Help. I left sunroof open during car wash. Water damage (3 Viewers)

[unatiq]

So a few hours ago I went into the car wash and didn’t notice that my sun roof was open. Just about half an inch. I drive slow and there was no wind up here in North Dakota today so I didn’t even hear the air, sometimes you can tell just with the air noise of the sun roof is open or not.
My 2 year old was in the front seat earlier and I guess he did it.

Anyways first during the wash I noticed lots of drips coming on my left foot, I figured it’s just some excess condensation drops of something. Stupid I know. It was water coming from the sunroof and travelling down the liner. Next immediately water started to fall from the sun roof. Like lots, as if a fire hydrant just burst. I realized what happened and tried closing the sun roof. However it wouldn’t close. I’m guessing some sensor maybe there is a hand in the way. I had to open it a bit more and then it finally closed. However by this time the inside had about Half an inch of water everywhere.

I was able to drive home. On my drive home I noticed a bunch of issues starting up. For starters my speedometer/main dash/console all shut off. I couldn’t tell my speed or fuel or RPM. No lights. The dash started to work again however the RPM’s were going up and down on there own but the engine wasn’t reving up, just the dash.

also noticed the battery gauge was going up and down on it own. Would be all the way up and then drop down to zero.

GPS was working but I couldn’t click the AC button.
rear AC button was pressed and I couldn’t turn it off. However rear AC was not blowing any Air.
My fob stopped working as well.

I got home and tried up everything as best as I could. Did not notice any water where it shouldn’t be. when turning the engine off I would hear a sizzling sound for a few seconds underneath the steering wheel when the steering wheel would auto adjust.

I unplugged the battery and won’t touch it for a few days. Hoping the heat will dry it out. Got a few bags of cat litter and left inside the car, heard that it sucks up the moisture.

guys any ideas and tips?
Ps sorry about the grammar mistakes. I’m using my phone and at work.

 

[unatiq]

Some info about the vehicle.
04 LX with 150,000 miles. Great condition. No issues other then worn out AHC.

 

[unatiq]

Some pics for reference. When the speedo/dash started up again it wasn’t the same. Lights would fade in and out and rpms up and down. Same with battery and speed wouldn’t work.

 

[Ayune]

You need to dry it out completely then re-assess. Park it in the sun with windows down for a couple days. Moisture will cause electrical glitches but when dry there may be no permanent effect.

 

[ramangain]

^

 

[unatiq]

Sounds good. I will drop the windows when I get home. Right now I have it parked on my drive way with windows up and kitty litter everywhere lol.

 

[TheForger]

If you really want to do it right you’ll need to remove all seats and pull the carpet. Yes the kitty litter will suck up 95% of the moisture, but the other 5% will remain in the insulation beneath the carpet and slowly begin mildewing. Plus, the moisture within all those little connectors will not properly dry. Do you have access to a garage? Another good way would be to put a dehumidifier inside the cabin with a few fans to keep the air circulating and just let it sit like that for a few days. I highly recommend Damp Rid, works better than kitty litter.

 

[unatiq]

Yep I have a garage, I just figured leaving it outside on the drive way would speed up the process maybe because of the heat? I will look into getting a dehumidifier and some of the damp rid. Thanks

 

[TheForger]

The sun will definitely help but it won’t be a solution. Not sure how the humidity levels are up there but high heat won’t help if there’s also high humidity.

 

[js47]

I’d suggest disconnecting the battery until it’s completely dry, if you are experiencing electrical problems.

 

[suprarx7nut]

I'd start pulling interior out. Seats, carpet, trim panels, headliner.

Think of it as an opportunity for a deep clean.

 

[IndroCruise]

So a few hours ago I went into the car wash and didn’t notice that my sun roof was open. Just about half an inch. I drive slow and there was no wind up here in North Dakota today so I didn’t even hear the air, sometimes you can tell just with the air noise of the sun roof is open or not.
My 2 year old was in the front seat earlier and I guess he did it.

Anyways first during the wash I noticed lots of drips coming on my left foot, I figured it’s just some excess condensation drops of something. Stupid I know. It was water coming from the sunroof and travelling down the liner. Next immediately water started to fall from the sun roof. Like lots, as if a fire hydrant just burst. I realized what happened and tried closing the sun roof. However it wouldn’t close. I’m guessing some sensor maybe there is a hand in the way. I had to open it a bit more and then it finally closed. However by this time the inside had about Half an inch of water everywhere.

I was able to drive home. On my drive home I noticed a bunch of issues starting up. For starters my speedometer/main dash/console all shut off. I couldn’t tell my speed or fuel or RPM. No lights. The dash started to work again however the RPM’s were going up and down on there own but the engine wasn’t reving up, just the dash.

also noticed the battery gauge was going up and down on it own. Would be all the way up and then drop down to zero.

GPS was working but I couldn’t click the AC button.
rear AC button was pressed and I couldn’t turn it off. However rear AC was not blowing any Air.
My fob stopped working as well.

I got home and tried up everything as best as I could. Did not notice any water where it shouldn’t be. when turning the engine off I would hear a sizzling sound for a few seconds underneath the steering wheel when the steering wheel would auto adjust.

I unplugged the battery and won’t touch it for a few days. Hoping the heat will dry it out. Got a few bags of cat litter and left inside the car, heard that it sucks up the moisture.

guys any ideas and tips?
Ps sorry about the grammar mistakes. I’m using my phone and at work.

All previously mentioned ideas are good. To add to the list of ideas given by others:

• Pull off the plastic fuse panel covers at both left and right front foot wells to let dry air circulate in there. Trapped moisture creating new pathways in these panels will cause many strange effects – good to help them dry out without any voltage present or current flowing.
• Remove interior plastic sill panels to release carpet outer edges. Pull up carpet as far as possible and prop in raised position so that air flow can get under carpet as far possible. For the same reason, consider removing central console if there is moisture in that area.
• Consider how best to positively ventilate the car, for example, using a household fan or blower for as many hours as are necessary to cause airflow across/through moist areas AND plan the airflow to cause the moisture picked up by the airflow to leave the car, probably with doors and windows open. It does not help if the airflow is going in circles inside the vehicle causing moisture to evaporate and then recondense. Some airflow directed up under the dash would be good.
• Use absorbents if they help but they will be slow if that is all that you do -- be VERY determined about constant drying airflow – add some heat if that can be done sensibly and safely but the main thing is airflow.
• Check whether seepage has wandered into the rear foot wells and if so, treat similarly.

The above is not as good as pulling out seats and carpets as others have suggested -- but it may be enough depending how much water is trapped.

Assume you are doing this in relatively low-humidity Alberta in summer – should be easier than in high-humidity tropics or sub-tropics!

The aim is two-fold:

• dry out the electrics (circuits dead, no applied voltage) so that all that amazing stuff returns to duty,
• dry out carpets so that there is not ongoing unpleasantness from mildew and odours.

When done, pull some fuses from both footwell panels and for reassurance closely check whether fuse holders and panels are dry – consider using WD-40 or other electrically suitable moisture repellent but ideally persist with forced airdrying until the moisture is out of there.

Don’t despair! Others have done this, achieved full recovery without lasting damage and lived to tell the tale – in my case the drama was caused by ‘someone’ leaving windows and sunroof open in a summer storm -- and there was no two-year old in sight!