water leak both sides, firewall/cowl areas

[crazy4offroad]

Honestly I think it would be easier for me to find a cab already set up for it with the ducts, controls, etc. Dad's cab aint so great anyway. Looks like he did the rockers with pop rivets.

 

[Swims350]

that's how they did mine gonna drill em out and weld in new

 

[Swims350]

well after taping some plastic to the windshield and having the floor dry, letting it rain.......

it seems to be my hood hinge seal on the pass. side letting the majority of it in. I have the plastic long and hanging down into the engine bay but it has to stop at the hinge back and go down each side of the hinge and into the door jamb and the hood shuts on it. Well doing this almost stopped the driver's side leak, it only has water near the door/kick panel area which is rotted out. The kick panel part not the floor. It was barely damp just enough to know it was wet on the rest dry floor.

The pass. side was about the same esterday, wet in the same area not bad, today much worse, very wet and almost the entire pan but more so in the kick panel door area.

I can get my hand up in and around the kickpanel area where it was a/c and had the bump plastic trim piece, that's removed, so I can feel the blower motor and up inside the dash and cab. I felt around and got my hand up to feel the hood hinge and it was wet and started dripping. The kick panel on the pass. side was wet under the air flap hole, on the inside part of the cab but not on the inside of the cowl area, like inbetween the cab metal layers. It wasn't wet above the flap hole, just under it, and wet on the ledge that runs under the heater box, almost like it was before I used the plastic.

Pretty sure though now I need to get both seals to fix it. I know I was going to do all the glass and door seals but now it looks like these needs done as well.

I now know that I should also get some for my s10.

 

[crazy4offroad]

Something I've been doing in tight places like that is shoving my cell phone up in there or a small camera and take a bunch of pics. I did that when the fresh/recirculated air flap controller was going out so I could see what it even looked like.

 

[Swims350]

I can't risk sending my brand new $800 phone into unknown places with water.






















































LOL j/k I got a cheapo tracfone cost like $20. I'll never get the expensive phone BS I'll stick with expensive truck builds.

Pretty sure it's the hood hinge seal or maybe there's rust under it. Now tho I am curious as to what it looks like inside there. I just wanna snap some for the heck of it now.

 

[bucket]

IIRC, the hood hinge just protrudes into the cowl area where water goes to anyway. When I did the clip swap on my '84, the stock hinges went bye bye and I have not welded up the holes yet. The truck has been outside for several heavy downpours and water does not get into the cab. Well, besides the windshield gasket that leaks.

 

[Swims350]

it does, has the slot cut into the cowl area and it sticks down in it. I had my hand up in there and it was dripping down on my hand, and coming down inside the cab, gotta be something going on maybe it's got something pluggin the side keeping it from going down. My understanding is that it drains down the sides out under the cab?

I'm thinking theres rust around it for some reason and made a hole thus leaking into the cab instead of down and out the panels. I have to wait until I get it in the garage and tear it all apart to see what's up.

 

[gmachinz]

I bet there are other areas causing that water leak inside in the floor. In my truck for example, I found on the passenger side that water takes a path down the 45-degree angle on the firewall and the water collects on top of the AC enclosure below the heater core inlet/outlet. Over time that foam seal shrinks/dries out and water comes right in. The foam seal is available aftermarket-BUT to replace it-yep you guessed it....the entire AC enclosure must come off.

Anyway, I took the opportunity to restore the entire AC enclosure-new door seals, greased hinge pins, etc. and I epoxied the plastic "bracket" that typically breaks causing the climate control to default to upper windshield vents only since the main blend door won't open if it breaks-which it will if used during winter months. I made my own foam sealing strips too since none of the AC parts are available aftermarket. There is more to restoring the AC enclosure and ducting that most people think....I build all new harnesses for the climate control system so I figured ah what the heck-might as well restore the rest of it too.

 

[Swims350]

well found 2 areas of the water leak on the PS, well 3.

one a gap in top of the a/c box, where it meets the firewall.

one up inside the wiper cowl area, I can see from pics I took in there it has some water trickling down and some rust. I gotta tear into that find and fix.

I also found water had pooled and came in just as gmachinz mentioned above, it had gathered on the box near the hetaer hoses and came in thus soaking the firewall pad.

Also so much for making it non a/c using the a/c box lol it fell apart.

 

[crazy4offroad]

That's a bummer, might have to find a donor cab.

 

[Swims350]

it aint that bad.

 

[gmachinz]

When I had to re-seal my AC enclosure to the firewall, I used a roll of the butyl ribbon sealer along the entire groove-prolly about a 1/2" wide roll of it. Then, after securing it right to the firewall I applied a smooth bead of 3M super seam sealer along the entire outer seam-it ain't ever gonna leak again! Obviously I installed a new heater core, blower motor and restored the whole AC system while I was at it. I also used adhesive backed foam window sealer around the dash ductwork section so now the air blows much stronger all the way to the drivers side vents! There's lots of little things that can be done to improve AC airflow inside the truck.

 

[Swims350]

lol ac is no more the box is in about 10 pieces in the bed. It literally fell apart on it's own.

I was going to do away with the ac part and make an ac delete box from it, but now I guess I'll get all heat only parts and swap it all over.