I've got a leak !!!

[JustUseLinux]

I have a water leak under my dash, above my fuse box in my 1965 Dodge Dart 270.
Some water comes out of the vent box on the driver's side when it's raining, and I'm going down the road with it open. It appears that the leak is coming from above the vent box, attached under the dash. My Dad says there's some sort of flap that is suppose to allow the water to run past the vent box.
Is there any way to remove this vent box from the inside, in order to fix the problem ?

Thanks.

 

[Mopar Tim]

Ok to answer your question, to remove that vent box, there is two long bolts that have a "J" on the end that holds this in. On the bottom of the box is where the two bolts are. loosen the bolts and lift the 'j" hook over the lip in the cowl. Now where the water is coming from is the real question. Might be from the wiper pivots, cowl loaded with debris, or, rusted out cowl. Kind of common all of these. Or from around the windshield glass. This is a common issue with these cars. Car have carpet in it still? how are floors? rusted?

 

[JustUseLinux]

Ok to answer your question, to remove that vent box, there is two long bolts that have a "J" on the end that holds this in. On the bottom of the box is where the two bolts are. loosen the bolts and lift the 'j" hook over the lip in the cowl. Now where the water is coming from is the real question. Might be from the wiper pivots, cowl loaded with debris, or, rusted out cowl. Kind of common all of these. Or from around the windshield glass. This is a common issue with these cars. Car have carpet in it still? how are floors? rusted?

Yes it has new carpet. There shouldn't be much rust below the carpet, because I've put a bucket in there to catch any water. I don't know what to do about it being rusted out. My hope is that we see the problem, and can fix it. Thanks.

 

[Mopar Tim]

My 66 dart was leaking water like yours is. went out in the rain and it was gushing in. Turned out the cowl was rusted to nothing. could put your hand thru the holes. Good luck.

 

[67Dart273]

You need to understand how this stuff works. The cowl vent is just a big tub, with raised rings that form "dams" for the vents. There are drain holes on the ends. Also in that mix are the wiper pivots.

So in no particular order, we have

end drains clogged, and built up trash and mud in the bottom of cowl This can allow water to spill over the "dams" and down into the vents

Wiper pivots can leak

And the cowl bottom can be rusted / pinholed through

Somewhere I found some photos of one of these taken apart, for illustration

........And here we go, clicky the link

any tips on cleaning out the cowl?

 

[j par]

From the title, I'zz gunna say- thats to much info !

 

[JustUseLinux]

You need to understand how this stuff works. The cowl vent is just a big tub, with raised rings that form "dams" for the vents. There are drain holes on the ends. Also in that mix are the wiper pivots.

So in no particular order, we have

end drains clogged, and built up trash and mud in the bottom of cowl This can allow water to spill over the "dams" and down into the vents

Wiper pivots can leak

And the cowl bottom can be rusted / pinholed through

Somewhere I found some photos of one of these taken apart, for illustration

........And here we go, clicky the link

any tips on cleaning out the cowl?

Awesome.

 

[JustUseLinux]

You need to understand how this stuff works. The cowl vent is just a big tub, with raised rings that form "dams" for the vents. There are drain holes on the ends. Also in that mix are the wiper pivots.

So in no particular order, we have

end drains clogged, and built up trash and mud in the bottom of cowl This can allow water to spill over the "dams" and down into the vents

Wiper pivots can leak

And the cowl bottom can be rusted / pinholed through

Somewhere I found some photos of one of these taken apart, for illustration

........And here we go, clicky the link

any tips on cleaning out the cowl?

Ok, It seems the problem is solved. I removed the driver's side floor vent (wasn't necessary), and I had an air nozzle with a 90 degree end. I put that up in there and turned it around. I had all kinds of stuff on top of my hood. I did the same thing on the other side. Without replacing the floor vent, I ran water and no leak.

My next issue is that the hinge on my floor vent is broken, so I'll have to figure something out before I re-attach it.

Thanks again.

 

[67Dart273]

Even at my (67 years) age and painful joints, I can reach up in there with the vent assy removed and root around and get some of the junk out. You might do that before you put it all back together. Remember trash and mud will "lay" in there and rust the bottom. They were not coated very well (at all) for rust protection