Water under floormat

[YoungMedic]

Anyone pulled their Drivers floor mat and found discolored carpet? I was detailing mine today and found a nice suprise. Carpet was dry but I pulled it up and found the padding damp. Cant tell where the leak is from, def not from the door as reported by other owners. Looks isolated to below the pleather heel pad thats sewn into the carpet.

Any ideas? I have no sunroof

[ThatVdub]

Have girl spray car with lotsa water continuously, while you are in side, looking for leak.

Check under cowl if rodent chewed anything that can allow water into car, happened once
on my R32.

[HandyBanana]

My MKIV GLI had that problem. It was coming from the sunroof.

Water would seep into the body from the sunroof and would somehow end up on the floor of my passenger side. You couldn't see it and I would have never known that was the problem until I took it to VW and they said it was caused by some sort of sunroof drain that is prone to being clogged...

Worth getting looked at.

[YoungMedic]

My MKIV GLI had that problem. It was coming from the sunroof.

Water would seep into the body from the sunroof and would somehow end up on the floor of my passenger side. You couldn't see it and I would have never known that was the problem until I took it to VW and they said it was caused by some sort of sunroof drain that is prone to being clogged...

Worth getting looked at.

I have no sunroof.

Looks like an excuse to buy a EU cupholder, pull out the Dr seat and do a leak test... hrmmm

[35mphgolf]

Mine has been in the dealer for this problem on the passenger side for total of about 12 days. They found the problem but for some reason they still can't get it to stop leaking They said if by Monday it hasn't stopped, they'll have a VW rep come out inspect the car and figure out where we go from there..

The problem is a weld underneath all the carpet and foam padding, beneath the passengers feet. Water is properly draining down the windshield and drain tubes, but water is rolling back down the body on the under carriage and its leaking from the bottom up - where the weld wasn't fully completed. My tech and service manager said they haven't seen anything like it before. It's crazy and it sucks. Wish I had pics to show but I don't...

On an up note, my loaner is a Subaru Outback - that car is awesome. Already convinced the wife it's her next car

[YoungMedic]

I washed mine yesterday and checked again and there was no new moisture on the floor. Underneath may be a possibility. Ill continue to monitor it. Do you know exactly where the weld is? I wonder if I can get at it from underneath and seal it up with some seam sealer

[35mphgolf]

The weld was on the inside of the car - the floorboard where it connects to the lip/cable tray that runs the length of the car.

[Pdyno]

I know of someone with a brand new 2013 R that had a hole in the firewall due to air in the sealant during the mfg process. VW replaced all his carpets.

[YoungMedic]

hmmm rained yesterday now carpets are damp again, def not underneath

[ThatVdub]

The inside of my front windshield is still water stained since posting (back in June) about water
getting the inside windows drenching wet, shield and hatch window were the worst. It hasn't happened in a while though

[35mphgolf]

So looks like they used some kind of sealant to stop the leak - I should be picking it up this afternoon. Is that legit? Being at the floorboard, it's going to receive a lot of traffic. Is the sealant strong enough to withstand the abuse? Can it come lose? etc...

What are my options? Do I just have to take what they give me as a solution? What about VW repossessing the car and I get a new one off the lot?

Just trying to figure out what's reasonable and things I need to look out for. Definitely don't want to get taken advantage of...

[PABers]

I would always prefer a weld repair, but it was probably easier for them to use an epoxy. Unless it was applied incorrectly it should be fine.

[35mphgolf]

After clarifying - it was only spot welded, during the manufacturing process they still do use the sealant. So it looks like they weren't tryin to go all cheap on me! FINALLY have my car back! It's pouring out right now, here's a good test to see if its all good.

I'm buyin pizzas for my service people tomorrow, they did a great job - definitely not an easy find!

Also to note - I called VW customer service and had a a case opened (when I first noticed the leaking). The regional manager called me just a few days later, and they called me just after I picked up my car today, apologized for the inconvenience and said they we're sending me a $150 "gift card" for my troubles.

This is the first time I've had to deal with VW on a customer service level - gotta say, I'm thoroughly impressed.

[35mphgolf]

OP - do a leak test with the carpet and pads pulled, see if its coming through the welds at the footwell. That's how they found mine. Looks like it was an issue during the manufacturing process with the robots.

I probably had Bender working on mine - explains a lot.

[YoungMedic]

yeah seam sealer is standard for waterproofing welds at panel intersections. Ill pull the seat and carpet out when I get a free afternoon

can you describe exactly where the seam was? and whats your build date on your door sticker

[35mphgolf]

Im about 97% sure the build date is 6/12.

And the weld intersection is exactly where it was leaking from.
Whenever I get some free time, maybe this weekend, I'll see if I can pull the carpet and take some pics.

[YoungMedic]

Im about 97% sure the build date is 6/12.

And the weld intersection is exactly where it was leaking from.
Whenever I get some free time, maybe this weekend, I'll see if I can pull the carpet and take some pics.

I'd appreciate that, I assume there is only 1 weld under there, hopefully mine will be the same. The last time i checked there was no "trail" of moisture leading to the damp area, looks like its originating either right or left of the center of the floor and staying right under the heel pad

[ThatVdub]

If this pic is remotely accurate...