Well, I guess the title says it all! The water is gathering in the pass floorboard after I wash it. It doesnt come through the window. I would have seen it happen, and I intentionallly avoided spraying the water up towards the top of the window, cause there is a gap where it can easily go through with this window design. (its a 2 door). I watched for it to be draining into the car from the channel on the roof, it did not. The water is actually under the passenger seat. If anyone knows about how to stop this, it would be fantastic, and I could finally replace the carpet (it had none when I got it).

On another note. The car is running hot 100+ C. I am gonna try the thermostat and hope that will get it down, but it seems like a pretty rare thing that the thermostats are the main culprit. Any suggestions/similar probs/tricks to find the problem are appreciated. Would it be a problem to simply remove the thermostat for the time being? I have done this on several cars before (not diesels) and they have run pretty much perfectly, just take forever to heat up. I have checked the fan clutch and blades and they all seem to be ok. It runs hot even when the clutch is supposed to be pretty much disengaged, at highway speeds.

as far as the water, remove your battery and tray.look there for a rust spot right thru the firewall. also make sure drains are clean there. go in wheel well behind tire and make sure the plastic skirt is not clogged with leaves. the water must hit the ground.
next do your thermostat. cheap and good insurance. also spray like greased lightning etc into your radiator and thru the front condensor. flush with hose. you will be shocked what you see come out. . Also change your radiator cap too. hth mike

to clarify, i mean spray the OUSIDE of radiator. sorry

thanks mike. As far as the water goes it isnt leaking in from the firewall, or thereabout, it's actually(or so it seems) coming UP from under the pass seat. I guess I wasnt really clear about that. It is not in the front of the car, but under the seat and behind it. I just towelled it up and there was a good puddles worth, but none of the rest of the car is wet at all. I washed it this afternoon, thats the reason for any water.

I will try getting a thermostat tomorrow and keep it posted as to the results.
Also, I just went out and felt both sides of the housing, and the side with the block was def a good bit hotter than the return side. Looks like the thermostat could save me here.

The water is coming in through a rusted out spot under your battery tray or one of the drains under your hood and pooling on the passenger side. Trust us. This is a common problem. Pull your battery tray and have a look. You only think its not coming from there because its not wet up front. That isn't always the case.

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Scott
1982 Mercedes 240D, 4 speed, 275,000
1988 Porsche 944 Turbo S (70,000)
1987 Porsche 911 Coupe 109,000 (sold)
1998 Mercedes E300 TurboDiesel 147,000 (sold)
1985 Mercedes 300D 227,000 (totaled by inattentive driver with no insurance!)
1997 Mercedes E300 Diesel 236,000 (sold)
1995 Ducati 900SS (sold)
1987 VW Jetta GLI 157,000 (sold)
1986 Camaro 125,000 (sold - P.O.S.)
1977 Corvette L82 125,000 (sold)
1965 Pontiac GTO 15,000 restored (sold)

yep, pull out the front carpet and mat and let the garden hose run down the winshield. you will see a nice stream running right to your backseat. hth mike

Yep, as the guys have said, there is no spring of water bubbling up under the back of your front seat. It generally comes from up front, and your rear footwells are the lowest part of the inner car tub. Often the water travels under the insulation that is added on the top of the floor pan/tub.
Windshield seals, front and back are notorious for leaking. I had a flooded rear footwell on the wagon and the Squash after this last rain. I suspect windshield, as I've eliminated all the other usual suspects.
And, on your temp issue, that is definitely too warm. Assuming you have verified correct water/coolant level, thermostat would be your next best bet. They actually do often go out it seems [I've done 2], and they may be one of the easiest cars ever to change them on.
Also, notice how it comes out, and don't get it in backwards. Matter of fact, you should make sure it was positioned correctly when you remove it, as a previous incorrect install can also cause it to run hot. I will be back with a link.....

**as promised**

http://dieselgiant.com/thermostatreplacementandmodif.htm

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Jimmy L.
'05 Acura TL 6MT
2001 ML430 My Spare

Gone:
'95 E300 188K "Batmobile" Texas Unfriendly Black
'85 300TD 235K "The Wagon" Texas Friendly White
'80 240D 154K "China" Scar engine installed
'81 300TD 240K "Smash"
'80 240D 230K "The Squash"
'81 240D 293K"Scar" Rear ended harder than Elton John

Thanks for the replies guys, and I def will check out that battery tray issue. I guess I was under the misconception that since the front of the pass floorboard is totally dry that it must be coming from up under the back somewhere. Tomorrow looks like another beautiful day to check it all out. I will let you all know about how much rust (BOOO!!!) I find. Looks like the motorcycle is gonna get some use to pick up some new parts for me. Good fun.

And thx for the T-stat link, jimmy. Those are some nice detailed pics. Makes a job easy.

First of all, go ahead and take out your battery and inspect for rust-through at the firewall. (That should not be the problem unless the car has been really neglected.) You may as well clean the battery tray and if needed, repaint or treat with POR 15 while you have the battery out. Be very careful to not bump the heater control valve on the firewall while you are removing or installing the battery. It is pretty close quarters and they will break very easily when smacked by a 40 lb battery.

Back to your main question concerning the most likely path of a water leak into the passenger compartment...Leaks could have more than one cause but my bet is on front and/or rear windshield seals needing replacement.

Check these threads...

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforu...d.php?t=164755

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforu...d.php?t=164697

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforu...ad.php?t=64843

Also Note Murrow's suggestion to chase the sunroof drains with weed-eater string to clear them out and not damage the finish. (That is if you have a sunroof)

Hope this helps
Motor on

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Bama1


2008 SLK 280, Firemist Red - "Hurricane"
2001 F150 Lariat 4x4, Black on Black - "Badboy"
1982 240D 4 speed survivor -"Pearl" - Donated to Vietnam Veterans
1962 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88 -"Gertrude"

1954 model original owner - ~2.5M
Gray softtop/solid exterior/modified chassis

Just this last weekend I removed the battery trays of both of the 240D's that I have. The body metal is all corroded under the battery trays and one has a hole in the firewall. It looked like the undercoating was all that was holding things together. It is hard to see untill you actually remove the battery. Is there a good way to repair this area? The retaining bracket for the right side of the front stabilizer bar on my keeper car is still solid although somewhat rusty, but the sheet metal outboard of it is crumbling. Looks like it could become a structural issue if not repaired properly. A little water under the feet is inconvinient, but a collapsing suspension is definitely not good!

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Sedecrem

82 300SD 290k(needs engine swap)
79 240D 354k with new heart transplant w/220k
82 240D w/auto tranny soon to be manual 4 speed

Is your car really that bad? Just how much metal rotted away? Mine doesn't have the rust corrosion problem under the battery and this is a great reason for using an optima battery, totally sealed and can be mounted in any position, NO LEAKS!

I will take a picture tomorrow and try to post it. 1/4 of the outside end of the battery tray was completly gone and with the battery tray removed you can look down into the fender well. The drain hole into the wheel well and the plastic gard were completely plugged with rusted metal.

__________________
Sedecrem

82 300SD 290k(needs engine swap)
79 240D 354k with new heart transplant w/220k
82 240D w/auto tranny soon to be manual 4 speed

Mine has been fiberglassed in that area. Strangly it is the only rust in the car.

__________________
1979 240D- 316K miles - VGT Turbo, Intercooler, Stick Shift, Many Other Mods - Daily Driver

1982 300SD - 232K miles - Wife's Daily Driver

1986 560SL - Wife's red speed machine

well, I was able to check it all out today. First got myself the thermostat, replaced it quickly and with maximum messiness... replaced the coolant with some good mercedes stuff, and she seems to be keeping right on the 80 C mark now, not one bit over. Fantastic!!!


As for the leak... Hmm wonder where it's coming from:




OUCH!!! Thats one massive hole! And the tan that you are seing inside it is the top of my passengers kick panel!!! Time to try my hand at some good fiberglass work. Hope I can get it ALL sealed up. Thanks for the help guys. You guys were totally right.