hi Neil,

I would check firstly that both of the drainage channels just under the windscreen are completely clear of leaves and also poke something like a coathanger down them to check they are not blocked all the way down.

i have heard of them causing leaks into the footwell when they are blocked....

Regarding changing the seals the ones on the door are a push fit iirc.

I will see if I can dig out what the tech manual says.

Regarding the rear 1/4...ive never done one so I will have to check as well.

With regard to sourcing the parts...as far as I am aware BMW are your only option for such parts Im afraid...

 

The carpet and all of the interior is now stripped out of the car. Noticed today that water was coming in at the point where the heater pipes come through the bulkhead on the passenger side. I stripped out the cowling under the bonnet to get to the pipes. There is a 10mm nut securing them, i removed it and the plastic piece it was holding, the plastic piece had been sealed with a black silacon that had gone hard, i used some new sealant and replaced the 'o' rings on the end of the pipes.
Now time will tell, as it is still poaring down it wont be long before i know if i have cured it.

Also whilst i was at it i checked the drain holes under the heater motor in the engine bay, they were partially blocked, so i blew them out.
Interior is staying out of the car until no water is getting in!!!

 

You could also get the hose out and have someone sit in the car with a torch looking for leaks

 

Similar Problem

Hello from New York!

I wonder how your fix worked for you. I am having a similar situation with my '96 328is. I have isolated it to the heater box area by showering the car with a hose sprayed through the cowl-grate at the base of the windshield. I have not yet stripped out the carpetting or seats from the passenger side, I had only lifted the driver side.

Any input will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

I'd check the DME box drain, see here http://www.pelicanparts.com/bmw/techarticles/E36-DME-Repair/E36-DME-Repair.htm

and also the drains as mentioned above hows54

 

Guy's sorry for the delay. I have found the fault after alot of trial and error. The first of two faults were that the plastic at the bottom of the windscreen needed re-sealing, once this was done the water was then deflected away.
Although once water was sprayed ovet the bonnet vents it would still leak. I re-sealed the heater, very tricky!
Still leaked...
The water that gets through the bonnet vents drains down to the DME drains that was highlighted by RONNIE, these drains were free of obstruction.

Now for the second fault. If you strip out the cowling and the shield in the engine bay to reveal the heater, where the heater meets the bulkhead, follow it down to the DME drain, there is a seam where two different panels meet, it was leaking from there between the seam. I have sprayed loads and loads of wax oil in there and thoroughly dried it. It has not leaked yet, so tomorrow the carpet is going to go back in.

I hope this helps someone else as it has taken me many hours to find...:thumbsup

 

good work...bet you were tearing your hair out trying to localise that one lol

 

Bald as a coot!!!!

 

This was probably the cause of your central locking problem a while ago when the carpet was wet. Good that it's fixed then:thumbsup

 

Water in passenger foot well

Hi guys, I am new on here and could do with some advise re water getting into passenger foot well. I have a 316 TI compact 2003 reg--car was side swiped earlier in the year and front near side wing replaced. Driving in heavy rain yesterday I have now noticed that a lot of water is lying in foot well. Door seals are new, and have found no water dripping from underneath glove compartment which is dry. I just can not see how water can be sitting on top of carpets --any thoughts??:

 

Im having a problem with my car too, i own a 120 sport 2005. my rear seats get wet everytime it rains. I tried getting it fixed by taking it to a local garage and they took the seats off and covered to holes under the seats ans said it will stop, but it hasnt. Any reccomendations as to what i could do?

 

I have the same problem
I've cleaned out drain holes, someone has even put a second drain (drill hole) through the left hand engine / heater cowl.
I will look for this 'seam' as I don't want to remove the entire dash and aircon to reseal that. I would rather try a good clean and a tube or two of silicone in that whole area before I pull my whole dash and aircon out.
Dam sucks, just bought it, had to cut my carpet out (didn't want to remove aircon and dash to pull carpet out. Glove box and console ect. Trying to find this dam leak. I will buy a new top cowl cover , but I believe this is a band fix for the real leak elsewhere. My dme is going in a sealed lunch box. No chance of water dust entering it.
Never in my life have I seen such a stupid place to put a and engine computer. Crazy.