MG-Cars.info

Welcome to our Site for MG, Triumph and Austin-Healey Car Information.

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG MGF Technical - VERY Wet Floor and Sill Drains

I have been trying to eliminate the swimming pool that is my RH footwell - we're not talking about a little dampness here, but enough water to completely soak a bath towel so that it is dripping when I lift it out. I wonder if my sills fill up with water and then the water overflows into the car. The reason I have this theory is because I can sometimes hear water sloshing about as I drive, and it sounds like it could be in the sill.

So I got under at the weekend to look at the sill drains. There seem to be two openings in the lowest seam, at the front and rear of the sill. Inspecting them with a tiny lamp and a mirror, the front ones look as though there is a marginal slot to the inside, but the rear ones appear completely closed, and not with muck, but metal-to-metal.

Am I in the right place? Is that what your cars look like? Can I stop water getting in the sill in the first place?

I now have the carpets right out, and there seems to be a sort of slot on the inside of the sill just in front of the seat platform where water might come out, so I shall keep an eye on it next time it rains (shouldn't have to wait long up here).

Any suggestions gratefully received.

Mike

Mike Howlett

I had a very similar problem in that my passenger footwell was sodden and i also ended up leaving a bath towel in there to catch the drips, which also ended up soaked just likeyours...

It turned out that i had a broken seal around my windscreen, the water was coming in at the bottom left corner and cascading down behind the dash onto the carpets.

The only way i found this out was to remove all the trim, get in and ask someone to hold the hose over the car while i searched for the leak. Wasnt hard to find doing that, so i suggest you do the same!

Check your windscreen too, cos it was the last place i thought to look!

Cheers!
Nick D

I had water problems too but couldn't find where water coming in from, all I had was water sodden sound deadening.

problem is you can't see where the water comes from as it leaves no trace.

managed to get most of water out by using a wallpaper roller that you use to roll over the seams. So placing the sound deading material on the wall and letting water drip down then rolling the seam roller down to squeze water out. The put in greenhouse to dry.

Found how water getting in by removing carpet and sound deading stuff, then drawing thick lines of white chalk (the standard blackboard chalf used in school) about an inch apart parallel to the floor pan all up the sides of the bulkhead.

Then when I came back to the car in the evening to drive home with water on the floor could see where water had come from as a line through the chalk.

Try this and see if this helps find where it gets in
Brian

That's a good idea. Thanks, Brian.
Mike Howlett

The most common problem of wet carpets either side is the drain pipe in the area where the heater pipes pass through the bulk head and into the car. There is a inch deep tray that fills with water that comes through the chrome vent in front of the windscreen. The drain pipe should take the water away but some how it does block or the bulb area on the bottom sort of seals over. As the water has no where else to go it takes a trip under the carpets at every turn in the road. You can hear it sloshing about sometimes. Having cleared mine out a few years ago I was suprised when it did block again and left me with wet underlay and carpets again.
To confirm you can get the car up on the ramps, get under it and find the end of the drain pipe which is at the side of the gear box. Its a large (inch to inch and a half black rubber blub like shape that is pinched together at the bottom. Part the pinched area and push something up to make sure it is clear. Its around 10 to 12 inches long. I felt a resistence at the top of mine, with some pressure to the rod (long screw driver) it popped through the blockage and the water came out. Taking the pipe off is a bit of a job as it is clipped at the top from inside the car if I remember correctly. You should not really have to do that but I do like a challenge.
To confirm that this is the area of the problem before you put the car on ramps you may wish to get down on your knees and reach up under the dash along side the gearbox tunnel. Find the air hole and stick your hand in, if they come out wet then that is the problem.
Good luck.
Doug E

OK OK so I did push the wrong the wrong list, its an "F" not a "B". They always told me to read the exam paper fully first but would I listen.
Well if you should sell the "F" and buy a "B" that has wet carpets you will now know where to look first.
Doug E

Doug, I have two MGBs and have suffered with "Tom's knob", but I still read right through your reply before realising you were on the wrong tack. Doh!

Mike
Mike Howlett

Like the chalk idea Brian.

Mine leaks somewhere around the rear hood and leaves the rubber backed sound deadening on top of the engine soaking. I took it out to dry it but replaced the black felt tray that covered it while it was drying. When doing this I noticed that the Engine doesnt seem any more noisey without the sound proofing if you replace the felt tray that sits on top. If you take both felt tray and sound proofing out the noise is considerable. The advantage is that the felt tray does not retain water like the soundproofing allowing any water that does get in to dry off easily. Not really fixing the leak but a way around the problem if you are lazy like me. Atleast the car does not smell fusty any more.
Paul Robertson

Hi Mike
Besides the leak is the "F" reliable? They do seem to be very reasonably priced now and something that I could afford. I have these memories of people windging on about how unreliable the early ones were. Any comments would be gratefully received.
Also are they reasonably easy for the DIYer to work on who suffers from less supple joints then I used to have?
I have tried out several MX5's and as nice as they are, and they are nice, they don't seem to have any grunt. My "B" (when its on the road) does pretend to have some go in it that makes you feel its fun to drive, even when a 1.1 Fiesta drags me off.
Doug E

This thread was discussed between 26/01/2006 and 04/02/2006

MG MGF Technical index

This thread is from the archives. Join the live MG MGF Technical BBS now