I hadn’t noticed the damp carpeting until I decided to rip out the sound deadening material in order to reduce the waxy smell in the car. Drivers side was pretty damp and suspected the sunroof immediately. So glad I found this. Thanks!
This exact thing happened to my 99 Beetle. The place I took it didn’t fix it properly and it kept happening, and eventually the whole car was filled with mold & I had to get rid of it. I knew it had something to do with leaves! Great video. 👍
Thank you so much for this video...We couldn't believe the amount of water that was getting into the car because of this problem...Thanks to you we solved it
Didn't end up working on it, but i'm sure i will be doing it in the future on other beetles (Just starting my 2nd year apprenticeship.) Many thanks and happy new year 🍻
Supraaero2JZ .... make sure you check the rear ones too. I didnt show them on this video. Lift the boot and you will see two grommets similar to the front on the roof edge. Check these are clear also.
I also worked it out with some long flexible wire/plastic tube, and the draining hose got lose from the grommet. Best way to clean from inside the A cover.
Thanks for video very interesting I have a vw beetle 2000 model and my roof lining is wet in 2 corner in back and is dripping through gaps in panel will try your method mate because the mats are wet in my car as well and water not draining
This video doesn't show it, but there are also two REAR drains in the sunroof tray. They exit just under the rear tailgate lip on the roof edge. Check them if the rear of the roof is wet also.
@@Planefix1 yeah just a small patch of water in each corner in back and the panel you look at when open boot where roof lining is its dripping through the joins how do I clean the back ones mate? Have looked at ones for front tried putting thin cable down hasn't unblocked to point where water is flowing
@@cainjohnston9690for the front, Just keep working the wire up and down and keep pouring water down. You may need to physically get to the rubber ends under the slam panel to fiddle then open a bit ? ... They may be stuck closed with too much crud ?. The rear ones attack from the rubber drain under the rear roof/tailgate lip end, they were much much easier because they are literally right in front of you.
I think this is what’s going on with my 02 vw beetle. Floors soaking wet and I think it caused a couple of my relay switches to go bad which hit my pockets for over $1200
Hi Kimberly. No sorry i do not, but try this. Park the car so the front of the car is higher than the rear (ie facing up a slight hill) Open the rear tailgate fully. Open the sun roof. Ask a friend to pour some water gently into the sunroof frame (you dont need gallons, a cup full at most is all we need here, any more and you risk the channel filling up too quick and spilling over into the car interior. Next look at the upper edge of the roof along the top edge of the rear tailgate area. If my memory serves me right (beetle is sold now but I'll try and get the car back to video!) the rear drains are on the sunroof surround/channel in the two rear corners and they drain out at the rear of the roof/tailgate shut.... Have a look and let me know how you get on!
Bit late but for fellow travelers coming along to this waypoint later: open hatch in rear and at top you'll find two black rectangle COVERS on either corner along TOP of hatch opening. Sadly those are COVERS to the drain exit so pry those off. Once there you'll find the same lame closed lips rubber things as there are in front which get stuck closed and don't allow water to drain out. I cut mine slightly so that drain slit is always open. Yes ,this might also be inlet point for bugs now but the whole design sucks. Choose draining sunroof or bug above headliner possibility. Those drain points at either corner are each roughly 4-5 inches of ~1/2inch rubber tube. So clear out gently by passing a small diameter 6 inch or longer Phillips screwdriver in and out to break up what's likely a caked mixture of mudd and debris. If someone before you thought the left and right sunroof drain tracks where the so good glass "travel tracks" well then they likely smeared grease lube in the water tracks which then created a nice hard mess on your drains at all corners. Go gently because the track on the other side is only about 1/4 inch deep from where water comes traveling from so you likely don't want to throw that debris over track and into top of your headliner. A wet dry VAC with a mini 3/8-1/2 inch suction tube would be good idea to just remove debris that's dried once you've gently loosened. The COVERS I leave off now though before I would put back during dry weather and use that time as reminder to do the yearly drain clean out. It's worth it because a wet moldy destroyed headliner and then carpeting is way more painful 😃 Also , I do not just leave my sunroof partially tipped open in rear venting mode while it rains any longer after removing my whole interior and realizing how precariously little water draining margin these beetles have. The drain design is weak so one must be diligent. Also just clear your drains first before testing with running water because you could very well just be throwing your test water right into your headliner. Drains WILL clog because nobody reads that small paragraph in manual which says to regularly clear
Thx for sharing, I ve the same problem in my beetle, but the water is leaking from the ceiling on the rear right seat, do you have any idea where it's the drainage nibble that is related to that place?
Thanks for your video. It was very informative. I have a 2003 VW Beetle with an electric sunroof. I have water on the floor in the front (both sides), on the rear seat, the headliner near the dome lights on both sides, and the carpet in the trunk (boot). Do you think I have the same problem as yours?! If yes, why the headliner is wet near the dome lights Could it be that there may be more than two drainage tube(hole) around the sunroof?! I also have also another problem. My speedometer and Odometer quit working. Could that also be tied to the water drainage issue?
I suspect the water may just be finding the easiest route out of the headlining when it overflows the sunroof channel myself. Either way you need to clear all your channels and drains first and pour water into the channel and watch it drain properly, that way you have eliminated this. The only other way water can get in really is perhaps if the sunroof seal itself is extremely perished, but again it should only leak into the normal sunroof channel then drain away. I doubt the speedometer is related to this. The speedo is driven via a cable if i recall on these cars. If the cable snaps or comes loose the speedo and milometer will stop recording. Was the speedo needle 'kind of bouncing' in the weeks prior or did it just stop working? (this is a common sign the cable is failing) ..... First thing would be to remove the clocks inside the dash and make sure the speedo cable hasn't popped off the back of the clocks. Then it would be to check the gearbox drive quill (normally plastic) hasn't sheared. Then it would be the cable itself. It's all an easy job to fix whatever, but of course it could be the Speedo clocks themselves have failed? ..... Hope that helps!!!!
Hi Shaun, i understand what you mean, but i dont think will work. The grommets (i think) have about 6 inches of moulded pipe on them. The pipe from the sunroof comes down the A pillar and goes into the gromit pipe. When the grommet gets blocked the water backs up and seeps out this joint, weeps down the A pillar and gets the footwell wet. So removing the grommits will mean the sunroof pipe was too short. If you were to put straight longer pipe on to the sunroof direct then i think that would work?
I'm dealing with the same problem. It's driving me crazy all the humidity and mold growing in the car because of all the water leaking in the driver's side. However I don't have a sunroof. I cleaned that drained, thought it would make it better but it still keeps happening. I can barely see but behind the drain area to the back there's another open area where water could collect. It's a little higher than the drains and well past under the windshield. I don't understand. Is there another drain over there? It's difficult to access and I am sick and tired of it. What a piece of crap this German car turned out to be. Has given me so many headaches I never had to worry with a Toyota.
Hi Jake. I can't really help further as I don't own the car anymore sorry, but under the windscreen are there must be a drain hole somewhere. Have a really good look all around it with a mirror and torch and I'm sure you'll find something. Good luck
Still try the drains as it can depend on the angle the car is parked on, as to where the wetness will show itself in the car. It may be something else, but more than likely you have s blocked drain. There is also 2 'rear' sunroof drains. Open the boot and look along the top lip for the outlets. Hope this helps.
My cat died last year unfortunately so it's not your cat, if you meant car then I bought this beetle from a friend who had owened it since it was about a year old. We're you the first owner,?!.... It's for sale for £375 if you fancy reliving your youth?!
@@Planefix1 I just paid $2000 for mine...last summer...back driver side passenger always gets a pond in it...will be cleaning them drains out pronto. Thanks for the vid!
@@faithhancock1186 .... Also check the two rear drains. Open the rear trunk and look along the top lip there are two other ones there for the rear drains. If you look inside the sunroof tray with the roof open you'll also see two holes going rear similar to the front. Good luck !
Not a bad video, but the problem is actually worse than what you've show. The dashboard covers should be removed and leaves and debris need to be cleaned out. The cabin filter will also likely be clogged. VW actually takes water from outside of the car and introduces it into the car. You couldn't have a more ridiculous design if you tried. There is an internal gutter under the dash which gets clogged as well. Water will pool up and spill over onto your fusebox and saturate your floorboards. I'm in the process of replacing the main ECM because of this.
