<<Anyone else have this problem?>>

[SinisterZ26]

Hey people!
I was hoping that someone could give me a little input on a leak I have. I own a ’95 Beretta Z26 3.1L. No it’s not a fluid leak from the motor. Its rain water flooding the driver side floor. I live in Pa. and have been getting hammered with rain lately. I thought it might be the channel below the windshield leaking into the firewall via the wiring harness. Its not. I have it sealed tighter then a dolphins @ss. I also went ahead and calked the boot at the door hinge. I’m now thinking its dripping down the door hinge, into the ground FX, then into the floor pan. <<<<Anyone else have this problem?>>>>

p.s. there’s not a hint of rust on the belly

Respectfully,
Phil

[DEI37]

The other thing could maybe be a plugged drain for the heater box. When moisture and condensation get in there, it has to go somewhere. There is a drain for that. If it gets plugged up, the moisture will end up in the passenger compartment.

[IsaacHayes]

I think my post on beretta.net was deleted, they tend to delete old posts after a while It detailed everything you need to do and check. I went without a carpet for several months until I tracked down every single leak.

Certain year Beretta's are known for having this problem. The caulk they used to seal the pinchwelds fails after so many years and cracks/rots and then water leaks in from the firewall.


What you need to do is take the carpet out and the insulation below it. You will ride like this for a while until you are 110% sure you have every leak fixed. You will test with a garden hose pouring water over the windshield letting it run down over the front of the car. It will leak at different angles so if you have an angled drive way, let it pour over it at different slopes and angles each test for a good amount of time.

Clean the carpet with detergent/etc while it's out.

Now go to Lowe's/home depot etc. Get some roofing caulk called "black jack". It is neoprene rubber and will NOT fail in extreme heat or cold. It's made for roofs! Also it will STICK WELL unlike silicone which will peel right off after a while or if the surface is dirty. This black jack caulk will stick to even dirty dusty spots.

Now go to www.beretta.net and look in the FAQ section I believe, it shows all the seams on the firewall to caulk for the leaky water. Seal all of those, and then also check the wire bulkheads on each side, and then also you will need to take the heater blower fan box off, and caulk around that, as that was leaking too on mine and causing some water to come in through were the evaporator core was. Next check around the fresh air box in the cowl. I caulked around it but I think it was fine. Then I had water coming in from there after removing the cowl cover. What happens is there is some dum dum sticky tack like stuff on the top of the cowl cover that keeps water from running underneath it and dripping into the center of the fresh air thing. So put some fresh there. Also focus on the caulk below the drainage holes from the cowl, run the caulk from the cowl there and all the way down as water likes to follow that pinch weld and come inside there. Seal it nice and thick.

Getting the caulk on all the seams takes some skill. Basically put on a glove and some caulk on your finger, then reach through where you can reach, from the top, or through the tie rod holes, or under neath the car. Also removing the windshield wiper motor will help you get to certain spots. You will have to put lots of hours in, but if you attack it really good and seal the piss out of every seam and thing I said, then you will have good odds that when you go to test you won't have water running in. But always test very thoroughly don't just wait for a rain to come as it won't show up always.

Keep the carpet out and bare metal until you are done sealing and have tested several times and see no water trickle coming down on the inside.

Trust me I went through about 6 months of no carpet figuring this out. And many times I thought I had it sealed up good and would test the next day just to be sure and find a new leak. Do as I said and you will be golden. Wet carpet sucks and so does the fogged up and steamy windows and stinky smell. I finally did something about it when I had about 4" of water on my floor board one day before work.

It is a big job but if you do what I said in the order I said you will have it done a lot sooner. One weekend day probably to remove the carpet, clean it, sit it aside and put back in your seats. The next day to start sealing up everything. Then test it every day after that after letting it cure/dry for 24hrs. If you seal up good and test well then the next weekend you could put back in the carpet.

Let me know if you have anymore questions in this thread or if when you are testing you still have water coming in from somewhere.

[korbendallas68]

wth, my username doesn't exist anymore on beretta.net... That site go through a change?

[IsaacHayes]

For some reason the prune old posts and users that haven't logged in for a long time.

Kind of sucks cause some good information was lost. I've had to re-register once there.

[Azrael]

This happens on the older grand ams too. Water gets trapped under the plastic guard under the windshield wipers with no way out and rots the firewall. It's going to be a big job for me to fix when spring finally comes around.

[SinisterZ26]

Thank you kindly all!!! Especially, IsaacHayes iver been ripping out my hair trying to find this leak. Alot of sound advice that i will employ. hopefully B4 it gets to damn cold!!! And I say again Thank You

Respectfully,
Phil