I’m not sure how much you’ve been keeping up with central North Carolina weather – I assume a lot, as it’s wildly compelling to everyone with their fingers on the pulse of the culture – but it’s been kind of a soggy wet mess here lately. That’s been bad for a lot of people here – there’s been plenty of flooding and people losing homes so let’s just keep that in mind as I kvetch to you about my wildly insignificant problem here. But kvetch I will, because boy am I confused.
So, it’s been raining all the flapjacking time, so that’s made it tricky to work on my Citroën 2CV, which I desperately want to get running, and soon. I put a new fuel pump in but so far I haven’t gotten it to run just yet. I will! With some help and a bit of actual weather that you can be in without getting soaked, I mean.
Oh, and that rod sticking out from under the hood alarmingly in the topshot is an old shovel handle I use to keep the hood up, and I have one of the headlights out to try and get it cleaned out. Just keeping you in the loop.
Anyway, the rain finally has been letting up a bit, so I got to spend a bit of time with the car, which is when I noticed these strange puddles of water. I took the front seats out to clean them and replace some of the thick rubber bands that form the support structure of the seat, so the whole floor is very visible, which is why these puddles are so obvious. Here’s the first one:
It’s right by the front door edge, and there is a rust hole under that mat, so perhaps this one has been happening a while. But I can’t figure out where its coming from!
The underside of the dash is dry. The edge of the door is dry, and the weatherstripping seems dry and intact. The windshield weatherstripping seems dry and intact. Nothing above the floor seems wet!
The window seal is fine, too. And the fabric roof is new and free of holes, and I can’t see or feel any water on the ceiling. Where the hell is this puddle coming from?
Here’s the other place where water seems to be pooling:
Right in the center, where the seat belts are mounted, which is a little alarming. There’s rust in there, but luckily it seems to be mostly surface and the metal is still sound. Still, I’d rather this important structural point on the car wasn’t filling with water.
Again, I have no idea where this water is coming from? The roof above it is dry and doesn’t seem to be leaking at all:
Where the hell is this water coming from? Below? That’s not possible, is it? At least according to how I understand water and gravity to work here on Earth. At least normally.
The trunk is dry, too, which speaks to the roof sealing well.
So, again, what the hell is going on? Why are these two spots mysteriously filling with water? Where is this water coming from? Do these cars sweat? Is the water opening the doors, then closing them? I’m baffled here. Any ideas are welcome!
Jason, have you thought of upgrading the engine with a BMW airhead? Besides more power it has the added bonus of no water in the engine compartment!
Have someone hit the car with a hose while you are inside.
And look for leaks.
I’d guess the seals are not sealing as good as they should.
It’s a French car, did Saint Bernadette of Lourdes happen to drive it? That could explain everything.
“I Have A Mystery Water Leak In My 2CV And It’s Baffling Me”
You just answered your own question! Install some…baffles
Drill a hole in the floor to let the water out. Standard procedure when you have water someplace that you don’t want it is to drill a hole to let it . Geez I can’t believe you need to be told that.
Oh, one big exception is the floor of the trunk in Ford Falcons and first generation Mustangs. Then you will be drilling into the gas tank. There are other cars with similar problems, but none is any worse than the Ford.
You haven’t provided a clear display of tact
Go sit in it when it’s raining, Jason. Duh.
When life gives you water, squeeze some Citroens in it.
Doesn’t it have opening flappy things under the windshield?
The other thing that can leak rain water into the car, is the heater ducts.
I had something a little similar issue with my Renault 5 tl rear window seal acted so that in heavy rain the water pooled on the old seal so much that it seeped through but only in heavy rains..
Also when I checked some pictures of the 2CV front there seems to be a wire passtrough in the firewall and I have seen some weird things involving copper wires and water… As in water intrusion in the fusebox as the water had travelled from a side marker light turned fishbowl into the wire itself (all of the length of copper was green)…
I was in New Bern, NC last week for work. The heat and humidity were WORSE than at home in SW FL. It was absolutely brutal, and I only had to be out in it to get back and forth to my car in parking lots. Yet another #$$%$% Nissan Rogue – I think Hertz is buying half of them that Nissan is producing. Blech.
But as for the leak, get in the car, and get Torch the Younger to liberally apply a hose to it and see where water is getting in.
I was there (New Bern) a little over five years ago, in March 2020, and I will go on record as saying Beaumont, TX eclipses New Bern as the most miserable place I have ever lived. Heat and humidity and petrochemical stink. New Bern, the parts of it I saw, were pretty cute.
My ex-wife (from Beaumont, why I was there) and I almost bought a home In Asheville, NC four years ago. I guess it’s best we didn’t as it was destroyed by Hurricane Helene 11 months ago.
New Bern is a lovely little town (and the birthplace of Pepsi Cola) – but the weather last week suuuucked. Broke over the weekend though, client said it was only in the high 70s today. Just one of those miserable summer heat waves the South is so good at producing. Had a good time, and had dinner with a friend in Swansboro while I was there too.
Beaumont – gack – that is a shithole supreme. Been there too. The whole TX-LA Gulf coast is pretty miserable. Was your ex crazy? My client in Beaumont was batshit insane. That was back when I was installing POS systems in hardware stores 20 years ago, and this chain-smoking female nutjob owned the store. Good times.
My TX ex is a dentist and tried to kill herself three times while I was married to her.
Excellent dentist, batshit crazy wife. Remarried 7 months after we split and adopted twin 9-year-olds. Extending her working life at least 10 years.
I really don’t know how that’s going to turn out.
Yikes! Hope she’s in a better mental state today with the kiddos.
The crazy seems to be strong in coastal TX women. Or is it just women in general? 🙂
Yeah. Me too. They’re not all crazy.
At least we know it’s not coming from the radiator. Or the AC. Could it be kittens?
Just start slapping FlexTape everywhere until it stops
France. The water is from France. Beldar told me.
My best guess is that it’s running through one of the folds in the sheet metal around the door frame. This guess is based entirely on the pictures and description, not any experience whatsoever. It just looks like one of those type of leaks.
A cursory search also suggests:
1) The hood hinge.
2) The vent hinge and seals.
3) The windshield gasket.
It’s a blinker fluid leak from the blinker stalk.
Dude, this is an air-cooled car, it doesn’t use blinker fluid. Duh…
It looks and behaves a lot like a shrunken windshield/rear window gasket. I’d an a similar mystery leak in my old Toyota RN38 and water was getting in past the body lip and gasket and giving my foot a nice bath in the winter.
Rear glass rubber is 3 months old. The front is at least 13 years old though.
The wonder of The Autopian is that the prior owner is usually in orbit to clarify things.
Somewhere on your property there is an incontinent raccoon with a sense of humor.
Check the basket of eggs on the passenger seat.
Per the Citroen service manual, regular adjustment of the baguette, bag of onions, beret, and stripy top of the vehicle is required with every tire rotation.
Previous Owner’s Note: The windshield has a crack and the wiper cowl has some rust. These two combined, makes me believe there may be either rust on the windshield frame (under the seal) or just a bad seal. Now that the top has been replaced and taken out of consideration as the cause, I’d next investigate that water ingress on the LF foot well potentially being from the windshield seal.
Hit it with a garden hose and the source should become clearer, my friend!
P.S. That car really is charming. Not many that I’ve sold I’ve staying in my heart afterwards. The sight of it on today’s Cold Start brought a huge smile to this guys’ face.
Parts Note: Flat glass for the cheap replacement win!
Has there ever been a watertight 2CV? Is that even a thing?
The flow-trough concept was built in in every 2CV and 3CV. For reasons.
Those are factory installed leaks. Seeing you have the seats out is what makes them visible on the floor. Normally, the seat cushions absorb it all. It is a cooling system designed to wet your pants and provide evaporative cooling when you exit the car.
As it has occurred after you were in the vehicle, have you ensured you are not simply oozing moisture without noticing??
Now I will have to live the rest of my life with the mental image of Torch oozing fluids without noticing. Thank you, Gilbert.
This car is designed to leak from the windshield, the door windows, the rear window, the roof, the doors, the floor, the tail lights, the headlights, the ignition key, the speedometer and the dashboard. If it leaks from anywhere else you have a very serious problem.
DT Jeep Pickup leaking speedometer cable FTW.
The staining of the rubber mat under the pedals suggests firewall seal failure.
Build a dang shed, if not a pole barn. It’s a cool car that deserves preservation, and from SWG showing underside, looks solid enough that if you remove the entire interior and address any rust it should be good. More power to ya. I haven’t stripped and rustproofed a floor since my teens.
Considering it’s only under the pedals and matches the color of the dirt there, I think it’s just been tracked in and ground into the floor. It sure looks like a rust stain though doesn’t it?
Could be. I’d take all that rubber out to inspect the metal underneath and treat it before any rust gets worse. I don’t know how North Carolina is for zoning and property tax, but a neighbor of mine had a new pad poured for central air, only 4’X 5′, that the contractor got a building permit for, and it triggered a reassessment for property tax in his home of 40+ years, quadrupled his tax! That’s why I said shed/ pole barn, as they usually don’t require permits.