Made a slightly distubing discovery this morning - my vRS is leaking rainwater inside the offside 'C' pillar. It's dripping down the inside of the pillar from roof level and running through the perforations in the carpet trim just under the speaker shelf.

Judging by the damp boot floor on that side it appears it's been leaking for a short while before I've noticed it.

It's disturbing 'cos I can't readily think where it's getting in. One possibility might be the box recess in the back of the roof where the tailgate hinge is mounted?

Its not from the tailgate seal 'cos it's dripping from inside the pillar, not just under the trim.

Anyone experienced anything similar or got any suggestions?

Is your rear screen wash working at full power?

Is your rear screen wash working at full power?

yep, those were my thoughts aswell

Thanks guys - will double check, but not noticed a problem with the rear washer. Had thought about that. Any known weak spots to look out for?

Thanks guys - will double check, but not noticed a problem with the rear washer. Had thought about that. Any known weak spots to look out for?

The reason for the above two comments is because there is a joint there for the rear wash which often comes detached, especially in the kind of cold weather we have been having lately.

I agree this is likely to be a rear screen wash pipe leak. There is absolutely nowhere for water to get into the c pillar from outside, unless you have suffered a drive by shooting

hmm - I have had this very slightly occasionally on our estate but it only happens when raining so not the washer pipe (it doesn't smell or taste of screenwash). I reckon it is because I park on a slope to the left. The drainhole for the tailgate is in the middle so I reckon that it must collect slightly overnight and not be able to drain away past the tailgate rubber stops - then in the morning when I open the tailgate it runs back up the tailgate through the rubber tubing taht the electrics and washer pipe go and then into the C pillar. It then runs back down insde the trim and comes out of the join at the bottom of the C-pillar trim.

Interesting theory - thanks Skomaz.

It's really hard to be sure where its coming in at the moment 'cos of all the rain. I'm suspecting it's not the rear washer as there's no smell of screenwash and no corresponding lack of pressure in that squirt department. Checked it again today and it's still dripping in from above the waistline.:(

It will probably take a day or two of dry weather in order to make some meaningful checks. At least it's not flooding in but I don't want a damp boot carpet for too long!

Where's the screenwash tube joint - is it in the roof, before it enters the tailgate through the rubber conduit? :confused:

On little brother (.4) ,the pipe sort of rises over the rear nearside seat and goes down over the wheel arch -seem to remember the joint is approx at te top of the seat .

Just done a search on rear washer threads and it's looking like the washer pipe is probably not the source of my trouble.

Skomas' theory is even more interesting now. I can't think of any other way water is getting in. But getting in it is!

I then started to thinkabout how water could get in last night and my initial thoughts are the badges on the back (they don't sit flush and are probably held on by "pins") and the rear wash wipe where it goes through the rear window.

So I did a little mod yesterday lunchtime to test my theory out - I took the rubber stop mout on the passenger side and cut a couple of triagles of rubber out of the "thread" where it met the metal so that water could drain freely from this point. It lashed it down last night and there was no water this morning so I could just be right. Anyone else want to give it a whirl?

I agree this is likely to be a rear screen wash pipe leak. There is absolutely nowhere for water to get into the c pillar from outside, unless you have suffered a drive by shooting

No bullet holes, and normally I'd be with you on this one but it's deffo not the rear screen wash tube and it is coming down the c pillar from roof height. Hence my perplexity.

Skomaz's theory might have something going for it. I'm also still considering the possibility that it's the sealing in the tailgate hinge recesses. When it rains heavily the bottoms of these fill up with water. If the panel sealing around one of these joints is imperfect (and perhaps when when parked on a slope) it might be that water is getting into a box section at the back of the roof and then finding it's way out later?

I could do some hosepipe checks on this latter theory but I think I'll wait for a bit warmer weather for that. In the meantime I'll keep an eye on it and look out for any more thoughts from fellow Briskodians.

Well given the weather last night and the fact that I haven't used the rear screen wash for a couple of days I'm now absolutely convinced that my theory is correct.

As I said I havent used the rear screen wash for a couple of days so it can't be that. However, it did rain very heavily last night and when I opened the hatch this morning and held it slightly ajar about half a cup full of water flooded out from inside the hatch via the notches I'd cut in the rubber stop!

So, having effected an initial solution to allow water to get out of the interior of the rear hatch I now need to find out how the water is getting in so I can sort that as well!

Given the quantity of water this morning (and the fact that none came out when I parked up and opened the boot last night) it must be getting reasonably easily and I can't see that happening via the badges. Potentially via the reash wiper hole but that looks OK so my guess is the rear screen. It's bonded in but I can see the line of adhesive within the black area at the edges so my guess is that the bond is failing. I'm therefore going to run a line of windscreen sealant arount the top where it joins the bodywork (the most likely source of ingress) and also down the sides.

However, for info how easy is it to remove and replace the rear screen? - presumably it's an Autoglass job but will it need a new glass or is it likely that the rear screen could be re-used.

Also is there a risk that the glass could fall off completely?

Well given the weather last night and the fact that I haven't used the rear screen wash for a couple of days I'm now absolutely convinced that my theory is correct.

As I said I havent used the rear screen wash for a couple of days so it can't be that. However, it did rain very heavily last night and when I opened the hatch this morning and held it slightly ajar about half a cup full of water flooded out from inside the hatch via the notches I'd cut in the rubber stop!

So, having effected an initial solution to allow water to get out of the interior of the rear hatch I now need to find out how the water is getting in so I can sort that as well!

Given the quantity of water this morning (and the fact that none came out when I parked up and opened the boot last night) it must be getting reasonably easily and I can't see that happening via the badges. Potentially via the reash wiper hole but that looks OK so my guess is the rear screen. It's bonded in but I can see the line of adhesive within the black area at the edges so my guess is that the bond is failing. I'm therefore going to run a line of windscreen sealant arount the top where it joins the bodywork (the most likely source of ingress) and also down the sides.

However, for info how easy is it to remove and replace the rear screen? - presumably it's an Autoglass job but will it need a new glass or is it likely that the rear screen could be re-used.

Also is there a risk that the glass could fall off completely?

If you suspect its the glass, you could try tipping a bucket of water/hose/watering can over different parts and watching to see if it runs through?

Right, then!

No rain for a couple of days and no drips inside boot, then I washed the car. Lots of hosepipe on roof to simulate rain. Look what happened! :(

The newspaper was dry before I started washing. (...and still no bullet holes Moggy Tech! ) I'm more convinced than ever it's the sealing around the tailgate hinge recesses. Suspect that sub-zero tmperatures over last 2 or 3 weeks have caused the seal to crack. A dose of silicone should cure it but I'm going to run it by my dealer first as car is still under warranty. I only spotted this by chance - I suspect it's happening to others, but as it seeps down behind the trim and carpet you don't notice it straight away. Might be another cause of excess condensation frequently reported?

Hmm - Looks like you could be right there as it's the wrong side for my theory to work!

I'm now convinced my theory is right for my car though - I taped over the gap between the top of the rear window and the bodywork on the hatch on Friday lunch and, after heavy rain on Saturday night the car was bone dry - so sealing the rear window looks like my solution.