I seem to keep having issues lately. While vacuuming my car today, I found a nice wet spot under my passenger floor mat. It is dead center and the rest of the carpet around it is dry. I have searched the forum and have not seen any pictures or the location for the ac drain hose. I found the one for the sunroof but I don't think that is my problem since the carpet is only wet in the middle of the carpet and not near the door or under the glove box.

Also, I have the original windshield so I think I can rule the windshield leak out.
Any links, troubleshooting, or pictures would be helpful Thanks.

Make sure your underbody doesn't have a whole...

On my 1997 Maxima one day I was driving and felt the floor give a little. A large basketball size chunk (in circumference) piece vanished. My father and I put an aluminum plate with like 50 screws every inch and then covered it in underbody spray/rubber and the car drove for a few more years lol.

I was under the impression that the air/con drain hose went straight to the bottom of the fame and condensation went directly to the ground. I'm not sure how it could find a way into the car. But then, I could easily fit the volume of my car mechanic knowledge into a salt shaker and there would still be room for salt, LOL.
Some please switch ON the Bat-light so Ed will respond to this thread!

INCOMING!!!!

Larz wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 09, 2018 6:14 pm

... But then, I could easily fit the volume of my car mechanic knowledge into a salt shaker and there would still be room for salt, LOL.
...

I definitely give you more credit than that, but DAMN! If this isn't a beautifully crafted piece of imagery.



For the AC drain hose, the only time I would worry is if your car didn't "pee" from behind the front right wheel in the summer.
That being said, it is located in the footwell under the glovebox (so yes, passenger side US). You have to remove the floormat and peel back the carpet. You should see a hose running from front area of the big box sitting on top of the trans tunnel. It shoots right towards the floor and thus pours out of the frame.
The only 2 scenarios (rare and unlikely) I see the hose emptying its contents is if one of the ends was mysteriously yanked from its termination point. That or the hose somehow got broken or has a hole that leaks.
You will see how close this hose is to the firewall - any stray water would give a good soaking to the entire carpet while heading to the center.
I can't find the pictures and video I took accurately describing the system, unfortunately. This is a representation of it in the manual.



What I suspect is:

• a break in your floormat that could allow water from wet shoes to end up under the mat and on the carpet.
• Maybe an overzealous prior effort at cleaning/detailing?
• I would also take another look at your sunroof drain tube.

Water finds the lowest level, and just because the surrounding area isn't as wet at this moment, shouldn't fully disqualify the possibility of water coming in from the sides. I could theoretically pour a gallon of water in the footwell and given enough time, only a small wet patch will remain after evaporation and wicking has occurred.

If you have pictures or video, they could help.

I finally got a chance to inspect and take some pictures. The drain hose was intact and I didn't see any cracks or damage on the hose. I did turn the A/C on full blast for 20 minutes but its about 50 degrees in Dallas right now so that might be the reason why I didn't see any condensation under the car. The water is definitely under the carpet. I couldn't find any cracks in the floor mat. I also checked the cabin air filter and I know it looks bad. I just ordered a new one. I don't know if it is supposed to look like that after 2 years or if it had water damage?

Should I still check the sunroof drain? Also, I've read about some foam spray to put in the vents. That might let me know if the drain is actually clogged since I couldn't see any condensation on the ground. Any other suggestions would be great.

Can you get access to where the AC drain starts in the car? Pull it out and get a funnel/syringe/turkey baster (anything that will allow you to slowly pour water into it) then test it to see if it's draining.
From the pictures, it looks like the wetness is mainly around the left side of the footwell.

The water on carpet also doesn't look like it has been very long term damage, and the cabin filter appears to be slightly water damaged. Didn't you recently have to thoroughly clean the engine bay for the oil pan issues?
The cabin filter intake is behind the battery, so you have to see if the cleaning could have affected it. Make sure your windshield cowls and trim pieces are all intact.

For the windshield seal and sunroof drain, if you don't want to open things up yet, then the best way is to get a garden hose and go around those panels with a liberal hosing. If you see water leaking into the car, you can narrow it down to the source.

Any resolution to this matter?

Sorry for the slow update. But no resolution yet. I have found out that my AC drain may be clogged. There is no condensation on the ground when the AC is running. I took some weedeater line and ran it from under the car where it drains and nothing came out. So I remove the tubing from inside the car and it is dry. Then ran about 3 feet of weedeater line into the hose inside the car where it was clamped. I can feel the cold air coming from where it was clamped but no water. I ended up going to autozone and buying a can of evaporator foam. Even after spraying a whole can in the vents, still nothing coming out of the tube or on the ground.

I am clueless about where the water is sitting. Now I have to deal with the smell of the evaporator foam. My next option is to go rent an air compressor and try to blow air in the tube and see if that will work. I have seen people with success on Youtube but I don't know if I have the same problem.

Update: Finally, there is a constant drip of water out of the drain hose. The air compressor worked. Now I am just trying to get the chemical mixed with mildew smell out of the vents. I may try another can of ac duct evaporator foam.