Cowl Water Issue

-
Robj

Robj

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2012
Messages
1,102
Reaction score
147
Location
Redding, California
I get water dripping from my driver's vent box every time it rains or when I wash it. I've spent a lot of effort cleaning out the inside of the cowl.

I took the driver side vent off and reaching up and into the cowl, it's very clean. No leaves, built up dirt or anything. I had my wife run water into the cowl top vent slots and what's happening is that some of the water running off the stepped-up center shelf next to the fresh air deflector is splattering and splashing up over the deflector and down into the opening. I drew a rough cut away slice of the cowl.

View attachment cowl.jpg

Has anybody ever had this problem and does anybody have a solution? I'm almost thinking of siliconing a taller baffle on the side up against the step-up but it seems it shouldn't be doing this in the first place.

Thanks.
 
Wow that is odd. Probably an additional baffle would lessen the problem, or be a bit more gentile with the hose in the area. Short of a real gully washer of a rain fall I wouldn’t think rain would be a problem parked or under way.
 
Are you sure its not leaking around wiper shafts? This is quite common with old mopars.
 
It seems odd. I was laying up under the dash looking up into the opening with a flash light and watching the droplets splatter over the top and hit the far side of the deflector before running down the side or some just rained down the center. It's not a ton of water but for the time she had the hose on there it was enough to wet the towel underneath. After rain (or washing) the bottom of the vent box is pooled and dripping out to make a wet spot on the carpet and pool on the vinyl carpet protector attached to the carpet.
 
I held my fingers up in the opening and could feel the water droplets getting airborne coming off the step-up. The hose wasn't on very hard either.
 
Is the void where it drops off from the shallow area clean? In between the vent top and the drop off.

I cleaned mine when I got the car and I had two or three go rounds with it before it was clean.

I used compressed air and a nozzle with a piece of brake line on it for an extension. I removed the washer squirters and I had the fenders off as well and went through the holes to reach down in there, you can bend the tubing to assist. I couldn't believe the amount of crap I got out of there.
 
My 67 sits out in the pouring rain and gets a little water inside the vent box but not enough to drip out the vent door.
A stream from a hose isn't the same condition as rain.
Back when I worked at the Ford dealership a fellow service tech had a similar complaint from a T-bird owner.
The soluion that satisfied that customer was handmade dome shaped screens over the vents. That screen caught 95 % of the droplets and wicked them down to the outside the opening.
 
There is a raised lip in the cowl area, above the box, that you are feeling. About 1/2 to 3/4" high. If it rusts at the bottom; vent box leak.

You can; stick hand up there, sand, while your body goes into cramp mode, do it again, clean, rub ospho on it. Wait a day, then reach up and blindly smear the sealant of your choice all around it.
 
Just for preventative maintenance I was going to put some fresh sealer around it. It's very clean and smooth when I cramp my fingers up around.

Now I can get a little red faced because I found the source of the main leak. I went out later and looked up again and saw this bright glowing droplet of water hanging from the top of the interior of the cowl. Then it dripped down followed by another. What I was seeing was the sun coming down through a small screw hole under the hood where the washer tube is held in place by a bracket. This hole sits in an impression stamped in the sheet metal that forms a bowl collecting water. The hood was closed earlier and I do remember seeing a black dot thinking it was a stain. The underneath of the cowl when you look up through the vent opening is spotless and looks fresh out from the factory except for that one little dot. The last time I went out to look, I had opened the hood to adjust my kickdown rod and the sun was shining in. :tool:

It still has the splatter but I know this hole is what was causing the main water build up in the vent box. I'm such a moron.
 
Don't feel that way because (if I can remember to!!!) tomorrow I'll go check for screw holes in mine!!
 
This is a good example of how a forum can be the best or worst place to get help.
Nobody will answer your question with a question like, "Is it all there ?"
I'm glad you found the problem before going through digficult repairs such as wiper pivot seals.
 
I wanted to be honest and reply with the solution I found no matter how dumb I feel hoping that it may help somebody else in the future. From the outside under the hood, that hole doesn't jump right out as even penetrating the fresh air cowl but it's right over the round duct heading into the interior. Now that I look at it I can see it's obvious.
 
What I was seeing was the sun coming down through a small screw hole under the hood where the washer tube is held in place by a bracket.
Click to expand...
I have read of this very problem before here or over on /6 dot org I don’t recall which. Don’t feel bad for missing it the first time around; you’re not the only one tricked by this. So all you with waterfalls in fresh air vent check for leaks with hood open on a sunny day… LOL
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top