Ford Focus Water leak in Boot, Sealing Rear Vents Behind Rear Bumper 

Thanks for the detailed video. I was able to catch the leaking vents in time on my 2014 focus. I followed your step by step instructios. The wheel well was full of water. My rear window was fogged up all the time. Took me about 4 hours cost €10.00 . What a result. No leaking...No foggy windows. My local Ford dealer did NOT want to know. Sort this out Ford.

Just done this on my 2014 Ford Focus ,by following you’re video...very informative and easy to do thanks to you . The car was soaking wet and smelling musty ( well done Ford designers 🙁) Dried it out and now sorted, thank you

This really saved me as a car repair novice, so helpful and spot on accurate. I put an extra line of silicon on the outside of the vents just in case there were any gaps I couldn’t see on the inside, didn’t want to go through it all again. Thanks so much

I had this problem on my new to me 13 plate Focus. Great video for doing the belt and braces approach of sealing the vents but for me, the easiest thing to do it just remove the bung underneath. Allow the water to drain then pull the wadding out through the hole. Leave the bung out. I've not had any pooling water since. I don't have the luxury of a garage so again it is the best option for me personally.

Tip for removing vents. I just did this on my 2016 Fiesta and it only has one air vent on each corner. Here is a tip I found after doing the first vent for removing them at least with the 2016 model. If you lift up the bottom flap on the vent and look into the vent you can see the back side of the clips inside and use a screw driver to push up on the bottom tabs after inserting it between the rubber edge and the car wall (there are two on the top and bottom). This method allows one to see where the screw driver is (while keep the flap up) after inserting it through the bottom of the vent. Lifting the flap made it so much easier to remove the second vent after doing the first one the hard way.

This same problem here. I took these grommets out and wool soaked in water and I'm waiting for some rain now. Don't fancy taking the bumper off on the busy street, no garage. Excellent video.

Thank you so much for posting this video, I removed the bungs and sealed the vents this morning. Without your tutorial I wouldn't have dreamt of doing this myself! My local garage was reluctant to this job for some reason, but I'm really glad its now sorted and the Mrs might now stop bugging me to buy a new car 😃

Having just encountered this issue myself with a 2014 Focus, I have had no satisfaction whatsoever from Ford (Ireland) who claim that this is not a known issue meriting a recall as nobody has raised it with a certified Ford garage. Please prove them wrong and report en masse and don’t let them walk all over us.

I learned an easy trick to remove the air vents starting with the bigger one. Poke the corner tab with a screwdriver through the bottom hole. It should easily come off when you press the release tab. Then remove the top tab on the same side by pressing down whilst pulling. This should easily come off too. Once you have one side released slide it towards you and pull at an angle. Took me 2mins to release the other side when I learned the technique. Hope the instructions make sense. Thank you for this video!! You've helped so many people now!

The best video on RU-vid on how to do this. Done the job today on my Focus ST. You made it straight forward and easy to understand.

Our 2013 has been parked up for a few months....we now have a fish pond inside....Traced it to back end...Your video my friend has helped me get to that vent. A very poorly designed vent and seal assembley I'm sure you will agree. Many thanks for the super information.

Thanks very much for this video, followed it through this morning and it made the whole operation so much easier! I have a hint for making the vents easier to remove! Do the back ones first: lift the top rubber flap (gently, these are delicate) and you can simply pull in the top two tabs with a couple of long thin screwdrivers, no aggro at all! The whole top half comes loose and you can run another thin screwdriver down the outside to push in the bottom tabs. Back vent comes out in about a minute! Then reach inside through the back vent hole and, so long as your hands aren't massive, you can pop down three of the side vent's tabs (couldn't reach the top/far one) and wrestle that out in not much more time.

You're a legend mate... lot's of videos about this on RU-vid but you are the one who showed the hidden 3rd screw under wheel arch, saved the day and reduced the language level. Job done, thanks.

As soon as the rain stops here, I'll be attempting this. Thanks for posting this, your very thorough which makes it much clearer. Cheers.

Discovered wet passenger floor last week and traced it back to the boot and finally the blanking tape over the holes into that void area. Pushed the bungs inside to release the pond that was hiding so next dry weekend I'll be following your brill tutorial on removing the bumper and sealing the duff vents in properly. Cheers 👍🏻

Great video with detailed instructions. I did that work two years ago on my 2012 Focus. Recently found out again water in the trunk, but only on the right-hand side. Today I took it apart and saw that my vent opening sealing is still good. Then I realized that water must've been entering into the vent corner from the top, around the fuel tank door - it is the same volume. Applied sealant around. We'll see if it is successful.

Pushed the bungs in from underneath and the water cascaded out....been in garage twice and they could not find problem...going to have a go at fixing myself.....great detailed video

Did mine this morning. Thankyou for the video it all went well. Only broke two clips. All four vents were loose and not sealing in any way against the body. Prepped with scotch brite and cleaned with acetone before applying a marine grade silicone sealant. Fingers crossed it worked. Also made silicone washers for the light fitting bolts. Many thanks.

Just did the same job this afternoon. Followed your lead and it went perfectly. Thanks a million 👍

Fantastically helpful video. After much frustration and one broken air vent I found there is a way to extract the larger of the two vents on each side wihtout too much pain and frustration. You need to remove that bung underneath and then you can feed a screwdriver in while guiding by feel with a finger to where one of the clips is. Once that clip is popped there is another rubber bung to the side of the vent nearest the engine. you can remove this, and although you cant get a screwdriver in you can put your finger in and feel for the clip. This then allows you to feel when you are actually moving the clip with whatever implement you are using and slightly help it out as well. Once both bottom clips are out the vent should come out easily

Just did mine...your video was a life saver so thank you very much.... I found bestbway to start getting the vents out, is to pop the little black rubber bung out from underneath, and use your finger to pop the first clip thing out, then a screw driver easily pops the other one out amd makes them far easier to remove.... Thanks buddy 👍

Thank you so much for posting your videos. My wife and daughter both have Ford Focus cars on 2011-12 plates and both had wat ingression, one right up to the front foot well. After watching your videos I have now dried both cars out, removed the bumpers and fixed the leaks. Thank you so much, you saved me a fortune on garage bills and I would not have had a clue how to do it without following you. PS i also did a front light as well.

Brilliant video. My boot was FULL of water, and so was every foot well. Followed your video and since then no water (touch wood) has got in. This was about 4 weeks ago, and we've had some good rain since.

i actually have similar problem in my 2009 sedan, found out myself the vents are the problem (left one epecially), now looked into your video to see how to properly seal those, thx!

Thanks so much. Garage quoted me £110 just to take a look at it, and it would be a lot more for them to do the fix.I've never done any car repairs before, this was a first, so thanks so much for your helpful video.

I've just bought a focus with a damp boot. Looking like this is the issue. Thanks for this, it's most helpful 👍

Mate - another one thanking you for this video. My 64 plate was identical to your video apart from (oddly) a mix of bolts and screws under the arches. My soundproofing materiel was identically soaked. Left those and the bungs out - no difference to cabin noise - sealed the vests and happy days!!

My daughters focus has been taking ‘water on board’ for well over 12 months. She got to the point where she was considering selling the car and asked for my opinion. A few clicks brought me to this site and we decided to give it a go. A really poor design by Ford but after a full days worth of ‘huffing and puffing’ we’ve finally got a dry car. The father and daughter bonding experience was an unexpected bonus

Thanks for the great video! Just done it this morning. Could not figure it out myself. Well, couple of vent clips broken, but silicone should hold. Been quite generous with it 😉. Not too hard even though I have no experience at all working on cars. All thanks to the great instructions in the video 👍

This is a great video with excellent commentary. All the steps are very clearly showed. I followed this to fix the water issue in my Ford Focus Mk3 2012. I used Tigerseal Adhesive & Sealant that I purchased from Eurocar parts Removing and putting everything back together probably takes an hour or so. Most of the time is to dry the sound damper cloth and cleaning/drying the water area. I put the sound damper cloth and grommets back in. The vent design/sealant is a very poor design from Ford. Thank you very much for this video.

Just did this on mine, cheers for a simple, easy follow and to the point video!

Amazing video!! So in depth, i did mine today took me just over an hour to remove fix and refit, the vents are massively tricky so take your time with this part! Thank you!

Great video , my ‘66 plate focus had a park pilot malfunction and I’ve read that these leaking vents can cause it . Thanks again, I’ll be doing this next week

Thanks so much for the easy to follow guide I modified my rubber grommets with a drain tube so if it fills again it can drain away naturally.

Brilliant guide just done this fix this morning after finding water in the boot last night filled half way up my space saver tire, clip on the vent snapped trying to get it off but with it being sealed it shouldn't be an issue, thinking about drilling a small hole in the rubber bungs under the car just incase, thank you very much

Thanks for posting this, I wouldn’t have known all the bolts & screws to find. My spare wheel well was full of water, now I understand why the rear passenger footwell is wet- the water pushes forward when I go downhill. I had heard a sound like fuel in the tank, now I know it was water in the spare boot. I should have listened to your advice word for word, I got impatient with a grommet underneath the bumper and ended up ruining it, other than I got the bumper off and on again. Time will if I sealed it well enough.

Thank you so much for this video - easy to follow even for a novice - managed to get it sorted with no problems

Great video. A great guide to curing my problem. Both cavities behind the grilled were full of water with no obvious way of entering the boot with the car on level ground, but in motion or unlevel ground it probably flowed through the lower of two perforations so I sealed these on both sides just in case. I used caravan mastic as it stuck better and is thicker than silicone.

Just done this thanks to your video,snapped a piece of one of the larger vents off though 🤦🏼‍♂️ taped it flush and siliconed over the top of it, hopefully it holds. Put a shit ton of silicone on the back and front of each vent, hopefully solves the issue 🤞🤞

Fantastic video. The detail you have gone in to makes it so easy to follow. Well done and thank you.

Thank you for showing how it should be done 😢 now got a fantastic busy weekend thanks to you 😅

We had the same problem with our 15 plate ST Focus, replaced all rear vents, sorted. Now door seal on drivers door hanging down, never had these problems with any previous Ford's!!

V. Good informative how to. My bro called me with this issue on his focus so I'll be giving him a hand with this fix next weekend. Surprised reading all the comments just how common the issue actually is. Very poor design by ford alright. Luckily shouldn't be too bad a job with the know how from the video 👍🏻

Brilliant video! Sorted my focus today thanks to your walkthrough. Ill pop the bungs off in a few weeks and fingers crossed no waterfall. Shame on you Ford shoddy design, you owe me half a tube of silicone and an hours labour.

You're a legend! Been having this problem for over a year and was baffling me how water was getting in! Just need a dry say now to sort it out

To honest i am well impressed with the way you explained this and cannot wait to get my focus sorted.

i shall be doing mine at the weekend great video well done mister , good old ford .

WOW what an awsome easy to understand Video. THANK YOU very very much for sharing your water ingress solution with us all. I have a B Max (or as i like to call it the swimming pool on wheels) and I am cursed with the same problem. I have tried every thing from completely silicone sealing the rear lights to the Car body but i never would have thought that the problem would have been hidding under the bumper air vents : ( It seems like every Ford model Fiesta, Focus, B Max, C Max ect is cursed with this same problem yet when you go to a Ford Dealer they do not want to know, SHAME ON YOU FORD. Thanks again for posting this great video : )

Quality video! Will be tackling this tomorrow! Gna go find your light video too to make sure I cover all areas, then clean the damp and mould in the car 😑

Thanks. Completed this job on my son's car this weekend and your instructions were spot on. 👍👍

Thanks very much, I followed this video and it helped. To get the side vent off, a length of dowel up thru drain plug to release one tab, then pull it down to release opposite tab, drag it forward an inch then rotate in cavity to twist it free. 👍

Will be attempting tomorrow on my Fix Or Repair Daily. Did a headlight today had water in it. Seriously Ford couldn’t spend a bit money on these tiny details. Will be using your video step by step thanks a lot 👌🏻✌️😁

Great little video, I’ve had a smell in the motor over the very wet winter we’ve had, just found a couple of litres of water in the boot, had previously checked lights and they were ok but this is tomorrow’s job, thanks again.

Hi Aaanton Thanks for the excellent instruction. The vents were rigid but got them out eventually only breaking two clips !! Plenty of silicone struck those back in place. Cheers

I just did this job and if you lift up the bottom flap up on the vent you can see where the tab is, a bit easier.

Done mine today used a thin filling knife to get the vents out came out very easily thanks for the video very handy

Been having this issue since last winter with the car stinking of damp in wet weather. This is my job for tomorrow morning then. Great video, thanks mate. Hope this solves my problem. 🤞

Thanks so much for this! I've just had the bad surprise to discover water in my Focus' trunk, and I was wondering how I would get this sorted out. Your video is a blessing. I'll have to wait till the nice days come back to do it though :) Thanks again!

Great video, thanks. However, I wouldn’t use household silicon, but instead all weather silicon or tiger seal. I hope your silicon holds up well though. Ah, just seen you have used all weather sealant, top job!

having the same problem on my 2013 st focus. thanks so much, i didnt know about the vents.

Great video. Just done mines. I do have to add that 2 of the 3 screws in my wheel arch were 8mm sockets and the hidden one (behind the arch) was the only torx. Other than that. Everything was spot on.

Top video. Looking forward to doing mine this weekend. Thought was the rear washer jet but 100% this, boot full of mould too!

Hi . .. Guys there is no need to take the vents out . Just clean around each vent thoroughly and dry the area around each vent with a hairdryer, silicone around each one and take the bungs out underneath . When dryed out put the bungs back in .

Thanks for this vid, I'll need to do this as my focus is doing the same with water ingress in the wheel well

شكرا لك. لقد تم الان حل المشكلة بفضلك ، فيديو رائع ♥️

I did this to my focus zetec s the other day, mine had gone that far that it had soaked the back seats carpet in the foot well and also gone through to the front. I had to take out the full carpet of the car. The foam was that saturated under the carpet I had to replace. My advice if you think about doing it, definitely do it because I left mine too long and had to practically strip the car to get rid of the water ingress which had travelled to the front. The car is a 2012 reg.

Great video mate, like the detail on how fiddly those vents are to remove....save me snapping those...

Great vid,been racking my brains wondering how waters getting into the spare wheel well and passenger foot well

Same problem in my 2018 focus. What a terrible design! Thanks so much for your help :)

The vents go in much easier than they come out !

Had the same issue. Did exactly the same as you’ve done. No leaks since. There are 2 bungs underneath the car at the bottom of the rear quarters. Ford obviously knew this vents and light mounting points would cause an issue.

Very helpful video. I watched one similar other day so went and pulled the bung under the car Sunday and got soaked 😂. So this weekends job is the get this sorted.

Great Video, did mine today, all went without a hitch, thanks.

Very helpful, thanks! Greetings from Poland!

If it helps with removing the vents I saw a video earlier where they removed the smaller vent first with a screwdriver and were then able to reach in and around to release the clips on the bigger vent. I guess it depends if your hand fits but def worth being aware of 😊

Excellent video, thanks - Have sealed the vents and rear light clusters following your informative instructions. Cheers, RobV

Thanks a lot Aron. Its so easy to understand you. The same problem I had with Ford K (Argentine)

Great video mate, the vents look like a nightmare ... This should be a Ford recall 🤷‍♂️

Top notch job as always. Clear instructions on how to do the job. Great content as always. Alan

I did this to my focus today, and just like this video it worked out thanks again for the guidance.

Job for the morning! Had the standard focus swimming pool in the wheel well

Thanks for this vid i was looking totaly in the wrong area

Had to do this about a year ago the water ran into the passenger foot wells too and was like I’d driven through a river haha

Thanks a lot my master! Now I know how to sort out my car 👏

good vid ..... but question is ...... why are those vents things there for ..... cos they are basically in the structure of the car that you dont see ?? .... ive no idea ... and that felt padding ... wtf is that for .... mice ???? 🤔

Great informative idiot proof video, will save me time help me greatly, Thanks for taking the time to produce 👍

Grazie mille il tuo video mi è stato utilissimo alla mia Ford Focus mk3 del 2012

Hello, Anton If I were to leave the bung out of the car to let any water run out, do you think it would cause issue if the bung never went back in? Thinking about water entering from underneath somehow whilst driving in heavy rain for example... Hope all is well - J

Brilliant video, is the water ingress coming down from the run off boot door etc or from splashes, if one taped a piece of plastic over the Top side of the vent and allow it hang Loose ,it would divert the water over the flaps but allow flaps work, like an umbrella!! I had a Lake in boot of golf mk7, break light seal on top of door was very perished, used silicone Grease on light seal. Thanks for sharing this video.

Thanks for this. My 2012 Focus definitely has this problem. It’s started to smell as well. P.S You’re definitely from Leicester 🤣

Hi...Great video. So well explained. A quick question, as I have the same problem. Question. I know you first sealed the lights and then did the vents. You said after sealing lights, the boot was dry. Did you ever find out if it was the lights of the vents causing the problem? I have sealed the lights, so I want to know if that first works before tacking the bumper. I did remove this bungs and water did come out, but that could have been from the lights and not the vents. You can actually reach up from underneath the car to finger feel the seals on the vents. I think mine feel ok. On the inside of the boot, where the bolts are holding the light units are in place, the sidewalls of the boot lining are wet...so I am assuming water is getting in via the lights. I have sealed both sides. Many thanks for your video and answer.

Great video very well explained. Fancy having a go with my mk5 mondeo estate? wet through in the boot. Very disappointing FORD!

Thank you so much for the fantastic video (and other videos too). I've had my Mk3 Focus for less than a week and didn't realise this was an issue until I tried to put new mats in and saw that the floor was soaking :/ Have you had any issues since doing this?

Oh dear, Another one of fords aquariums, naughty naughty ford's, why they did not recall this simple solution, they definitely knew all about this issue and the damage it caused, all for the price of a 1/2 tube of extra sealant!, great little vid my friend, heads up you ford technical you might learn a thing or 2 here 🔧🔧

Excellent video, I have same problem, l can now fix it myself.👍

I have a 2014 ford focus st and I found my issue to be the rear lights. Sealed up the screw holes better and siliconed the gap between light box and car and that seemed to work.

Sir, I have watched your video very closely as I had exactly the same problem, your video was awesome and saved me a lot of money. May I ask fo you have a video of how to sort out the rear window washer, the pump is working fine but I have no water coming out of the rear window jets.i would be greatful of any advice. I have a MK3 focus. Many thanks.

Thanks for the video, very informative 👍 This is my next job 😭

Really helpful made me doing the job so much easier cheers 👍👍

One of the best videos for leaks... Can you please let me know how much it costs to get it fixed... Just an idea not precise.. please. I have probably got leak at the same place.. but just on the right. side