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Water In Boot Side Well - Where Is It Getting In?


Wiilm
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Just started happening during the recent rains (2004 avensis hatchback).

I can't figure out where it's getting in because the insulation behind the side panel above the side well is dry. It can't just be water splashing up from huge puddles and in through the side air vent covers because the first time I noticed it the floor mat above the side well was also wet. The second time the floor mat was dry but there was a small puddle in the well.

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hi mate i would look at the rubber grommet at top of tailgate []when opened]make sure it is in place or also look at rear light cluster i might need to take light unit out and reseal only 3 nuts hold it on hope this helps cheers

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I have water ingress to the side wells also, seeing the vents there I wonder if a certain amount is not anticipated in the design. Can I ask hatch owners to verify - wait until after a big rain storm and can you check by putting your hand down the extreme left/right under the boot carpeting (not the central well where the wheel is).

I discovered I had this issue when I had a tow-bar fitted - guess where they decided to put the relay for the electrics ... got in one day and the car was making a buzzing noise, turns out the relay was under a couple of cm of water !

Took car to dealer, they spent hours stripping it down only to tell me they could not find the ingress point, £300 down the drain.

Like I say, why would they put a vent down there if they weren't expecting water ? Would be interesting to here from other owners. Mines a 2007, please specify year if you reply.

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Thanks for the grommet and light cluster suggestions - will have a look. What do I reseal the cluster with?

The air vents might be there to prevent condensation, a previous different manufacturer's car I once owned had similar sized sidewells minus air vents and they were prone to rusting. Since first noticing the water ingress I deliberately drove slowly through any deep puddles I came across and still found water in there.

I feel it must be something else (as well) because coicidentally I took the rear floor mat out shortly after severe rains to check the spare around 9 mths ago and both wells were dry as a bone.

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I have water ingress to the side wells also, seeing the vents there I wonder if a certain amount is not anticipated in the design. Can I ask hatch owners to verify - wait until after a big rain storm and can you check by putting your hand down the extreme left/right under the boot carpeting (not the central well where the wheel is).

I discovered I had this issue when I had a tow-bar fitted - guess where they decided to put the relay for the electrics ... got in one day and the car was making a buzzing noise, turns out the relay was under a couple of cm of water !

Took car to dealer, they spent hours stripping it down only to tell me they could not find the ingress point, £300 down the drain.

Like I say, why would they put a vent down there if they weren't expecting water ? Would be interesting to here from other owners. Mines a 2007, please specify year if you reply.

I also have this problem. Mine is a (Y reg) 2001 VVT-I 1.8 hatchback (auto). The cavity where the jack resides is where most of the water pools (rh side of boot floor), but I can also feel a little water when I reach down into the outer cavity (to the rear of the wheel arch). I notice that the inside of the lining of the boot (above the affected areas) is quite damp. But where the eck is the water getting in? Could it be the seal around the rear light cluster (as suggested above)?

I'm not sure where these vents are that you speak of. Could you enlighten me please.

As a temporary solution, I'd been considering drilling a drain hole in the bottom of the jack cavity. The theory being, that the water would then drain down into the outer cavity, which I assumed would have some sort of drain holes already. Now I'm not so sure.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The grommet on the top left (as viewed from rear of car) wasn't seated properly on the roof side - so I managed to get it seated back in properly (with great difficulty)

So will see if that cures it.

However it is the well on the opposite side that fills more - does the interior gulley run all the way round? Iff so parking the car on a slope toward opposite well might explain that.

Does rear light cluster need resealing with anything in particular if I have to remove that?

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I've got a 51 reg 5 door GLS, and have had water filling up the offside boot side well for years needing regular slop outs in wet weather. However it still fills up even when the car has been static, clearly the water is running in from somewhere by gravity. I have prevously stripped out all of the boot linings in an effort to find the source of the problem. The only evidence of damp on the lining has been forward and above the offside well,but still cannot trace the leak. Frustrating or what! Any ideas greatly appreciated (While I've still got some hair left) Shame really, cracking motor. Don't really want to start drilling drain holes if I can avoid it.

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I also have water pooling in the =jack side rear boot bodywork. I have tried all sorts and its pretty random sometimes it rains and it fills up....other times it pours for days and it stays as dry as a bone. One thing I have tried and water hasn't come in since is cleaning down the sides of the boot piston hinges(with a credit card). I wonder if leaves and crud in that narrow gully allows rain water to back up enough to drip through the piston fixings. otherwise I wonder if it has anything to do with parking on a slope that twists the body of the car to open a gap in a seal somewhere.

Rich

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I had this problem with '05 Avensis hatchback. The (clean) water collected only in the nearside boot well. There was a little dampness to the edge of the carpet and the foam underneath but nothing else. It has been cured for a year now by resealing the bracket that holds the hatchback strut to the car body. PLEASE support the hatchback with something steady before undoing anything.

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I had this problem with '05 Avensis hatchback. The (clean) water collected only in the nearside boot well. There was a little dampness to the edge of the carpet and the foam underneath but nothing else. It has been cured for a year now by resealing the bracket that holds the hatchback strut to the car body. PLEASE support the hatchback with something steady before undoing anything.

Thanks for this info, 'toyotavensis' (and all the other members for their ideas).

Just one question. Having quickly looked at my own strut anchorage brackets, they appear not to have any screw or bolt heads visible. Would they be behind (what look like) plastic caps? Or are they held by some other means? Plasic studs, perhaps?

Thanks. DB.

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  • 4 months later...

hello all, i've had a water problem in the rear side well of my toyota avensis vermont vvti 1.8 2001, i've finaly found that the water was getting in from the top left side of the boot where the grommet of the rear heated windscreen is attached to the boot. the metalwork under the grommet had rusted and crumbled away leaving the water free to run down the inside of the framework into the side well. if you look at the interior of the roof at the back left corner near this grommet you may see a bit of staining from the water. hope this helps !!!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi wiilm,

Would just like to add, mine too had this problem also. I also fixed this, the water was running down the hatch slopes under the rear light getting past the foam gaskets on the rear tail lamps. My remedy was to take off the lamp and seal with mastic between the body and foam gasket,cleaning the body work firstly for a good bond before fixing. Have had no issues since. Hope this helps you....

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  • 2 years later...

I drive a 2004 Avensis with 125,000 miles on the clock. Its barely run in, I know! I was thinking of writing to the manufacturer about a factory recall.

Mine also collected more water than an otters pocket in the wells either side of the spare BMX wheel well.

I removed all the upholstery from the boot to dry it out and to make access easier to the cars outer skin panels and found a lot of moisture coming in from high up/toward the rear doors.

Taking advice from a mechanic friend, I sealed round the rubber cable assembly where it joins the car near the roof and that seems to have stopped it! I spent all of £3 on a tube of clear mastic and still have 99% left.

This kind of problem seem huge, but is VERY easily fixed.

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It seems from the various posts that water getting into Avensis boot areas has many possible sources.

I had water getting into the nearside well, the spare wheel well and the offside well. After a lot of messing about with sealant, closed cell foam strip and several applications of talcum powder none of which identified the leaks I eventually resolved all the problems by using "Captain Tolleys Crack Sealer". This stuff is commonly used on boats where you apply the milky fluid at a possible leak location and the fluid seeps into the crack and then cures to form a hard lacquer like coating which with several applications stops all leaks. It will not work with anything bigger than a crack because it needs to build up and seal the crack.

My leaks were on both sides of the boot at the body joint just before the turn of the boot from forward to rear to running across the back(this is on a hatchback). There was no crack visible but the liquid did disappear into the join and the area where the rubber buffer are mounted and after several applications all is now watertight, after only 4 years of trying. I had preciously tried sealant on this and other joints in the hatchback seal recess without any success at all.

Worth a try!

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a common source is under the two plastic strips on the roof for pre 2001 avensis there is a couple of line joins in the metal that suck water in through capillary action which ends up in the rear side wells and sometimes down the front pillars and out by the rear view mirrors

lift strips, smother with sealicone sealant, slap strip back down - worked for me, though needs redoing every few years

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  • 3 weeks later...

I also have this problem it even gets as far as spare wheel well whitch is easily drained by removing the rubber bung i have resorted to stuffing newspaper and rags in to the resess for the jack to try and mop up the water but have had no joy finding the source of ingres

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  • 6 years later...

Hi guys I have a 2008 hatch back and have a water leak in the boot ! Water is getting in from the vents behind the rear bumper near the lights when it rains or if I wash my car these vents are  only visible when everything is removed from the boot and to get a light and have a look in the outer light wells I don’t understand what these events are there for and I’m thinking of taking the bumper off and completely sealing them can someone please advise if they have had a similar issue and how it was resolved thanks 

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  • 1 year later...
On 1/25/2021 at 8:18 AM, Riz297 said:

Hi guys I have a 2008 hatch back and have a water leak in the boot ! Water is getting in from the vents behind the rear bumper near the lights when it rains or if I wash my car these vents are only visible when everything is removed from the boot and to get a light and have a look in the outer light wells I don’t understand what these events are there for and I’m thinking of taking the bumper off and completely sealing them can someone please advise if they have had a similar issue and how it was resolved thanks 

These vents are there for de pressurising the car when you close the doors to prevent popping ears and such mine leak but not the vent it self but around the vent so I would only seal around it with some sealant or make a gasket.

I have the same problem on one side in my wagon t25 and I am making a gasket probably a little late of an answer but this is something stereo guys have had issues with since they loose pressure from the vents releasing the pressure from subwoofers so they often seal them. 

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