cruzgerl

Hi friends,
I own an S55, and few days we had heavy rain. I left the car out of garage, and when I went to clean the car I found a lot of water on the rear seat, passanger side, where the fuse box is located. I removed all water and dry the carpet. My question is how could the rain got inside if the car was properly closed? And if there´s a solution to prevent this in future.

Rgds,
G

DRTYLNDY

This is a very well known problem for these cars. The water is coming in through the vent grate that sits below the windshield and on the hood.
If you look down in there in the way bottom you will see a small reed like valve that is clogged up. The best thing to do is get a long stick and poke it clean straight down. Now the only problem is that water you already took in may have already done the damage. If the rear fuse box gets wet it will probably cause problems. Good luck.

cruzgerl

thanks for reply... how can I prevent this to happen again? Is this caused by dirty?

thanks,
g

rondocap

Yeah, they recommend to clean the drain area frequently. Also, you can remove the grommet which makes the area bigger for more water to flow thru.

Trinsoca

Maybe he made a mistake but he did say rear seat.

DRTYLNDY

Maybe your right. I just reread it and it says "on" the seat so maybe the water came from the sunroof drain? I assumed earlier that they had water on the floor in the fuse box, my bad.

cruzgerl

Sorry guys, it was mistake from me. In fact the water was sitting under the rear seat, just where the floor mat is placed. I removed all water, and left it for a couple of days hopping it could dry out, but now when I try to start the car, it just doesn´t start... I noticed that once I plug in the battery the stop lights stay on all the time, even after I close the car(this is why I disconnect the battery). Is there anything else on this compartment besides the fuse box, that could be damaged?

rgds,
g

mrbenzes

I have heard that there are several control boxes under the rear seat...I hope it didne get that deep or they are probably wet.. and Big bucks (thousands) to replace.

Mike

cruzgerl

they worst happen, and I had to replace the rear SAM as well as the fuse box... total cost, $800... anyway, at least my benz is back in business. one question. My car uses 265-40R19 rear... its hard to find tires with this ref... my question, can I use 275-35R19 instead? thanks

mrbenzes

You can put any tire you want on the car as long as you dont get contact with the suspension or body...the rears will be more forgiving than the fronts due to no steering issiues...If they are closeto the originals...go for it.

Mike