Today i decided to remove all the plastic trim from the inside of the boot lid and then got someone to hose the boot down...
Water started to drip in from where the boot lid handle is fixed to the boot, and also where the number plate lights enter the boot lid! Without the plastic trim i could see that it was dripping down and collecting in the bottom of the boot lid itself, and then when i opened my boot it was obvious that the water would run round the plastic trim and either into the 3rd brake light or into the boot somehow...I then removed the boot handle and it was clear that the seal was gone, there was loads of dirt where water had worked its way in over the years... Rather than buy a brand new one ive used some silicone sealant on the seal and also put loads over each screw hole where it was dripping in from before.
One final thing i noticed is that the water was also seeping in thru the rubber grommet of the rear wiper, but it was no way comming in as much as it was from the boot lid handle! Also the little hole in the bottom of the boot lid was filled with dirt showing that water has been using it as an escape route... ill clear it later so that if water still makes it into my boot it can escape without causing any problems.
Are these locations of the leaks common?? |