are you guys tired of having a swimming pool in your trunk after a rain? are you fed up with the mildew and mold that eventually grows in unknown damp spots in your trunk? are you simply frustrated that water enters an area where it shouldn't damaging things like the trunk floor board, subwoofers, and personal belongings? that's how i feel with my 92 accord until i figured out how to stop it all from happening. the fix is easier than you think.
i've had my leaky trunk for a while now. many told me that my taillight gaskets are bad or my trunk rubber liner wasn't doing its job. this was not the case here. my leak came from the rear deck near the trunk hindges on both sides. i thought my rear windshield seal was to blame but it wasn't.
with more research, and a newly acquired service manual, i found out that the chrome trim that lines the rear windshield has holes used for fastening that lead directly into the trunk. these holes are lined with gaskets that keep water from coming in. i found that my gaskets were in terrible shape. the direct exposure to the sun and the mere age of our cars is to blame for this failure. this is the entrance point of my leak. now let's fix it!
WARNING: do at your own risk! i'm not responsible for your actions.
to remove the chrome trim, i referred to my trusty honda serive manual. here is what you need to do to remove the trim. be careful not to loose any parts or clips. (NOTE: you don't need to remove the whole trim piece. you can remove just the lower trim and move it out of the way. i removed the whole piece for clarity).
after removing, i found the entrance point of my leak. these holes line the whole side and if they are not properly sealed off, they will let water in the trunk.
since our cars are about 12-15 years old, the gaskets that line these holes are aged and are unable to seal properly. to remedy this, i removed the old gasket material with a scrapper...
...and put new gasket maker sealant prior to reintallation of the chrome trim.
after reinstallation, let the sealant dry adequately before setting out for a drive. so far my trunk is dry as a bone. just remember that this only fixes the trim leak. the tailight gaskets, trunk rubber liner, and even the rear windshield seal can still present leaks. now hopefully soon we all can have dry leak-free trunks!
i've had my leaky trunk for a while now. many told me that my taillight gaskets are bad or my trunk rubber liner wasn't doing its job. this was not the case here. my leak came from the rear deck near the trunk hindges on both sides. i thought my rear windshield seal was to blame but it wasn't.
with more research, and a newly acquired service manual, i found out that the chrome trim that lines the rear windshield has holes used for fastening that lead directly into the trunk. these holes are lined with gaskets that keep water from coming in. i found that my gaskets were in terrible shape. the direct exposure to the sun and the mere age of our cars is to blame for this failure. this is the entrance point of my leak. now let's fix it!
WARNING: do at your own risk! i'm not responsible for your actions.
to remove the chrome trim, i referred to my trusty honda serive manual. here is what you need to do to remove the trim. be careful not to loose any parts or clips. (NOTE: you don't need to remove the whole trim piece. you can remove just the lower trim and move it out of the way. i removed the whole piece for clarity).
after removing, i found the entrance point of my leak. these holes line the whole side and if they are not properly sealed off, they will let water in the trunk.
since our cars are about 12-15 years old, the gaskets that line these holes are aged and are unable to seal properly. to remedy this, i removed the old gasket material with a scrapper...
...and put new gasket maker sealant prior to reintallation of the chrome trim.
after reinstallation, let the sealant dry adequately before setting out for a drive. so far my trunk is dry as a bone. just remember that this only fixes the trim leak. the tailight gaskets, trunk rubber liner, and even the rear windshield seal can still present leaks. now hopefully soon we all can have dry leak-free trunks!
Comment