Hi everyone!

I've had my MK6 Fabia Classic 1.2 12V for 3 months now and pumped a substantial sum of money into getting it fully serviced (previous owner was lazy with it), getting 2 new fronts, replacing a broken water bottle and sorting out the audio on it (some nice components and fitting my little sub). But, I'd be more than willing to get rid of it after a problem I just cannot sort. My leaky rear door carriers!

I noticed the problem in December, when the car started freezing up on the inside in the cold and getting steamy when parked in the sun. Had a quick search on here and found it's a common issue with a fairly easy fix. Whipped my door cards off, saw the rubber seal actually hanging off! I put a load of gutter sealant in and over the plate edging and replaced and broken door clips (I'm not good at whipping them out, different story).

Had a bit of rain again Saturday and I noticed that the rear footwells are soaking, again. I buy some more door clips (shh) and whip off the card. No gaps, no water traces .. Nothing.

I understand it could also be an issue with the rear wiper tubing, but I haven't used the rear wiper in ages.. I can't see it being that.

Does anyone have any advice or ideas as to what I can do or look at to see where the source of this problem is? I would be more than willing to pay someone for their time if they came down and had a look with me (or I could go up there, I don't mind).

This is pretty much the last call on this problem for me. I would really appreciate any advice you guys could offer before I sell the Fabia on. I really don't want to, but this problem will only get worse as time goes on.

Many thanks,

MrNorm

It's just a case of perserverance I think. If there are no signs of water leaking from the rear carriers then it may just be left over moisture/dampness from when you had the problem. I'd suggest putting a dehumidifier in the car to dry everything out one night.

If you can't find any signs of leaking under the back door cards, or the tell-tale signs on the rubber seal on the door then you probably have a different problem. I would suggest trying to get the car dried out first if possible though.

Even just leaving the doors or a few windows open on a warm day would help (think of security first though).

I think I sealed mine 4 or 5 times before I solved the problem, but I've never been happier since I got it fixed properly! If it is leaking just put any extra sealant over the top.

Hi Bezzy,

First off, thanks for your response! At least I have an option or two I can explore now.

I think my best bet is to do as suggested and get a dehumidifier and see if it can squeeze any more water out of the car. I had been putting the blower on the floor, but perhaps it isn't drying it out enough.

Do you have any good suggestions to get door clips off properly? I've been using a pallet knife covered in electrical tape .. Doesn't seem to do, er, anything!

Thanks,

MrNorm

Do you have any good suggestions to get door clips off properly? I've been using a pallet knife covered in electrical tape .. Doesn't seem to do, er, anything!

The new trim clips available from skoda are a new design of the old ones (much improved) you can just pull the card straight off without worrying about breaking any clips, its well worth the few £ to change them over, i've had the door cards off my fabia countless times since changing them and not had a single one break. Plus means you dont need to spend time fiddling with pallet knives etc to get the door cards off.

As for the leaking doors definately get a dehumidifier in, mines pulled out over a pint of water after one go, also the door locks seem to let in a slight bit of water (might just be mine), not particularly sure how to prevent this but it could be a contributing factor.

Might be worth checking the grommets on the underside of the car aswell

Hope this helps

Hi mike07vrs

Great info there! Thanks! When I picked up the 12 clips, the parts guy did say they were the new design. So it should be nice and tidy to pry off next time like you said.

Also looks like a dehumidifier is on the cards. Shame nobody I know has one :( .. Anyone in Portsmouth (or in a 20 mile radius of) have one I could borrow one weekend? I'd imagine I would get bent over if I tried to rent one.

mike07vrs, you also mention rubber grommets on the underside. What should I be checking for?

Many thanks,

MrNorm

One other thing I've just thought of is that you should check the drainage holes in the bottom of the door. I somtimes visit Reading/Crowthorne, normally once a month, but I think that's probably still quite a way away from Portsmouth I think? I'm not sure how much I could help either, as I only know about sealing the doors!

The clips shouldn't break if you're using the new style ones, the door card comes off easy after the first time! If you have a dry finger you should feel any dampness if you run your finger along the metal at the bottom of the door card. If it's damp, then you can check to see where it's leaking from on the carrier. If it isn't too obvious, push gentley on the carrier and the water should bubble out. Don't push too hard, or you'll undo all your hard work

I somtimes visit Reading/Crowthorne, normally once a month, but I think that's probably still quite a way away from Portsmouth I think?

Ah, still about 1hr 30min drive on a good run. Thanks for the offer anyway, I really appreciate it.

I will definitely check the holes at the bottom of the doors, I guess something could be blocking it in one way or another.

Looking forward to not having door clips break on me anymore, that was the biggest annoyance of the whole thing.

MrNorm

I sealed mine on Friday.

Central Skoda has already made a feeble attempt about 2 years ago, but it made no difference at all.

I used the new type clips which are excellent and used Tompson gutter seal from B and Q.

I removed the silicone that Central put on, but did notice that they had just wiped it over the top of OE the foam seal, leaving large sections with no real coverage at all. I could see white corrosion on the aluminised carrier where the water was passing.

So once I got the silcone off, I cleared out as much of the foam seal as well.

I then drilled 3mm holes in between the rivets near the edge of the carrier for some stainless steel self tappers and then opened up the holes in the carrier (not the door material!!) up to 5 mm to enable the two skins to pull up together.

I sealed around the carrier, ensuring loads went up into the gaps, put sealant in the holes I drilled, then screwed it all down tight. This was a big difference as there was at least 3mm gap between the carrier and the door.

I also filled around the little white clips coming through the carrier and the rivet heads, just in case.

Put it all together and left it 3 days. Washed the car yesterday with some good blasting of the hose at the windows and door handles. It was dry as a bone when I usually had water on my door seals.

Theres a post by someone else (morozj) on the sticky about the self tappers so many thanks to him for the idea. I put two in each gap between rivets along the bottom edge and up the rear slope of the door.

Next step is curing the root cause of the problem - it happens because the carrier protrudes inside the door, past where the water drips through the window. The water then drips onto the carrier and runs down it to the foam seal, which absorbs the water which then drips through and into the car.

All that is needed is a 'window sill' glued or welded inside the carrier, which protrudes far enough in and the drips will then come off that and fallinto the door instead of running down to the seal.

Hope this helps, if anyone tests my theory out please let us know how you get on.

I will also copy this to the sticky

Edited 22 March, 201115 yr by micklecats

Also looks like a dehumidifier is on the cards. Shame nobody I know has one :( .. Anyone in Portsmouth (or in a 20 mile radius of) have one I could borrow one weekend? I'd imagine I would get bent over if I tried to rent one.

I guess the other option is something like a VAX vacuum cleaner to suck the water out of the carpet. I had problems with mine when I bought it, and used said vacuum cleaner to get it near-dry (mine pulled about 0.5 mugs out of one well), then coated the rear wells with scrunched-up newspaper to "wick away" the water. Left it like that whilst driving with the heater on for a week or two (replaced the newspaper once to make sure), and it's been dry since.

I guess the other option is something like a VAX vacuum cleaner to suck the water out of the carpet. I had problems with mine when I bought it, and used said vacuum cleaner to get it near-dry (mine pulled about 0.5 mugs out of one well), then coated the rear wells with scrunched-up newspaper to "wick away" the water. Left it like that whilst driving with the heater on for a week or two (replaced the newspaper once to make sure), and it's been dry since.

Top tips everyone! Thanks!

I do know someone with a VAX cleaner, so I'll be popping round there later this week. Newspaper in the meantime though.

Am I right in thinking too, if I have the AC and recirculation on, the car effectively becomes a dehumidifier for the air inside? Just a thought that occurred to me.

Cheers,

MrNorm

mike07vrs, you also mention rubber grommets on the underside. What should I be checking for?

Going from memory there is a couple on either side of the car just inboard of the sills and i'd imagine there is probably a few more dotted about. They should be easy to spot, will look like a rubber lump usually round in shape. The drain holes are a good shout, definately worth checking!

One thing I forgot to mention when I done my rear door seals I drilled out the rivets holding the carrier in place, ripped out the old seal, scrapped it away and then dried it out with a heat gun, then used sikaflex (sealent) to create a new inner seal between the door and the carrier, rivetted it back together then applied an outer seal over the joint, perhaps a bit OTT but my seals were ruined and there was water built up in them so removing them was the only viable option.

Try pressing the carrier and see if it forces water out the seal, if it does get a drill, stanley blade, flat headed screw driver, rivet gun and heat gun (or hair dryer) and get those seals out!

Good luck with it

Going from memory there is a couple on either side of the car just inboard of the sills and i'd imagine there is probably a few more dotted about. They should be easy to spot, will look like a rubber lump usually round in shape. The drain holes are a good shout, definately worth checking!

One thing I forgot to mention when I done my rear door seals I drilled out the rivets holding the carrier in place, ripped out the old seal, scrapped it away and then dried it out with a heat gun, then used sikaflex (sealent) to create a new inner seal between the door and the carrier, rivetted it back together then applied an outer seal over the joint, perhaps a bit OTT but my seals were ruined and there was water built up in them so removing them was the only viable option.

Try pressing the carrier and see if it forces water out the seal, if it does get a drill, stanley blade, flat headed screw driver, rivet gun and heat gun (or hair dryer) and get those seals out!

Good luck with it

Nice one on the grommets, thanks! I'll take a look.

Ah, I went over the rubber seal on mine. That could be my problem then. The rubber seal on mine was dangling down on the lower half. Completely out the carrier! I did consider drilling out the rivets, but did you rivet them back on with a gun, wack in some self-tappers, or just hope the sealant would hold it on?

Thanks,

MrNorm

I did consider drilling out the rivets, but did you rivet them back on with a gun, wack in some self-tappers, or just hope the sealant would hold it on?

I used a rivet gun since we had one handy, that added with the sealent theres no chance that carrier is coming off

Most people tend to just put sealent over the carriers but then again if the seal is properly ruined then its just covering the problem not actually fixing it imo. Was worth the extra time and effort doing it that way. If you decide to go along that route i'd recommend trying to clean the inside of the door while you have access, 6 years worth of water and grime was not a pleasent smell

I used a rivet gun since we had one handy, that added with the sealent theres no chance that carrier is coming off

Most people tend to just put sealent over the carriers but then again if the seal is properly ruined then its just covering the problem not actually fixing it imo. Was worth the extra time and effort doing it that way. If you decide to go along that route i'd recommend trying to clean the inside of the door while you have access, 6 years worth of water and grime was not a pleasent smell

That sounds a plan to me. Might have to invest in a rivet gun then. I don't think they're that expensive. Could you remember what size rivet you used? Just trying to work out what to order.

Also, did you just give the door a wipe down, or am I expecting something horrific in there?!

Thanks,

MrNorm

I had a major problem after some insurance work on my offside rear door, the bodyshop had taken the door apart to repair a minor dent but failed to reseal afterwards. Resulted in water running into the car, fair amount at that.

Took someones recommendation off here of a sealant named 'Plumbers Gold', meant for trade use, seals taps and can be used underwater etc; but can be brought at toolstation, or online. Used this last monday and went mental with it. Havent had a problem since, washed the car yesterday, ran the hose on the windows and not a single leak.

Anyone got a link for a complete step by step how to do it? Not sure how I go about removing the trim to get stuck in about it

Anyone got a link for a complete step by step how to do it? Not sure how I go about removing the trim to get stuck in about it

That sounds a plan to me. Might have to invest in a rivet gun then. I don't think they're that expensive. Could you remember what size rivet you used? Just trying to work out what to order.

Also, did you just give the door a wipe down, or am I expecting something horrific in there?!

Thanks,

MrNorm

The rivet size was quite big, will try and find some and measure them when i get home from work. I'd have plenty of paper towels ready, the bottom of the door has grooves that the drainage holes are located in, i'd try and clean them out just to make sure there all clear. You'll be able to see anywhere else that may need to be cleaned

I do know someone with a VAX cleaner, so I'll be popping round there later this week. Newspaper in the meantime though.

Hopefully should work - I used an industrial-strength Karcher cleaner I managed to borrow (so I assume it's got a bit more "suck"), but the principal should be the same ... just a relatively quick way of getting it "mostly" dry.

The rivet size was quite big, will try and find some and measure them when i get home from work. I'd have plenty of paper towels ready, the bottom of the door has grooves that the drainage holes are located in, i'd try and clean them out just to make sure there all clear. You'll be able to see anywhere else that may need to be cleaned

Cool, thanks for that, I really appreciate it.

Am I right in thinking the door carrier has the window regulators attached to it? Is that going to be a problem when I'm reapplying the sealant?

Cool, thanks for that, I really appreciate it.

Am I right in thinking the door carrier has the window regulators attached to it? Is that going to be a problem when I'm reapplying the sealant?

No problem at all, the window bits are in the middle of the carrier.

Just to keep you guys up to date on this.

IT'S FIXED!

I couldn't find the right tool / size for the rivets on the door carrier, so I bought a new tube of gutter sealant and covered the entire lip of the plate.

I had a new wet patches under the rear floor mats a few mornings after that, but it appears to have dried up and I haven't had any issues since (We've had a few decent showers too.

Thanks for all your help and advice guys! I have another issue to deal with now (PAS) but this leaky carrier almost ended it for me.

Thanks,

MrNorm