I have a focus mk3 2014 estate with water leak in the boot drivers side, could the vents be the source of the water weak on the estate as well. 

 

Regards 

Lloyd 

Leaking vents are only a common problem on the Focus MK3/MK3.5 Hatchback.

 

The Focus MK3/MK3.5 Estate suffers from a different problem. The Focus ML3/MK3.5 Estate holes in the bodywork behind the rear bumper that are covered with single sided adhesive pads before the body of the car is painted.

During time the single sided adhesive pads come loose. When this happens rain water can easily enter the car throug the exposed holes.

Thank you for sharing this information, it's a great help. 

I think i have sourced from where the water leak come from, it seems to be coming from where the hydraulic arm meets the body of the vehicle. Its dripping behind the white vent and then onto black upholstery, have any seen this before?. 

I have a Mk3 Estate and after some heavy rain I noticed water on the drivers side vent when I opened the boot. This water had been dripping down from the vent onto the boot upholstery. Thankfully I have a boot liner so water collected there but I have yet to check if any seeped past it and into the spare wheel well.

I have read that the cause of this is usually the roof bars but upon reading this post, which admittedly is pretty much only hatch backs, I see that there may be some other sources of water leakage. Given where the vent is, is it more likely to be leaking from the roof bar or the boot hinge?

Are there any links to videos detailing Mk3 Estate fixes?

 

On 22/01/2021 at 2:32 PM, Nora53 said:

I have a Mk3 Estate and after some heavy rain I noticed water on the drivers side vent when I opened the boot. This water had been dripping down from the vent onto the boot upholstery.

Are there any links to videos detailing Mk3 Estate fixes?

 

I have the same issue too. I came across a few posts about the seals under the roof bars but would really like to get behind the lining on the sides of the boot to confirm the source.

I too would love to see any photos or videos of how to get behind the trim or find the source of the leak (especially in an estate) please?

On 2/7/2021 at 10:34 AM, CraigT said:

I have the same issue too. I came across a few posts about the seals under the roof bars but would really like to get behind the lining on the sides of the boot to confirm the source.

I too would love to see any photos or videos of how to get behind the trim or find the source of the leak (especially in an estate) please?

I managed to pull all the lining and trim off the right side (looking in from the rear), took the light out and found no obvious holes behind there.  Have run water over various seams on the right side, the boot strut mount, the hinge mount, the rear of the roof rail but no water running inside.  So I am waiting for some persistent rain again (I'm in Wales, so it shouldn't take long) to sit inside and watch for trickles.

On 1/8/2021 at 5:24 PM, JW1982 said:

Leaking vents are only a common problem on the Focus MK3/MK3.5 Hatchback.

 

The Focus MK3/MK3.5 Estate suffers from a different problem. The Focus ML3/MK3.5 Estate holes in the bodywork behind the rear bumper that are covered with single sided adhesive pads before the body of the car is painted.

During time the single sided adhesive pads come loose. When this happens rain water can easily enter the car throug the exposed holes.

Just found the boot of my MK3 estate full of water. Didn’t do my research properly and went hunting for the leaking vents, not knowing the problem was hatch-only. On finding them dry, I siliconed them anyway and put everything back together, hoping that maybe the vent cavities had dried out as it’s been very hot here recently. I also tightened the boot strut bolts which were loose. However, on testing, of course it still leaked. Being a bit more methodical this time, I poured water from various points and concluded that it was coming from below the light clusters. Took the bumper off (again) and found the sh*tty little soggy sticker covering the hole next to the bumper fixing screw. I’ve replaced this with electrical tape and silicone. Hope that’s job done! 

Our Ford Focus mk3 the water seems to be in tyre well but carpet dry. Is that likely to be light cluster or vent.  

My husband is not brave enough to remove bumper if coming in via vents  the how much do you think it will cost to fix with a garage?

We also have the washer bottle leaking and no spray so I think new bottle and pump could be required. Ford wanted £102 to investigate leaking water bottle but I suspect minus fix.

Hi

I was reluctant but if he watches the video below it shows how easy it really is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf5jU8ttX58

 

 

 

23 hours ago, Woodham said:

Our Ford Focus mk3 the water seems to be in tyre well but carpet dry. Is that likely to be light cluster or vent.  

My husband is not brave enough to remove bumper if coming in via vents  the how much do you think it will cost to fix with a garage?

We also have the washer bottle leaking and no spray so I think new bottle and pump could be required. Ford wanted £102 to investigate leaking water bottle but I suspect minus fix.

It’s pretty simple, getting the lights undone and out is probably the trickiest bit. But obviously it does depend on how generally mechanically adept you are - I know quite a few people I wouldn’t trust to do it! 

Hi all, 

So, I have this issue. The car has already been to the garage four times for it, two of which at a ford themselves. But they were not able to fix it or find the source. 

They have aleady replaced the vents, the rubber ducts on the top side above the boot. the hydrolic strut was also re-sealed and the whole interior carpets and body cavities were dried. 

But water is still dripping into the boot as soon as it rains. Any suggestions?

Thanks. 

Amin

Assume you are talking about a hatch rather than an estate? If it is an estate you need to target the crappy little stickers covering the holes under the rear bumper, as described up thread. 
 

Beyond that I can only say that I was able to locate the source of my leak by methodically pouring water down the back of the car where the tailgate sits, starting low down. By doing this I realised the leak was below the level of the lights and boot struts, which had been the areas I suspected. A similar method will hopefully work for you. 

 

Has anyone left the sound proofing out once the vents have been removed? Surely don't need it in there?

 

Just found the boot of my MK3 estate full of water. Didn’t do my research properly and went hunting for the leaking vents, not knowing the problem was hatch-only. On finding them dry, I siliconed them anyway and put everything back together, hoping that maybe the vent cavities had dried out as it’s been very hot here recently. I also tightened the boot strut bolts which were loose. However, on testing, of course it still leaked. Being a bit more methodical this time, I poured water from various points and concluded that it was coming from below the light clusters. Took the bumper off (again) and found the sh*tty little soggy sticker covering the hole next to the bumper fixing screw. I’ve replaced this with electrical tape and silicone. Hope that’s job done! 

Having sorted this in June, I recently checked under the boot carpet and once again found loads of water in the wheel well. This time it was getting in via the boot seal, at the bottom left corner of the boot aperture. I have used a load of silicone grease in the seal channel to fix it, we'll see how long that works for. So, yet another Ford Focus leak point...

Hi,

I found after i had a full service done December 2020 on my car probably about a month later this god awful smell in my car.  Like something had gone rotten.  Found the tyre well full up with stagnant water.  So my bad for assuming the garage had done something for this to happen.  

Never thought this would be a common problem, nightmare.  I have the 2012 Ford Focus Titanium.  I also have the issue with the door trims coming away.... so then i find the car is so noisey and my front windscreen is full of condensation every morning that i feel the heated element doesn't work.

I cleaned all the water out and let the back dry out but up until today had no idea the leakage is because of the reasons you have said.  I was googling about the door trims and saw videos about water in the boot.

My car still has this problem of the smell now and have literally checked the tyre well and there is a trickle in there but is mouldy and damp.  God knows if this went under the carpets inside the car.

I'm not a mechanic and could have a go at taking it apart but afraid i might damage it.  Has anyone had this checked over in a garage and how much it cost you?

Many thanks,

 

Anna

 

Sorry to revive this. Just came across it in my car (Mk3 Focus Titanium). Pulled the bungs and got plenty of water out. No time to sort ‘properly’ just now but hopefully this solves the water ingress in the short term.

A few questions have sprung to mind. I may be missing something or it may have already been covered:

What if you just leave the bungs permanently removed?

Why bung a hole for a compartment they know gathers water?

Why put foam/material in a compartment that gathers water (I know it is used for sound deadening) it just seems very strange to do. 
 

Will try and DIY repair in the New Year when I get time. What sort of money am I looking at for all the parts needed?

 

22 minutes ago, Revatron said:

A few questions have sprung to mind. I may be missing something or it may have already been covered:

What if you just leave the bungs permanently removed?

Why bung a hole for a compartment they know gathers water?

Why put foam/material in a compartment that gathers water (I know it is used for sound deadening) it just seems very strange to do. 

There was never meant to be any water in there.  The only reason it gets in is because of poor build & material quality.

If you just leave the bungs removed it'll rust from the inside out over time.  The water needs to be stopped from coming in.

As for cost, it's less than a tenner for a tube of sealant.  If you want to replace the vents rather than just reseal, they're about £15 each side.

Thanks @TomsFocus

Will take it apart and try to fix. Do you need OEM vents or are there aftermarket ones? £15 seems low for a Ford part when they charge ridiculous amounts for things like bolts and clamps. If I go down the sealant route do you just seal around the outside where the vent meets the metal/housing?

10 minutes ago, Revatron said:

Thanks @TomsFocus

Will take it apart and try to fix. Do you need OEM vents or are there aftermarket ones? £15 seems low for a Ford part when they charge ridiculous amounts for things like bolts and clamps. If I go down the sealant route do you just seal around the outside where the vent meets the metal/housing?

That's for the OE vents, it's not the sort of thing that's made by aftermarket manufacturers.  Here's one of them, they are different each side.

Genuine Ford Focus MK3 Air Inlet Grille 1706175 | eBay

You can either seal around the edge of an old one, or you can remove it and put some sealant behind as well for a belt & braces approach.  I broke one of mine so ended up replacing one and reusing the other.

Many thanks, great info. Appreciated. 

Hi guys, thread revival!

 

So my 14 plate mk3 focus has the dreaded water ingress issue. I had noticed it all was fogging up over the last few months, not surprising given the amount of effing rain we've had. 

Things came to a head on monday when I found water in the drivers footwell, same on drivers side passenger seats and the spare wheel well is submerged too.

I've bought some tiger seal and will be taking it all apart on Saturday weather permitting. 

It is quite likely that the soundproofing/insulation behind the vents is going to be condemned, any suggestions on what can be used to replace this and where I could get said replacement from please? Many thanks

2 hours ago, pinball wizard said:

It is quite likely that the soundproofing/insulation behind the vents is going to be condemned, any suggestions on what can be used to replace this and where I could get said replacement from please? Many thanks

I dried mine out successfully and re-used it.  They're basically just a lump of thick duvet though.  Could probably make one quite easily if you can sew.

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

I dried mine out successfully and re-used it.  They're basically just a lump of thick duvet though.  Could probably make one quite easily if you can sew.

Fantastic thanks, so whilst im taking the bumper apart I can get her indoors busy on the sewing machine, Saturday taken care of! 

***** hell Ford! Took the bumper off today and sure enough all four vents were loose and leaking like sieves. One of the vents was a total bstard to remove but came off eventually. Resealed and refitted having thoroughly dried out the cavity behind and also replaced the soundproofing/insulation. 

Thanks to @TomsFocus for the earlier response. Hopefully I'll be able to start drying the cabin out tomorrow and get things back to normal