A/C water leaking into car

[trueblue]

Hello!
I was googling to find out if this was an existing problem with an xD. I found this thread from last June. Quoted from there is exactly what I encountered today.

I found water leaking into the interior under the dashboard. Im assuming it is from the Air Conditioner, and maybe a clogged AC not letting water exit the car.

I turned left and the A/C sounded like a swimming pool. Lots of water noise though I saw nothing dripping. When I checked the front passenger floor it was saturated.

Anyway, long story longer...
The car is still under warranty so took it to the dealership. (I have a 2009 I bought 6 months ago, used, low mileage from them.) The service department tells me there were leaves clogging the drain causing the run off to come inside. Then I was told that the xD doesn't come with the screen for preventing stuff from falling into the A/C system and clogging it but I could buy one for $192. I asked the service guy to show me where and how to clear it but he refused. If it's at all accessible I'm, certainly, capable of doing so. I told him I didn't have $192 today and he said (paraphrasing), "Well, you'll be back in less than a year because it will only happen again").

So... now I have a car with wet carpet that I'm trying to get dry and a soaking floor mat. Seems to me there's something wrong with this picture. I apologize for the mini rant.

I suppose my question is: Would someone please point me in the direction of finding info to prevent and remedy this problem?
(I also am surprised a car would have an A/C with no filter to keep falling leaves and the like out. I do feel as if the dealership did not disclose a few that would have been nice to know in addition to this.)

Please don't get me wrong. I really like this car but I am concerned there are hidden problems I will have to deal with down the road (pardon the pun). Help!


Thank you for any input or advice,
trueblue

(And I will call Scion and see what they can tell me but suspect you are the people who will be most helpful.)

[Resolve]

Hey had the same problem and got it fixed about 3 weeks ago at the dealer. I was going to find out how to do it my self but since my water pump went out I had them do it for me while they were repairing the water pump.

Unfortunately, sounds like you got an @$$ of a tech. Some are like that some aren't. I will try and find out for you and let you know. unless someone here can tell you before hand.

Since I have no option but to park outside I am prone to have this happen so I will need to get the info for myself anyways.

---------- Post added at 09:28 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:27 AM ----------

OH and as for the screen thing being $192 I am going to say that Lowes/Home Depot are you friends and can get the parts cheaper. lol

[trueblue]

Thank you for your response, Resolve.

I just called Scion and spoke to someone very helpful there. He said the part they were attempting to sell me would do nothing for the issue at hand. (Completely wrong advice by the service department and a blatant attempt to push an unnecessary part.)

He said the screen they were talking about is an in-cabin air-filter and, while it might be helpful for air quality and reducing allergies, etc, it would in no way remedy this issue.

He said, exactly, what I assumed. Clear out the leaves and stuff from the intake between the hood and windshield now and again. He said it was deliberately left open as it's part of the cooling system to allow air to circulate.


Scion will investigate the dealership as they appear not to be adhering to their policies. A case manager will call me early next week.


Ok, so now I can go to Lowes or HD and find something I actually need or want. Cool, good to know. Maybe there's a usable sunshade out there for me.

Back to drying carpet and mats... Thanks

[Resolve]

Well good that they will be handling it. yeah get a screen or something from hardware stoore and fab it up to prevent leave from falling in but to allow air to flow.

I took my mat out then pulled the carpet back and soaked up the water underneath the carpet and take the cheap insulation out from under carpet to make sure you got all the water and let the insulation dry in the sun or something.. Then let the car run with the heat on full blast and blowing on the floor. but make sure you soaked up the water that is under the carpet That is what i did.

[trueblue]

Thank you Resolve!
I will find a way to MacGyver a screen to keep debris out.

I got the mat dry and the carpet almost dry and then thought this is absurd. I can do it but service should have so I called them back and the same guy told me to get to go to a detailer and have them do it, lol. I asked if they were prepared to pay for it. After I was done conveying my concerns and their lack, thereof, he said to call the service manager. I left a message and, lo and behold, just got a call back. The service manager said bring it in, the carpet should be taken out dried and they will replace the matting below.

So... it seems it will be taken care of, properly, if I keep an eye on them and keep cracking the whip.

The thought of blowing full heat in S Florida in summer.

Thank you again for the response and advice. What you did is exactly what I thought to do, as well. I was stalling because, for once, I have a car on warranty and figure someone else can do it this time and save my time for fun stuff.

---------- Post added at 02:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:06 PM ----------

ps. I also removed the plastic pan under the glove compartments and it's spongy insulation and dried them in the sun (it was hold quite a bit of water).

[Resolve]

Originally Posted by trueblue The thought of blowing full heat in S Florida in summer.

it would dry fast just don't sit in the car lol.

Originally Posted by trueblue ps. I also removed the plastic pan under the glove compartments and it's spongy insulation and dried them in the sun (it was hold quite a bit of water).

I took mine out the first time and never put it back in.

[mcbrew]

Dude! I get the real Toyota cabin filters for the xD from TRD sparks for $16 each. I wouldn't go back to that dealership if I were you. It takes about two minutes to install the cabin filter... It doesn't even require any tools. It goes behind the lower glove box. It will keep leaves from entering the AC system. I replace mine twice a year. It is pretty nasty after 6 months.

---------- Post added at 11:28 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:15 PM ----------

Search "scion xd cabin filter" on youtube for a video of the replacement procedure ant to see how nasty then filter is after a year.

[trueblue]

Thank you for responding, Resolve and mcbrew!

(yeah, I figured about not sitting in the car, lol)
I've got the padding underneath out and all dry about to put it back in. The service department was of little help and considerable aggravation. I took out the still damp padding when they were done and told them I'd take it from there. *rollseyes*

Thank you for the lead on the filters, mcbrew!

Additionally, in a stroke of good timing. Went out while they were filling fluids (heh, they seem to know how to do that and washed my car twice) and asked that person about cleaning out the screen where the intake is, between the hood and windshield. He said not only can I clear leaves from the top but that part also easily snaps off and it's simple to remove the debris that gets past. Hmmm... far different than dealing with the bozo, I mean salesman, behind the desk.

I'm off to put the car back together. And look into cabin filters. Thank you both.

I will learn lots hanging around here.

---------- Post added at 10:04 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:22 AM ----------

Ah, checked and indeed there is no filter in there. The listing for my local parts store has a Purolator filter for $12.49 (doesn't look like the nice Hepa filter in the video). I'll head over there today and scap one up.

[GSF1200M]

This just happened to me last week. While it's very annoying, the problem is pretty easy to fix without taking the car to the dealer. Under the glove box on the left side of the blower is the a/c reservoir. This is what fills up with water when it is clogged. You can see a short black hose going from the reservoir to the floor board and this is where the water is supposed to drain to underneath the car. By blowing or sucking on the end of the hose, or by taking the hose off and poking the debris out of the reservoir, you will be able to get it unclogged and have the water drain again. It looked like I had a faucet turned on under my car when I got the debris dislodged.

[Tauron]

Hey GSF1200M,

Want to thank you for posting your solution here. Was just a few hours from bringing my car to my mechanic b4 I ran across your post. Was so easy to fix, it was almost stupid (actually the manufacturers design is pretty stupid, the way debris from above can clog this drain tube so easily). Thanks again for saving me a trip to repair shop, and no doubt a few bucks to boot!

And for others looking to clear the tube...just to make it a bit clearer...the black tube is located right behind the upper corner of the passerger seat carpet, where the middle hump meets the firewall. You really don't even have to pull the glovebox out to access the hose. Just pull that corner of the carpet back, and pull the hose out of the firewall/upper floorboard first, then pull the other end out of the condenser resevoir. At this point I put a finger over the resevoir hose nub to prevent the backed up water from pouring onto the floor while I blew out the hose with my mouth (wasn't all that much in the hose to clog it surprisingly), then quickly popped the hose back on and drained the water into a plastic cup I had handy. To be sure, I removed the hose again and used a small screw driver to further clear the condensor drain hole (very little left in there actually), and reinstalled the hose, and pushed the carpet back. Simple and easy. No doubt will be doing again in near future due to the poor draining design of the system :-/

[Resolve]

Wow way to bring back old thread. As far as needing to do it again. I only had it done once. No problems since. So there is no guarantee that you will need to do it all the time. Some people may. others may not.

[XDC]

I am so glad that I signed up to this forum. I had no idea about this issue. Í have a 2012 model, and still no cabin filter from the factory. I went to a local parts store and picked up a Purolator BreatheEasy filter (part# C35667) for $13.99. I will install tonight when my wife gets home. Headache avoided. Thanks all, and mcbrew for the informative video.

**5:45pm Installed the filter in all of three minutes, and I am all thumbs with these kind of things. Filter was a perfect fit.

[undrtkr_00]

Anyone have a picture of the air intake area where the leaves n crud are getting in? I want to install some sort of screen for keeping the junk out (just had the mechanic clear the lines, etc.) but am not sure where the air intakes are located.

[kalvin14]

my air conditioning started leaking on passenger floor a few weeks ago. 2010 Xd with 30,000 miles. Took car to dealer and they told me it was plugged and needed a cabin filter. They wanted 180 to do this and said my 75,000 mil warranty did not cover it because it wasn't mechanical. One week later it is leaking again and went back to dealer today. Now they told me I need the hvac evaporation core to be removed and cleaned of debris. Also was told there is a collar they can install to prevent dirt rom getting in. Dealer said it would be 8 hours of labor and cost 800 dollars. They would not stand behind the vehicle and told me to all Scion headquarters. I think this car has a bad design. Don't think this should be happening to a car this new. Please help...what should I do??

[stylesabu]

first off its the evaporator drain tube,not condenser or resevoir box.my xd has 110k on it and i clear the tube about once a summer.you can tell when its plugged listen for the water to sloosh or check under car when ac is on see if it dripping

[rybuzz77]

I understand that cars are going to have design flaws - ESPECIALLY new models! But bringing your car in to the dealer multiple times for a problem like this and the dealer not telling you that there is an extremely simple way to alleviate the problem from happening in the future is getting incessant. Scion should really be the one to send out a vehicle notice (at the very least - of course their not going to do a recall because it's not a life threatening design or mechanical flaw so they face no risk of lawsuits). But to have your dealer tell you a bold face lie that they will have to have a mechanic "investigate" the problem (for which you will pay $130 an hour) and then tell you they have to replace parts that either won't solve the issue or if it will - only for a short time - makes me want to puke.

At least at my Nissan dealership where I purchased my 2006n Frontier - they don't continue to charge me for work that was done in the relatively recent past and is clearly - again - a design or mechanical flaw. But - again - not something the manufacturer is going to admit to. My service guy at Nissan even told me that fixing a tire pressure indicator (which has been an ongoing issue since I've had the truck) would be extremely expensive and likely just a corroded wire so it was up to me if I wanted to pay for or just stick some tape over the light (we lived just fine without tire pressure indicator lives for millennia).

I can't wait to see what how the service manager responds to me questioning them about why their claiming ignorance to this obviously wide-spread problem.

Thanks for posting this thread and subsequent fixes everyone!

[djsylvia]

I'm actually a Scion tC owner and experienced this same problem. At first I thought it was a water bottle I left opened. I only noticed this is because I use rubber mats over my carpeted mats, otherwise I wouldn't even know. Yesterday I felt it drop from the dash and it was cold, my girlfriend drove my car. So I think this thread will help out thanks