Water Ingress in Engine Fiat X2/50

[bigal55]

kelly58 - 2007-10-05 8:16 PM

 

Yes there is a large drain hole at both ends of the scuttle where a large rubber pipe is fixed with a retaining clip there is also a small drain hole under the wiper shaft on the drivers side which can only be seen if you stop the wiper in the upright position this is done by switching the ignition off when the wiper is upright as the hole is quite small it needs cleaning out at regular intervals to allow the water to run away.

thanks kelly looks like a fix is here, another question, did they use any sealant between the windscreen and the scuttle

[webbocj]

Moved my Fiat (possibly for winter?) sheets of/on the engine-water!!! Washed car today and spent a while looking at the black infill between windscreen and bonnet,it infact allows water to pass thro'(lots of holes, possibly air intake),probably no sealant between it and windscreen(replacing windscreen would render scuttle u/s) BUT all this water is collected in a bath!! underneath and then directed away,plus on most CARS the engine is not directly under this area.M/H and sealants seem to go together all to oftens and i don't think it is the right answer to this problem

[colinfrier]

Hi

Because of the damage being caused I took matters into my own hands rLeaks into the engine bay of New Style Fiat Ducato/Peugeot/Citroen

 

The problem is water leaking into the engine bay and soaking various components in the engine bay.The long term effects of this will cause numerous and varied problems for these vehicles in the future.It’s all very well and proper to take the matter up with Fiat but in the mean time you vehicle and investment is being ruined.

There are several design faults not rectified by one fix:

1 Water runs behind the plastic scuttle below the windscreen and via the joint of the two halves.

2 The extreme ends of the plastic scuttle are lower than the drained channel with no means of connecting with the off centre drain tube so they fill and flood into the engine bay.(exasperated if the vehicle is parked on a camber)

3 The fresh air intake drain tube is to the rear of the intake so if the vehicle is parked nose down the water leaks via the seal between the two halves of the intake.

4.Water runs between the plastic trim plates above and down the side of the headlamp

5.The gap between windscreen and a post acts as a channel to funnel water under the bonnet.

6 The gap between bonnet and headlamp has no means of stopping water entering the engine compartment

 

My suggestion for a solution to the problem I have done this to my Burstner Solano and it works after testing with a hose no significant sign of water.

1.Seal the plastic scuttle to the windscreen

2. Fit drain tubes to the two low areas of the plastic scuttle (i.e. both ends)

3.Fit a drain to the fore end of the fresh air intake

4.Seal with silicon

5.Seal with silicon

6.Stick foam to underside of the bonnet short edges to form a seal.

 

For the 3 drain tubes I used 18mm dia metal inserts used for plastic pipework its easy to drill the necessary holes an 18mm wood bit is ideal for plastic.I then sealed the inserts which have a small lip with silicon.

To the inserts I attached 25mm dia plastic flexible conduit its a slack fit on the 18mm insert but easily taken up with silicon.The plastic conduit is ideal for the task as it can be tied back into almost any shape I used cable ties to secure the pipes with them terminating level with the bottom of the main plastic bumper.

To seal the plastic scuttle its easier to remove the bonnet 4 bolts mark with felt tip pen the heads of the bolts this will allow exact repositioning.Remove the wipers 2 nuts.Remove the trim panels above headlights 2 machine screws each plus clips.

Then release the plastic scuttle some screws and clips no need to remove completely just pull back to make the application of the silicon to the inside face easier.Refit the scuttle it may be necessary to hold the scuttle to the windscreen with some small wedges from the wipers.Any excess silicon exuding can be trimmed with a sharp knife after setting.

When drilling the hole in the freshair intake drill it on to the drop lip so it’s in the lowest possible position.

Using evostick ( if your foam is not self adhesive)stick 5/6 mm thick close cell foam strip to the underside of the short edges of the bonnet,foam about 15mm wide.

Sealing the area around the headlamps and body use black silicon since there is a groove for the most part its easy to make a neat job looking like it’s meant to be

I am aware that these in therory could affect you warentee but I doubt a dealer would take such a line.

The parts used can be obtained from any DIT store I got mine from Leroy Merlins in Malaga

 

What a task on a new vehicle that cost £45k but it will definitely be worth it.

 

Colin Frier olympuscars@aol.com ( Malaga Spain)

 

Any problems e mail me.

ather than wait forever for Fiat to come up with a fix this may help.

[colinfrier]

Hi

What I have seen of the Fiat fix will only go some way to cure the problem which is a series of design faults that does not have a single fix.

A shield will no doubt help but will not stop the basic problem of considerable ammounts of water getting into the engine compartment Who's to say where the water will run a lot will depend on the angle the vehicle is parked.

See my recent post I have cured the problems on mine others may find it usefull

Colin Frier

[Way2Go]

I agree that we shouldn't have to do this with a brand new £40K plus investment Colin, but as you say correctly we need to do something quick before it causes any permanent damage.

Thank you for posting an apparent workaround and I'll study it later.  As my vehicle is normally stored undercover I have been a bit lax at sorting this out but I will look at your solution and try it out.

Many thanks

W2G

[kelly58]

At the NEC show today I spoke to the head man on the Fiat stand and he explained the cure proposed for the problem with the water problem 1st there will not be a recall but he said go to your Fiat service centre and ask to have the problem sorted no doubt they will not know what you are talking about so you tell them to contact the technical department as suggested by the gent on the stand at the show.

They should then remove the scuttle / bonnet / wiper's ,the drain holes at both end of the scuttle are drilled out to a larger size which includes the one under the wiper shaft. The engine will be sprayed with a rust removal agent and then coated with another medium to keep it clean all cables and connections will be checked, then an engine cover will be fitted ,he showed me the covers as fitted to the new vehicles on the stand, the scuttle will then be sealed in place ,sorry but I cannot remember the type of sealant they will use and everything will be put back in place.

The reason there will not be a recall is because there is not sufficient parts available at the moment to deal with a large amount of vehicles involved.

Although mine is a Peugeot and I have had mine sorted hopefully this information will be of help to Fiat owners.

[Guest Tracker]

At last a definitive answer - many thanks Kelvyn.

[zulurita]

Thanks Kelly 58

 

I also went to NEC on Tuesday and told all would be fixed. I thought it would be a new windscreen scuttle but from your description they are drilling the holes bigger fro the drainage so I will have to make sure my dealer does mine.

 

I am due to collect my new motorhome Nov 2nd and I had asked for this work to be completed by the time I collected it.

[bigal55]

hopefully this is a fix. today i contacted trading standards, there advice was 1.not to do any d.i.y fix. 2. contact my dealer, not fiat,and state that if they did not fix the problem within a reasonable time, 1 month, state that i would be taking action under the sale of goods act 1979 due to the m/home not of being satisfactory quality. the contract is with the dealer not fiat or it,s agents

[colinfrier]

Hi

Yes bigger drain holes will help clear the water but it falls on to the electric fuse/relay box there just playing at a fix needs a complete re think!!!!

 

Colin Frier