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Water sloshing in rear quarter panel / Ford customer service

20K views 31 replies 12 participants last post by  LDimes 
#1 ·
Hey Guys,

Ever since I got my 2014 v6 mustang I had an issue when it rains. After driving on wet roads, a lot of water collects in the rear quarter panel and you can easily hear it sloshing around the back when the car accelerates or brakes.

Now from reading other threads it was confirmed that the water is getting trapped in the rear quarter panel since the car was not sealed properly from the factory in the rear wheel well i believe.

Now I have taken the car to the dealership a couple of times to get it fixed. The first two times they tried to tell me that it was the fuel in the gas tank, which was completely ridiculous since it only occurs after it rains. And to add more to this, if you were to drive back and forth rocking the car on dry pavement, the water starts to leak out.

Now the other time i have went in to get it fixed, by the time they looked at my car, the water had fully drained out. So nothing was done then either. So now I realized there is a short window of time to get the car looked at and repaired - right after it rains hard and as soon as I can get a technician to look at it. Which is a pain nowadays in california as it is not raining all that frequently.


Now the worst part about it is fords customer service. I have been working with a regional customer manager in order to 'escalate' this issue further and get it fixed, but now I am getting denied a rental from ford. Which I think is pretty ridiculous. This is a fix that would take multiple days to complete, and they expect me to pay for another transportation while my car is in the shop. Despite the fact they sold me a car that was not sealed properly from the factory, and is still under warranty. So I got a badly sealed car, have to waste my time on getting this fixed, AND pay for a rental?

Any suggestions on the rental concerns, and how to replicate the problem except for waiting for it to rain again for a tech to be able to diagnose the issue and fix it finally?
 
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#2 ·
You could try hitting your car with a garden hose from different angles to see if you can reproduce the problem. Regarding a loaner, you're most likely to get one from your purchasing dealership, or another dealership if you have the ESP (sometimes the regional CSR will give you the ESP for free if you're a squeaky enough wheel with a warranty issue--hint, hint).

Good luck!
 
#3 ·
Does California have a lemon law? If so, call the regional service rep you have been working with, and tell him/her you wish to file a lemon law claim.
In the state of Florida, a dealership by law has three tries to correct the problem. If the problem still persists after the third attempt of a dealership attempting to make the repair, then you can file a lemon law. This is a sort of black mark against the manufacturer and dealership, so they do not like to have to go this route, but it is your right to do so. Check the state of California to see what type of lemon law you have.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Radar, I had the same issue on my 2014. Here's the link to the thread. http://www.mustangevolution.com/forum/f356/t373972/ There are some pictures there that will show you where the water accumulates (at least on my car but likely the same with yours.) My fix took me a couple of hours and $15 at Lowes for materials. My head initially, was in the same place as yours appears to be now. I ended up asking myself while I "shouldn't have to do this myself on a new car", what's the easiest road for me to have this done the quickest. Good luck.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Radar,
Although my 14 vert has no evidence of taking on water as several on this forum have, they prompted me to take a look. As info, My 14 vert was built 6/4/14. The last 14 was built on 6/20/14. Mine is not my DD and has only been caught in the rain 4-5 times since I got it 9/1/14. I removed the rear wheels & inner fender liner. The liner is held in by 6 plastic (5 on left side) "nuts" and two plastic screw anchors. Comes out & re-installs quite easily.

From what I found I believe the water is entering as it's being thrown off the rear wheel on a wet road rather than from rain or car wash.

I found on the passenger side there were basically two beads of caulking very even and neatly applied (obviously by a robot). Caulk was kind of ivory color. One bead ran from front to back over the wheel & the other was horizontal right behind the brake assembly toward the front of the car.

The driver side was a different story. (I see most complaints say driver side is where they hear water). My driver side looked like a 3 year old had been playing with a bowl creamy peanut butter. The horizontal bead had obviously been smeared up & down to widen the bead and cover more area. The bead over the top of the inner fender looked like after it was applied, someone took their finger and mashed it further into the crease it was meant to cover. Generally sloppy application. To top it all off the driver side sealant had been spray painted black. Guess that was a feeble attempt to hide their "art work".

As a preventative measure I covered both side sealants with 3 coats of spray undercoating & re-installed inner fender liner.

I was obvious to me Ford assembly folks know there was a water sealing issue on the driver side inner rear fender. As the 14 was the end of the S197 platform they chose a haphazard fix rather than reprogram the caulking robot.

If you're handy you may want to take a look at yours. If it's sloppy like mine is, take it back to the dealer & show them they knew it was an issue when they built it.

Just make sure dealer documents your visit and if as stated above your state has lemon law, this should be an easy one. But a PITA to do.

Good luck.
 
#6 ·
2010 GT conv. leak fixed.

I had water collecting in the driver side rear panel. I traced my leak to the small rectangular plastic caps on the trunk near the black trim. Pop off the cap and there was a hole that was supposed to be sealed by a clear adhesive seal almost like a piece of tape. Filled the small hole with silicone and leak fixed
 
#7 ·
I park my car outside during saltless months as my garage is full of Trans Ams during that time. Because of that, my car sits out in the rain. I have never heard water sloshing around, but I do notice even a couple days later, if I move my car in the drive it leaves four small water trails from each corner of the vehicle. Mine must be holding water somewhere. Do others run into that also?


2012 Grabber Blue Mustang Convertible V6 Premium
1979 Solar Gold Trans Am
1995 Bright Red Trans Am Convertible
 
#8 ·
I park my car outside during saltless months as my garage is full of Trans Ams during that time. Because of that, my car sits out in the rain. I have never heard water sloshing around, but I do notice even a couple days later, if I move my car in the drive it leaves four small water trails from each corner of the vehicle. Mine must be holding water somewhere. Do others run into that also?
If it's not a lot of water, it's probably just drainage from around the hood and trunk lid. If you look and follow the channels around the trunk opening, for example, the drainage path looks like it's behind the taillights and bumper cover.
 
#9 ·
hmm luckily mine NEVER drains..so it can be bone dry out and i'll still hear old water...i tried to bring it last month but of course when i did, it was frozen and they couldn't confirm it so i have to bring it again probably next month..thing is my warranty is up in april so i have to get it fixed before that. such a pain in the ***.
 
#10 ·
I have the same issue with my 14' here is the link

http://www.mustangevolution.com/forum/showthread.php?t=373183

After having the issue addressed the problem returned but this time the car had been sitting for a week. I still need to take it back in. The more I read about this the more I wonder when a class action will be started.


Sent from my iPhone using Mustang Evolution
 
#11 ·
Hey All!
So like many if you, I am experiencing this same water issue in my coupe. Its my first mustang so Im not letting it ruin the fun for me. Ive owned my 14 for just over a month now and was wondering if the water issue would fall under just the bumper to bumper warranty or possibly the powertrain?
Fairly new to forums but excited to be part of the club now.
 
#12 ·
I havent noticed any sloshing and I drive with the radio off at least once a day to listen to my car. But my question is... how well are the inside of our panels coated against corrosion? This seems like a HUGE rust magnet... which for me is way more scary than sloshing noises.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Mustang Evolution mobile app
 
#13 ·
haha I've still got sloshing but I just don't care anymore. much bigger problems nowadays lol
 
#14 ·
WTH, How obvious is this? We haven't had our '14 vert long, but it has been raining here a lot recently and I need to check this out while its still under warranty. If someone sits in the back seat and I rock the car will I be able to hear the sloshing? What the best way to check this?
 
#19 ·
I also have had the same issue with my 14 vert. It's been to the dealer and they claimed it was a bad seam seal. I was told they repaired it but the problem still happens if it's out in a heavy rain. I also had problems with my doors but just pulling the plugs fixed that.


Sent from my iPhone using Mustang Evolution
 
#20 ·
It hurts to say but hosing those inner panels down with rubber bed liner spray fixed my 14'.
 
#22 ·
I pulled the rear inner fender liners on my late 14 vert. Right side sealer was all nice and perfectly applied ( by robot no doubt). Left side looked like a 3yr old playing with peanut butter. I sprayed several coats of 3m undercoat on it, reinstalled liners. Good to go.
No doubt Ford knew about the leaks. Guess it was to much trouble to realign/retrain the welding robot that didn't get the seam welded correctly.


Sent from my iPhone using Mustang Evolution
 
#24 ·
You have to remove the rear seat (two tabs under lip of its front and pull out). Easiest step, takes like 15 seconds. There are a few push tabs holding side panel that will now be visible. To get in there good, there is one torx bolt holding seat belt in place, remove this and you have working room. One word of caution, the upper part of the rear panel will want to ride up during removal/reinstallation and scratch the upper plastic trim.
 
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#26 ·
Okay, got the water out. Just about a liter of grey sandy water in there! I read your fix, is that something I should do from inside with the dap and bedliner spray? I took pictures but unlike yours I cant exactly pin point where its coming in from. I appreciate you letting me know how to get the panel off, I did scratch the upper finish a bit lol and broke a push tab bc the danm thing wouldnt come out
 
#30 ·
god that's so nasty. and mines 5/13 too.
 
#31 · (Edited)
If you can't see a stained area where water is coming in (don't assume only one source); there you go. Whether you do or not,towel it some then let the area air dry very well. As in be throughly dry. Hose in a thin layer of bed liner spray over everything in compartment. Let it dry throughly, then coat two. I did five coats (I was pissed). The secret is multiple light coats drying between each. Heavy coats will run and you won't get the same coverage which won't seal as well. It's as ghetto as you can get but it works.

As far as scratches, good armor all loving will fix it and the push pins are cheap. Good luck.
 
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