This is my first post and I apologize for not contributing to the board, but I really need some help here.
I was rear-ended about a year 2 years ago now. The damage was not very significant, but I did have a new bumper put on. Ever since then the floor in the back gets wets when it rains. I've taken it back to the dealer and bodyshop, but no one could tell me why. I finally took the carpet out and took a hose to the top of the van. I could then clearly see the water was coming in from the holes (pictured below) from both sides. Looks like the only purpose of these holes is to hold the wiring in place for the tail lights. I'm not sure however. I'm still not sure how the water is getting to those holes, I just know the water is getting into my van from those holes.
This is my first post and I apologize for not contributing to the board, but I really need some help here.
I was rear-ended about a year 2 years ago now. The damage was not very significant, but I did have a new bumper put on. Ever since then the floor in the back gets wets when it rains. I've taken it back to the dealer and bodyshop, but no one could tell me why. I finally took the carpet out and took a hose to the top of the van. I could then clearly see the water was coming in from the holes (pictured below) from both sides. Looks like the only purpose of these holes is to hold the wiring in place for the tail lights. I'm not sure however. I'm still not sure how the water is getting to those holes, I just know the water is getting into my van from those holes.
You may have to remove the rear bumper cover, and inspect the body behind it. They may have missed a spot which was what happened in my case.
I have experienced the exact same thing. I was rear ended myself about 2 1/2 years ago, and experienced water coming in whenever it rained - especially when it is a torrential downpour. I took it back to the body shop a few times, and they could not duplicate the effect. I resorted to putting a hose on top of the vehicle and found that the water was coming into the holes that you have photographed. My last trip to the body shop, all they did was silicone the holes.
I removed the rear bumper because I thought a plug might be leaking, but as soon as I removed the cover, I noticed that there is a seam where the two body panels are welded together at the factory. It turned out, the corner of my seam had popped open on both sides, leaving a 1X5mm gap. This was right were the water would otherwise pool after a downpour. The water would then leak in between the two body panels (think of a double hulled oil tanker) and the water would have no other place to go than into the main cabin through the plug holes.
I have pictures of the damage I can share, if someone would be so kind as to tell me how to link them to this site
Thank you so much! This is helpful. I'll send you a private message and you can email me the pics. I'm curious how to take the rear bumper off too. Thanks again!
Good Morning My Ride. I have uploaded the photos to a photo bucket share account.
Tell the shop to remove the rear bumper cover and make a close inspection of the ledge behind the bumper cover - to make sure the seam hasn't opened up. This is where water would accumulate after a major rainstorm.
The photos show the before and after I applied silicone to seal the holes - as a temporary fix. After that the leaking stopped. I filed a complaint with my insurance company, and they authorized a second repair job. It has since been professionally re-sealed and I haven't had a leaking problem since
Wow This is amazing. I have just started to notice water coming in the back of my 2009 sedona when it rains alot and it is driving me crazy. Now i just need to go buy some sealant and take the bumper cover off.
Few questions for those who have dealt with this problem:
Any tips or tricks to taking the bumper cover off?
Can I buy those plugs to cover the holes somewhere?
Is there a specific type of sealant you would use on the ledge area?
Thanks so much. I can't wait to have this problem fixed!
Getting the back bumper cover off can be a bit tricky.
First you need to remove the rear light assembly on both sides.
Secondly, there is an 8 mm nut where the bumper attaches to the wheel well.
Finally, there are 3 screws near the bottom of the wheel well that need to be removed. These can be tricky because you need a very short screwdriver to get between the wheel and the screw.
Once these have been removed, the cover will pop out on both sides.
The rubber hole covers you see are OEM Parts, so they are only available from the dealership.
The plugs are all ready on the car. He removed them for some reason and then re-installed them in later pictures...
He also had been rear ended and the metal seams split apart..So unless you had the same accident I'd doubt that your leaks will be in the same place unless you had a rust through.. Do as he did....take out the carpet and have someone inside watching and hose down the car.
Dave
I originally thought that the plugs were the cause of the leak (getting old and brittle and not sealing properly) so I ordered new ones from the dealership. I had to remove the bumper cover to get in there to replace them, as soon as I popped the cover off, I saw the seam that split open.
I showed these pictures and told my story to a family friend who is a Quality Control Engineer at the Toyota plant in Woodstock Ontario Canada. His job is to do the water leak tests on all the vehicles (one of them dumps more water in an hour than Hurricane Katrina). He knew exactly what was happening and why. I later told him that I made 2 people on the internet happy by posting on this forum.
make that a 3rd! I'm going to pop the bumper off this weekend and check it out! I have a musty smell in the back of my van and I'm pretty sure this is the reason why.
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