Chasing Driver Side Water Leak(s) - 87 FJ60 (1 Viewer)

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rjs78

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Jan 4, 2012
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Location
Atlanta, GA
Have had a wet driver side foot well for a while, starting diagnosis. Thought it was leaky roof gutter, but didn't stop with temporarily covering the gutter, and upon further investigation it seems much more involved. It hasn't been driven in several years (that's another activity) but the water entry happens with every rain storm.

The staining on the firewall insulation pad in this photo is right below the clutch pedal, but there is no staining or streaks anywhere above the pad, on any hardware or bracket or underside of the air plenum. No rust seen anywhere up there, including lying on my back, head on and under the pedals, with lots of flashlights.
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The firewall pad seems pressed under the pedal brackets, can't pull it out just as shown, but it's definitely wet behind. Here are the stains from another angle.


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Floorboard



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Closeup of clutch master cylinder.

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The fender is off, and there's minimal to no seam sealer on the inside seams as is common. I'll rustrproof and seal that up (blue arrows.) The horizontal seam behind the pedals (green arrow) has sealer and it's in good shape, but I'll but another layer of sealer on top of it. But I don't think the inside seams are the source of the below clutch pedal leak. I've blown out the intake air plenum on the driver side, looked and felt around inside and even tried an inspection camera, but everything feels fine, and I don't see a spec of rust. Granted it's hard to really feel under brackets like the hood hinge or wiper arm.



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Ideas from anyone? Other things to check? There is no visible exterior rust at the base of the windshield, and the molding looks intact with no cracking, but is old. Again, from the inside there are no signs of water entry above the clutch pedal staining. Maybe I should pull the cluster for another angle to look?

Thanks for any input, ideas, suggestions, past experiences! RJ
 
Take a hose to seams and have someone check which one leaks. Slow flow hose. I will seam seal all joints.
 
Mine had a very similar leak. Mine came in from the brake booster as I don't have a clutch. When they replaced the brake booster they didn't put a seal behind it. So water would run down the windshield and into engine compartment firewall. I fixed the issue not entirely but mostly by replacing the seal where the hood meets the cowl. No more water in engine compartment.
 
@Roonie Thanks, good ideas, my cowl seal is pretty worn out. Will check for a seal/gasket on the clutch master cylinder.
 
UPDATE: after removal of the firewall pad, up to where it's compressed under the clutch pedal bracket, it continued to look like the water is coming in at the clutch master cylinder. FSM and Haynes don't show a gasket where the cylinder bolts to the firewall, not that I could find, but in the manuals I also couldn't find a bolting diagram or torque values for the nuts. Taking off the cylinder, there are some rust stains in the firewall hole (pressed double wall) and on the mating cylinder surface.

Has anyone experienced or heard of water coming in at the clutch master cylinder? I'm glad I started this search, because the more I expose the driver foot well the more rust I find. Fortunately no perforation seen (yet - fingers crossed.)

Thanks
 
I've got the same on-going issue and the places you will need to seal are the cowl seams (use 3M body seam sealer), that are inside the cowl where you have the plates removed for access, and where the wiper linkage hides. You will need to remove the wiper linkage to clean and seal that area (looks like you may already have). And for good measure I sealed all those seams you have blue arrows pointing to.

I'm still getting water intrusion into the driver's area, but now it only comes just along the side near the door pinch weld area, so that probably the door seals.

That cowl weather strip seal is available as a quality aftermarket. City Racer sells it. Also avail is the seal up front between the hood and radiator area.
 
Hi, If the rain gutters have not been resealed I would do it. I’ve done three of our cruisers all were leaking in different areas. Especially check where the gutters go down the front of truck.
 

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