Armon

iTrader: (4)

I was cleaning out my trunk today and noticed that the carpet was not completely flat.. so I pull it back, and the piece of cardboard underneath it is warped and is soaked with water. So I pull that out, take the spare tire out, and WTF there is 2 inches of water sitting down there!

I literally had to use a cup to scoop out the water before drying it. I got half of the bare metal sanded before it got dark outside.. there was some surface rust that came off pretty easily.

So what's the deal?

Punky

theres probally some leaks on your trunk, check the seals around the trunks.
Try pouring water around the trunk and see if any gets inside.

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

check the tailights. they leak sometimes

Dust N Bones

iTrader: (1)

That happened with my wife's old 2000 Altima and it turned out it was leaking around the center spoiler post. And IIRC there's a rubber drain plug in the spare tire well. If you take the spare tire out you should see it. That makes it a lot easier to drain it instead of scooping it out with a cup.

If you put the back seats down next time it rains and look into the trunk from the back seat you'll probably be able to see where it's leaking from.

zero2sixtyZ

iTrader: (30)

Happened to me, leaked near my taillights, but mine were cracked near the trunk line. It may be too late now, but there is a drain plug at the bottom of the trunk.

ZIPPIN

iTrader: (32)

What they said. Even a hairline crack, or a small hole can cause water to make its way in your trunk..

bwinter7

When I bought my car, I had the same problem. I then looked around the seals, taillights, spoiler posts, and couldn't find anything. So, I took off the trunk seal, and discovered a battle-axe type gash right in the 90 degree corner where the seal slips onto. How that happened, I don't know. It looks like someone tried to JB weld it, and paint it silver, but it didn't work to well. It sucked, and I just put some caulk over it.

You should get a buddy with a garden hose and you fold down your seats. Tell him to spray it with the jet setting and aim it at all the points of opening where water could get in your trunk. Car washes work great too

Squirrel82

iTrader: (30)

Yup

SEmy2K2go

iTrader: (10)

It is possible that the rear window seal is leaking as well. I'd check to see if you have any moisture under your back seatsl. If none there, it is most likely coming from the trunk area as the others mentioned. Eliminate what it's not, then go from there.

Armon

iTrader: (4)

AND THE WINNER IS..........

soonerfan and zero2sixty --> taillight leak

As soon as the fresh paint on my spare tire well dried, I got to work on finding the leak. It didn't take long.

With the trunk open, I poured a cup of water along the top edge of the trunk where the weather stripping is. When the stream of water curled along the inside edge of the taillight, a small trickle came out from the back side of the taillight, from a spot that looked like two seams were coming together. One of the seams (presumably part of the taillight assembly?) overlaps part of the trunk panel, and that's where it was coming through.

I went and picked up some silicone sealant. It started raining on my way home, and I don't have a garage, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow.

So the question is, should I:
(a) pull the weather stripping up and reseal that section,
(b) put the sealant along the seam on the inside of the trunk,
(c) put sealant around the taillight assembly itself, on the outside where the assembly meets the trunk, or
(d) some combination of the above options

tomservo291

I'm really glad I ran accross this thread.

I just bought an '02 SE last wednesday. Tommorow is the first day I'll have a chance to do a thorough look-over and start some modifications (painting the side markers and grille black).

But I noticed that ever since I picked up the car (it was raining) until now, there has always been condensation inside of the passenger side tail light. I thought initially from the rain, but it has never gone away in a week... Now I suspect I may have water in my trunk too.

If there is just water leaking INTO the tail light, where does the water usually get into it?

Squirrel82

iTrader: (30)

Taillight might be cracked.Check that the bulbs are in right.Might be POS aftermarket light.It only takes a second to see if theres water in the trunk.

Armon

iTrader: (4)

The only way to check whether water is leaking into your trunk is to pull the carpet up and look at the spare tire.

I'm still in the process of fixing the leak. The taillights seem to be designed such that water can get in the seam where the taillight meets the car body (open your trunk and look at the seam - you'll see what I mean). Both of my taillights look the same, and water goes into the small gap on both... But on one (and only one), 5% of the water makes its way into the trunk.

I've been messing around with the silicone sealant, and will post final results soon. I originally planned on taking the taillight out completely, but it seems to be sealed on there and I didn't want to mess with it. On that note, if anyone has any tips/suggestions on taillight removal, let me know.

I'm also including the link to djfrestyl's custom made spare tire cover because of its relevance to this topic. (I don't have one yet, but it looks good)

Squirrel82

iTrader: (30)

To take out the taillight move the carpet it right behind it.Unplug the harnesses and take off the 4 8mm nuts.The sealant is gooey and real sticky so you might have to pry it off little by little working your way around it.Use a flat head screw driver with a rag around the head.

I think they sell the tailligth sealer at Napa.It comes in strips that you just lay over top of the old glue to seal it up.