Water accumulating in 450SE

[jpropper1]

Hi All:
I have some water accumulating in two places, I cannot find the source of either. In the trunk, behind the driver side wheel well. The gaskets on doors and trunk are all new. There is a small seam in the rear window gasket.
Also, there is water draining from the car, under the driver side front door. I cannot see anywhere that this could be coming from.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Jon P.

[donbryce]

Very probable the trunk leak is from the taillight lens(es) gasket(s). I removed mine, applied a neat bead of silicone sealant, and replaced. Not a drop of water in there since. I'm not sure, but your car may have sunroof drains exiting under the rocker panels. If plugged, the water might backup and drain under driver's door area. I think the drains exit at the rear wheelwell areas.

[david s poole]

common prob with that body are the windshield gaskets[front and rear].i have replaced many to cure leaks of which you speak.you can test out sunroof drains by opening roof and pouring glass of water in the sides and watching to see the water exit at the front and rear under car.

[jpropper1]

Thanks guys. I have now discovered it is wet on the drivers side floor. I also got wet when I turned a corner so I suspect a clogged ac drain. Ay idea where it is? Thanks again.

[seaside]

I am having a similar prob with a 250C, and the more I see some of these rusted out models in junk yards I am convinced these cars rotted from the inside out. If you hear of any solutions to this dilema plz let me know thanks.

[JimFreeh]

Safety glass windshields are laminated glass, which means that there are two pieces of glass with a plastic layer in the middle. Think of a sandwich, the glass is the bread, the plastic the meat.

When your seals start to leak, the plastic will absorb the water and turn opaque, a whitish color.

If you see this around the edges of your windshield, you know that the seals are bad.

On S klasse cars, the rear window is also laminated glass, not the usual tempered glass, so it will exhibit the same telltale signs.

Best solution is to remove the glass, and clean up the rust in the channel, and replace with a genuine MB seal.

For the financially impaired, or if your beater's value might be exceeded by the cost of the repair, Cap'n Tolley's Creeping Crack Seal will help.
Cap'n Tolley's can be found at better boating stores everywhere. And some not so good boating stores as well.

Most interior water leaks occur at the front windshield, trunk water is the rear window. Taillight gaskets are also a possibility, but the window seal is the odds on favorite.

Jim