mot250

Sorry in advance, this got lengthy…

I had my phantom electrical/lighting glitches occur again yesterday. Last time, only the center bulb of the passenger side tail light stayed lit up with all lights off and the car off. This time, both outer bulbs of the passenger side rear light AND the passenger side front turn signal stayed lit. The rear went off after about 5 minutes whereas the turn signal lamp stayed lit for about a half hour.

Sure as $hit, the front passenger side floor was wet again (I drove the car in the rain on wet puddled streets). As a refresher, my car can sit outside in heavy rains and I get no water problems or lighting glitches. It only happens when driven on wet roads. It has only happened one other time and I have not been in to the dealer yet about it.

I’ll post pictures later but I narrowed down the entry point of the water to the cabin. Sorry, I was too concerned with finding the source and vacuuming up the water to download the pics last night. There is a grommet on the passenger side under the dash above the kick panel where a bundle of wires comes into the cabin. This grommet was loose fitting and there were water drops coming in around and under the bottom of the grommet.

The kicker is that FORD must know this is a potential spot for water to get in because there is a white hard plastic splash shield/rain gutter and some more plastic bag type material and foam over the top of the fuse box that is directly below this grommet. Seemingly, it should prevent any water from entering the fuse box should it get into the cabin through this wiring hole. You’ll see it when I post the pictures.

TexaStang

Keep taking it in. If they can't or won't fix it, look into the lemon laws for your state.

jadeuel

Except he would need the Lime Law...and would no luck finding a replacement of the same color.

bee bop

What is causing your electrical issues is the water is getting into the smart junction box. It is what you are calling the fuse box. It is basically causing the circuit to ground. I don't know if you have done this, but if you disconnect the light switch your lights will come on. I would bet water in entering around the either the wiring grommet, the antenna grommet, or the door wiring seal. The leak needs to be stopped before the junction box shorts and the car will not run.

Stang281

Wow, this is really weird. Mine has done the exact same thing.

Ford definitely has a problem on their hands. I washed my car and always rinse in the wheel well and a day after I did that my passenger side floorboard was wet and the lights were screwed up. Now, unfortunately, my windows won't go auto-up anymore. And sometimes they just won't seal when I close the door. My battery also died multiple times, I think it even shorted out the wire or fuse for the Meter4It kit, and I thought all along that it was the kit that messed my car up. (before I found the water)

The temporary solution is to dry the fuse box out, use q-tips and paper towels.

My brother said putting the fuse box there is the dumbest thing that he has ever seen Ford do in his entire life.

Lennyb44

Ford's not the only one.
My '80 Buick Regal had the same problem.
Water would run right down the wiring harness and into the onboard computer. After 3 trips to the dealer, they finally managed to track down the problem and seal off the water.
If I were you I'd keep taking it back until it's fixed properly.

IWantMyNewGT

This problem has turned up on several Mustang sites. Ford must know about it by now. It's not clear if it affects all '05-'07s or just some whose grommet (or whatever) wasn't installed properly. I hope Ford takes care of this with a TSB before my car dies some rainy night or my carpet mildews.

metroplex

Where is this problem grommet? Where are the pics? Seal it off with RTV.

mot250

See the grommet circled and the arrows pointing to the water drops. The grommet is very loose. Ford had to have know this could be a problem. See the white plastic drip shield they put above the fuse box!!!!

I'd like to get under the car to see the path the water has to take to get in here...

It will go in to FORD as soon as this snow clears and some of the salt is off the roads.

metroplex

Can I get to this grommet without tearing out stuff? What is the correct solution? A new/correct grommet?

Sounds like it is time to stuff paper towels in yet another area of the Stang

AWmustang

I'm dealing with the snow today too. Where do you live?

metroplex

Here's the SJB setup on a 07. Did yours have a weird white foam sheet? Sorry for the bad pics... I basically aimed my camera without looking since it was in an obscure angle and I didn't know what I was looking at (no light!). After reviewing my pics in the camera, I realized that I did manage to capture the grommet in one of the pics.

Stang281

I've got the white foam sheet there too.

metroplex

So its obvious the sheet does jack schitt

I can see the grommet in my pics so I'm going to see about sealing it with RTV tommorrow unless someone has a better idea.

Stang281

Yeah, the whole car is a piece of sheet.

mail906

Yes - a number of forums have touched on this problem. [I have an 07 and do not have this issue, but my car is not a daily driver and only goes out in great weather.]

Where are the Ford engineers out there that are members of these forums? Ford needs to step up here. Is Ford taking about it? Aware of the frequency of the problem? This is a serious problem, and I suspect many more owners have wet under-carpet pads than those who know about them.

Someone needs to figure this out - and post exactly what the problem is, and what the solution is.

Also, why doesn't the forum moderator make this thread a sticky [if that is the right term] so it does not fall back and disappear. We've all read a lot, but I do not believe anyone has posted a definite solution. In my view, pulling out the old chalk gun is not the right answer. Whether your car is an 05 or an 07, it is a newer car and a severe water leak such as this is the manufacturer's problem and responsibility.

Let's go Ford - step up.

mot250

Just over the IL/WI border in Spring Grove, which is between Wilmot WI and Richmond IL

mot250

Yes, white foam on my "06 also.

And about the grommet... you can remove it without disturbing the wiring bundle since the grommet is split to remove it without unplugging anything. If you look close at my picture, you mihgt be able to barely see that the long slit to the left of the loom goes all the way to the left edge of the grommet. It is hard to see because that side is in the shadow.

Yeah, it is difficult to get a good picture here. I was able to almost see my camera's view screen at a really hard angle to be somewhat certain I was getting a picture of what I wanted. Good thing about digital cameras is that you can just keep taking more pictures and delete the ones that didn't quite work out right...

Vermillion06

How about just pulling the grommet out of the hole, applying some silicone sealer around the grommet, and pushing it back in?

I checked and I don't have any leaking on mine and we've broke a 50 year record high for the amount of precipitation for this time of the year here in the NW. So not all cars have this problem.

mot250

[quote=Vermillion06;791926]How about just pulling the grommet out of the hole, applying some silicone sealer around the grommet, and pushing it back in?
quote]

Thought about that but I still want to know how the water is getting to that point. I don't think that grommet is there for water prevention. Looks like it is more to prevent wire chaffing. Too many slots in it. I think the water should be stopped beefore it get to that point. I'm leaning toward something that was forgotten (a splash shield somewher else or a missing beal of seam sealer) on the production line.