Wet drivers side floor board

[zguynate]

I hope this is in the right section, but I have a water leak.....

I went outside last night and saw that my windshield was completely fogged up. I checked the floor board and it was soaking wet on the drivers side. It hadnt rained in 4-5 days. So today I pulled the carpet on the drivers side (which was a pain in the because a majority of the interior had to come out lol) and found about an inch and a half of standing water behind where the drivers seat is, and about the same under the drivers foot rest. Well I fired up the water hose (watered up rather) and put it on my windshield first. The leak is coming from the front. I cant tell exactly though because of the material on the firewall. I have the RJM clutch pedal and am wondering if somehow I fd up the install, and it is somehow allowing water inside. When I look in the compartment where the CMC is, the water is mostly hitting the wiring harness boot though, and it doesnt seem like the water is hitting the CMC.

Any insight would be awesome!

[synolimit]

I had this issue in the passenger side when I F'ed the boot up covering the main wire harness down to the ECU but no idea on the drivers side. All you can do is keep testing and find it.

Wait you have right or left hand drive??

[zguynate]

It's LHD. There is a harness boot there and the water literally drops right on top of it. I'm probably going to uninstall the RJM pedal and check everything, then reinstall it to see if that changes anything.

[40 to 332]

Interesting. Please keep us posted when you discover the source of the leak. Those of us who have installed the RJM pedal assembly will be interested in knowing whether there could be a problem, and if so, what the fix is. I haven't experienced any problems with my RJM assembly, but I'm mainly a fair-weather driver. I'll post a note to Ryan at RJM and see if he's had any reports of a water leakage problem.

[zguynate]

Will do. I doubt it's the pedal itself because I haven't heard of any issues about water yet. I'm sure if there is a problem it's due to the install. It's supposed to be pretty cold tomorrow so I'm not sure if ill look at it then before work. Ill de keep you guys updated though.

[Ryan @ RJM]

Originally Posted by 40 to 332

Hey Ryan, there was a post today (by dragonbreath) stating that he was having problems with water leaking into the driver's side and collecting in the footwell and behind the driver's seat. He did a water test but could not locate the source of the leak because of the insulation covering the firewall. However, he suspects that it may be related to the installation of the RJM clutch pedal assembly, and that the water is penetrating where the CMC and pedal assembly join. Have you had any reports of this problem? I find it a bit strange. I installed the RJM assembly and had no issues, but I'm mainly a fair-weather driver. Provided the assembly is tightened down properly as explained in the instructions, I can't see how it could leak. That said, it would be interesting to hear from others who have installed the RJM assembly whether they've experienced any problems with water leakage.

40 to 332, Thanks for posting about this. I've not seen or heard any reports of this unusual problem in the past or in the nearly 30k kilometers I've put on my own G37S Coupe (daily driver in all weather) with the same RJM pedal assembly and master cylinder as the 370Z. Now neither my pedal assemblies or the factory pedal assembly have any sort of weather seal at the base of the bracket as they're both actually standing off of the firewall about 3/8" and only contact the firewall where the studs come thru. The factory pedal unit has stamped depressions where the studs are and my units have round spacers that fit between the firewall and the bracket to serve the same purpose.
If there is a leak at the firewall I would suggest that Dragonsbreath should look carefully around the master cylinder itself as the firewall seals between the MC and the firewall from the engine bay side. Just speculating but if he pushed the MC away from the firewall during the install its possible the seal didn't go back in the same place or maybe bunched up causing a gap for water to seep in. However that area of the firewall is pretty protected above the wheel well and shrouded with plastic so I think it would be pretty hard for that much water to make it in there unless there was tons of water pouring on it which there really shouldn't be.

EDIT: After giving it more thought I'm not sure the master cylinder has a gasket or not on the firewall and may simply seal by clamping the flat mating surface of the MC against the flat surface of the firewall all held tight together by the clutch bracket nuts/studs from the inside. The 3 holes in the firewall for the MC hold it tightly in position so there is no way it could have shifted or moved out of position on the firewall. I would look carfully at the MC from the engine bay with a light to see if its firmly and evenly clamped against the firewall. If it is then more likely water is entering at the wiring bundle area where you noted the water was directly pouring on.

Hope that helps you pin point the leak.

Ryan @ RJM

[SouthArk370Z]

I would check the MC seal mentioned above and all other firewall boots/grommets/seals in the area first. With a little luck, any places that could leak will be readily visible. If not, you may have to spray water on different spots on the firewall and have a helper look for leaks on the inside (at this point, a little more water won't hurt).

If it's not a firewall seal, I'd look for a leak at the bottom of the windshield.

[zguynate]

Originally Posted by Ryan @ RJM

Just speculating but if he pushed the MC away from the firewall during the install its possible the seal didn't go back in the same place or maybe bunched up causing a gap for water to seep in.

If it had anything to do with the pedal, this is what I was saying. An install type error since I havent heard of any water issues.

I found the source of the leak though. Its coming from the wiring harness boot. Im not sure if I accidentally pushed the boot in a little causing it to misalign while installing the pedal.... I dont know. Im going to see if I cant mess around with it to see whats up. I cant really see the engine bay side of the boot because of the brake booster and CMC. The inside portion (in the car) of the boot isnt uniform all the way around. The boot seems to mushroom over most of the ridge except two spots where it doesnt. I dont know if this is the way they all are or if I did it. Im going to meet up with a friend and feel around his 370 to see.

Here is a video of how much water has leaked in though. It had to be leaking in the car for some time due to the amount of water in there. especially because the padding on the firewall and the carpet soaked some up as well.



And here is where its leaking. Any ideas?

[lauj]

Originally Posted by dragonbreath

If it had anything to do with the pedal, this is what I was saying. An install type error since I havent heard of any water issues.

I found the source of the leak though. Its coming from the wiring harness boot. Im not sure if I accidentally pushed the boot in a little causing it to misalign while installing the pedal.... I dont know. Im going to see if I cant mess around with it to see whats up. I cant really see the engine bay side of the boot because of the brake booster and CMC. The inside portion (in the car) of the boot isnt uniform all the way around. The boot seems to mushroom over most of the ridge except two spots where it doesnt. I dont know if this is the way they all are or if I did it. Im going to meet up with a friend and feel around his 370 to see.

Here is a video of how much water has leaked in though. It had to be leaking in the car for some time due to the amount of water in there. especially because the padding on the firewall and the carpet soaked some up as well.



And here is where its leaking. Any ideas?

My was leaking from the same place too. But the leaking was due to the audio guy try to route the wire to my audio system. I would put some silicon around the edge from the outside and inside. That what I did to mine.

[Ryan @ RJM]

Wow, the kids could almost go swimming in that! It must have been leaking a long time to accumulate that much. It's highly unlikely the boot for the wiring harness would be affected or even touched during the install but anythings possible. I would agree with lauj. Get some clear silicon in there and it should put an end to it. It's probably easier to seal it up from inside as you've got a better chance of forcing it in and having it squish out the firewall side while you have clear access under the dash. The engine bay side is too cramped and likely won't be able to get a good shot at pushing the silicone in from there.

[fuct]

holy crap thats alot of water!

[DEpointfive0]

I had that much water if not more on the passenger side... Such a PITA to get everything out...

[simota1]

thats crazy!!! thats a butt load of water.... i would try using some urethane or silicone sealant

[simota1]

also check maybe the rubber boot thingy isnt properly seated all the way in

[122554]

Wait a minute! No rain in 4 or 5 days and there's a 1.5" of water in your car. Did you park over Old Faithful? Did someone re-route the sprinkler system into your car?

I used to work in a body shop and never saw that much water in a car except an idiot who left his window open overnight and it rained!