs a big caulking gun with a tube of caulk that has a very
fine nozzle.
3) The rubber must be dry inside the joint. Very difficult a) to dry it b) to
know if it is really dry. Best do it after a very hot week in summer, or get
the screen out and use a new rubber.

I advise every Stag owner to lift those front carpets and see if they have a
damp patch between the base of the "A" post and that round metal paint drainer
plate in the floor.

I sealed the gaps between the tops of the wing and front of the apron panel
below the windscreen, and it made no difference, although It might come in
there on some cars
Good luck
Regards
Peter Howells