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Water inside the spare tire compartment! Help (Pics and Videos)
I was cleaning my trunk today and noticed that I had water around the spare tire compartment, (A few days ago it had rained), I checked the floor of the trunk and rear passenger seats and there was nothing unusual.
When I started to look closer, I noticed that the tail lights have a fairly large gap, both on the edges and sides, I feel that something is wrong or something is missing
There is a rubber seal that attaches to the plastic cover you were looking at. It runs the length of that plastic cover all the way down by the taillight. With the seal missing I’m not totally sure if it would cause water in the trunk though.
There are also plastic clips that hold that plastic cover panel to the trunk jamb. There is a center pin that you push in gently and then pop the clip up. They have seals that keep water from dripping into the trunk. They could be bad and dripping water into the trunk. These clips in the pic.
Also check the tailight seals to see if water is coming from there.
Best idea is to open the trunk and gently spray water around the trunk jamb and taillight area to see where it’s leaking. Remove spare tire cover and carpet from the sides so you can see where it’s coming from.
There is a rubber seal that attaches to the plastic cover you were looking at. It runs the length of that plastic cover all the way down by the taillight. With the seal missing I’m not totally sure if it would cause water in the trunk though.
There are also plastic clips that hold that plastic cover panel to the trunk jamb. There is a center pin that you push in gently and then pop the clip up. They have seals that keep water from dripping into the trunk. They could be bad and dripping water into the trunk. These clips in the pic.
Also check the tailight seals to see if water is coming from there.
Best idea is to open the trunk and gently spray water around the trunk jamb and taillight area to see where it’s leaking. Remove spare tire cover and carpet from the sides so you can see where it’s coming from.
There is a rubber seal that attaches to the plastic cover you were looking at. It runs the length of that plastic cover all the way down by the taillight. With the seal missing I’m not totally sure if it would cause water in the trunk though.
There are also plastic clips that hold that plastic cover panel to the trunk jamb. There is a center pin that you push in gently and then pop the clip up. They have seals that keep water from dripping into the trunk. They could be bad and dripping water into the trunk. These clips in the pic.
Also check the tailight seals to see if water is coming from there.
Best idea is to open the trunk and gently spray water around the trunk jamb and taillight area to see where it’s leaking. Remove spare tire cover and carpet from the sides so you can see where it’s coming from.
Open the trunk. Separate the trunk seal from the car body on the bottom horizontal and partially up the sides where they're angled approximately 45°. At the transition between horizontal to the 45° angle on one side or the other check the body work for rust. The plastic trim shown in the previous post routes rainwater underneath the plastic and then it follows plastic molding where it exits that plastic molding right at the point of the horizontal to 45° junction. Leaves and debris plug that exit, water backs up, and it seeps underneath the trunk seal. Clear the debris, trim the plastic back, correct the rust, reseal, reinstall the gasket.
Last edited by bbirdwell; Jun 20, 2021 at 10:34 PM.
Open the trunk. Separate the trunk seal from the car body on the bottom horizontal and partially up the sides where they're angled approximately 45°. At the transition between horizontal to the 45° angle on one side or the other check the body work for rust. The plastic trim shown in the previous post routes rainwater underneath the plastic and then it follows plastic molding where it exits that plastic molding right at the point of the horizontal to 45° junction. Leaves and debris plug that exit, water backs up, and it seeps underneath the trunk seal. Clear the debris, trim the plastic back, correct the rust, reseal, reinstall the gasket.
I'm going to record a video for you so you can tell me if I'm right, give me a few minutes.
Open the trunk. Separate the trunk seal from the car body on the bottom horizontal and partially up the sides where they're angled approximately 45°. At the transition between horizontal to the 45° angle on one side or the other check the body work for rust. The plastic trim shown in the previous post routes rainwater underneath the plastic and then it follows plastic molding where it exits that plastic molding right at the point of the horizontal to 45° junction. Leaves and debris plug that exit, water backs up, and it seeps underneath the trunk seal. Clear the debris, trim the plastic back, correct the rust, reseal, reinstall the gasket.
The easiest way to determine if it’s the seal is to spray water from a hose, around the tail lights to see if there is any water penetration. I know when I had this issue, we replaced the rubber seals, and the problem was solved.
The W211 chassis has issues with the rear tail light seals that allow water intrusion into the trunk. I have had that same issue. Your other post that I replied to shows that your plastic trim pieces on each side are missing the rubber edge that seals to the trunk sheet metal and tail lights. Not sure who/how those rubber edges could be missing. The other issue are the tail light seals. There are 3 of them on each side but the larger seal is the important one. I removed both tail lights and replaced the seals. Very poor design. Replacing the seals showed me that the seal just isn't designed well. Over time, the seal will lose its "sponginess". Best I can come up with. I bought a spare set of seals for future needs just in case.
The W211 chassis has issues with the rear tail light seals that allow water intrusion into the trunk. I have had that same issue. Your other post that I replied to shows that your plastic trim pieces on each side are missing the rubber edge that seals to the trunk sheet metal and tail lights. Not sure who/how those rubber edges could be missing. The other issue are the tail light seals. There are 3 of them on each side but the larger seal is the important one. I removed both tail lights and replaced the seals. Very poor design. Replacing the seals showed me that the seal just isn't designed well. Over time, the seal will lose its "sponginess". Best I can come up with. I bought a spare set of seals for future needs just in case.
2004 E55 AMG, 2006 CLS63, 2004 ML55, 2014 E350 sport
The bood lid seal also just needs to be installed correctly mine was leaking on one side on a car I just picked up because somebody didnt install it the same with the seal tucked under the exterior plastic along each side. I also had to pinch the seal fastening edge with pliers to squeeze it up tighter as it was too loose. Unless the rubber is actually torn these things shouldnt really need to be replaced imo.
Took me a while to notice it because I was looking at the upper tail light as all three rear lights have previously been the cause on other w211's for me.
The tail lights are sealed with foam grommet type thing and you wont see it from the outside where youre looking. Its best to just replace the grommets and look carefully at the upper tail light too and just use sealant on it if its leaking.
Last edited by austingtir; Jun 24, 2021 at 04:34 AM.
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