Drenched Interior?
 

My car was in the rain for 3 days with the roof closed of course.
Today I noticed the carpet on the passenger side was completely drenched.
I'm trying to figure out an explanation for this.

Any ideas people?

Plugged drain holes is my first thought.

I agree with you.

Do you know how to unplug them?

Problem fixed as it turns out the plug hole on the right hand side of the battery was completely clogged so I grabbed a clothes hanger and tied some tape on the end of it and gave the hole a good push and within seconds at least a liter of water came running of the bottom of the car I'd hate to think what could have happened if the water went further back under the passenger seat and into the electrics maybe a $3000 repair job.

:cheers:

Check the rear drain holes too. Put the top in the service position and you'll see them on both sides below the top mechanism. Here is a thread with reference pics:

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/37955-drain-holes.html

I can tell you from experience that the carpet takes FOREVER to dry out. Mine got wet during Sandy. I wet vacced it several times and left a hair dryer running for two or three nights and it was still moist for about a month.

Wow!

I would never have figured their were drains in cars, how bizarre.

I'm learning a lot, thank you.

After you've wet-vacc'd all you can, get yourself a box fan and an extension cord. Place it in the open door, leaning against the corner of the seat, angled slightly downward towards the carpeting. Open the opposite door to allow the air to flow. Every couple of hours, re-position the fan to make sure you eventually hit all areas.

Obviously, best to do outside on a sunny warm day...you've got plenty of those down there about now, right??

I've gotten very damp carpeting dry in just a few hours this way. Lots of air flow, that's the trick.

Yep, best to go check yours ASAP.

I have seen available a small plastic debris trap to avoid allowing the drain holes to clog. Has anyone tried these? Mine sleeps in the garage so having a build up debris, but I was wondering if this has helped anyone out?

It's still pissing down here in Sydney I will get the car out in the sunshine as soon as we get hot again in the meantime I've been driving around with the car heater on full blast around the carpet area.

I use a kitchen mesh strainer over the drain holes in the middle of the car, under the top mechanism. Withjout a mesh covering, the holes will get full of small leaves and clog but you won't be able to see the clog like you do in the drain holes in the frunk. The small one work the best.

4-1/2 in. Mesh Kitchen Strainer in Stainless-Steel-88822 at The Home Depot

+1

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I also had the same problem . I checked out the drains, who would of thought.... but they seem good and I blew them out with compressed air. I can actually see the water line coming down the inside of the door over the speaker and it seems to soak the whole bottom of the carpet on the bottom of the door. This only happens when it's torrential rain. I'm thinking some of the rubber seals are going, and from what I gather that can get expensive. Still working on mine, good luck with yours.

wet door carpet
 

Tanque-did you replace the expensive wraparound door seal, and did this fix the problem?

For cleaning and checking drainsI have used the compressed air method as well. Previous experience on other vehicles has taught me to lower the air pressure at first to see if there is any exit for the air. I have blown drain lines from their connections by pressurizing with no outlet. This leads specifically to finding a way to reinstall the never accessible drain connections and a general increase in vehicle dismantling knowledge and experience.I agree large volume air flow is the ticket for getting the interior dry

Hey Broken
I started checking out the drains first. The seals are super expensive. It seems to have worked, but I still watch the rain and if it looks like a deluge I take the truck or leave the cover on the boxster. It takes forever to dry the carpet.

What about just leaving the car running with the AC on (and top up of course) for a couple of hours?

Many cars have drains, not only convertibles. Cars with sunroofs usually have a tray around the sunroof since it is pretty much impossible to make it watertight. There are drains running from the back and front of the tray to somewhere below the car. Unfortunately most car manufacturers use way too small diameter drain lines. This means that they get clogged easily but also are difficult to unclog.

What I found helps a lot is to flush the drains with a Dawn solution a couple of times a year. Nice stuff Dawn! Great for unclogging drains, stripping wax and clay barring, just dissolves your hands so wear latex or nitrile gloves.

Hi,

I have this exact same problem to both driver and passenger side, were are these drain holes you speak off? And do they get full up or water or something?

Thanks guys