My Polo's filling up like the titanic!

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:35 pm

Help guys,

My car is letting lots of water in

It was a heavy shower the previous night and I started the Polo up. All fine there, but when I went round a right corner I heard a swishing noise (must of been water flowing into the cabin from the rain last night). Now all of the carpets are soaked and the car smells of damp

Do you guys have any ideas? I only got a quick check when I got back from work but I couldn't see any massive holes or anything in the engine bay, I'm pretty confident it came in through the passenger side though thats for sure. I lifted the leaf grill thing under the bonnet and it's got tonnes of leaves in but this wouldn't cause anything other than maybe heating. I'm going to take a look at it tomorrow when i'm not busy, and I hope it's something easily fixable because i'd be gutted otherwise.

Please give be some advice, i'm on the brink here!

BIG4244 · Post by **BIG4244** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:38 pm

have you got a sunroof??

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:38 pm

Nope, no sunroof.

jonnopolo · Post by **jonnopolo** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:46 pm

Could be your pollen filter needs changing. You also tend to get a lot of accumulated debris such as leaves under the scuttle as well which can block the drain holes, causing water to leak into the cabin area on the nearside. When you change your filter, vacuum the area to get all the stuff out.

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:59 pm

Very good point there mate, I've just popped out and had a look in the dark with a torch. There are LOADS of leaves that might be blocking whatever there is, such as drains or filters.

One thing that might add some clues to the mystery was. I think the water might have been dripping in slowly (hence the smell without the dampness) then when I went round the corner the lot just poured in. This would explain smell and how the carpets got soaked.

jonnopolo · Post by **jonnopolo** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 10:25 pm

I reckon that's the problem then. I'm sure if you change the pollen filter and get all the leaves and stuff out, your leak should clear up. The only problem with getting the scuttle off is that the 2 plastic clips you need to pull out invariably break, so you may need to get a few spares first.

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:02 pm

jonnopolo wrote:I reckon that's the problem then. I'm sure if you change the pollen filter and get all the leaves and stuff out, your leak should clear up. The only problem with getting the scuttle off is that the 2 plastic clips you need to pull out invariably break, so you may need to get a few spares first.

I'll give that a go then. Where abouts can I get the spares for the scuttle? Are they universal? I'll try not to break them but if they break and it does fix the leak issue then it'll be worth it anyhow. I've got a little humidifier in there right now, and febreeze is a lifesaver

Do I have to get a new pollen filter or clean the old one out?

Sorry for the questions, I just can't afford to bugger anything up!

BIG4244 · Post by **BIG4244** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:08 pm

you can only realy get the clips from v.w., or a v.w. specialist, and change the filter because you cant clean them, hope thats some help, let us know!

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:26 pm

I guess it'll be a trip to the nearest VW Dealership then. And I thought I was going to get away with not having to pay much!

I'll let you know how I get on

Cheers guys, Much appreciated

jonnopolo · Post by **jonnopolo** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:43 pm

They should be changed every 20K. I got mine from Halfords, the make is Cooper & the part No. is ACE006 & cost about Â£10. You may get them cheaper from GSF though.

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:55 pm

Ahh, theres a halford about 300 yards from my house so for what it's worth i'll just pick up one similar to yours. I'm just worried about those clips!

jonnopolo · Post by **jonnopolo** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 12:08 am

Don't worry too much about those - I just used ordinary black plastic panel clips & filed the heads down to the same shape as the VW ones. They've done the trick on mine!

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 12:26 am

I'll get it to fit somehow! Black plastic panel clips with some minor fileing to be done shouln't be a problem. I'm actually quite excited about messing around with it it be honest, it'll give me a chance to clean the carpets too

Think positive

Polo96CL · Post by **Polo96CL** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 3:35 pm

Cleaned it all out

Took off the cover/seal for the pollenfilter. This is my diagnosis (DR Darren

)

The accumulation of 10 years worth of leaves had built up underneath the scuttle. This meant that all drainage holes were blocked and any standing water was being absorbed by the pollen filter. When the torrential rain came down, it overflowed over the pollen filter and went straight down the pipe into my car.

I've cleared all the leaves (in the rain I might add, thats dedication

) out and left removed the bits out of the filter. To be honest, the filter wasn't too bad (besides a pit in it, maybe where standing water was?) so i've left it for now. It's winter anyway and I don't think there will be many flowers this time of year!

The scuttle was a b***h to remove, but I luckly managed not to break any so i'm very happy. Now to remove the smell

. I've got the humidifier and deodourant in there now, but i've got towels under the carpets to absorb some water in there.

Thanks for your help mate, much appreciated

jonnopolo · Post by **jonnopolo** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:30 pm

Glad to help.