E46 Damp smell after heavy rain

[nath 131]

I have an E46 sedan, and the day after rain, the interior stinks of wet carpet (the carpet doesn't feel wet, but you know the smell).

Internet searching indicates that my pretty stuffed lower windscreen/ wiper arm cowl is to blame for leaks. Is such a 'bottom level' piece of trim really given the task of stopping water from getting inside the car and rotting?

I have cleaned up/out obvious channels for water around the cowl.

Any other suggestions, or is the cowl indeed to blame?

Cheers

[Michael. 2312]

Yeah under the cowl there are small drain pipes that tend to get blocked up with leaves and muck. If you had the a/c drawing in external air some of the smell could come from there if it's blocked up with rotting leaves etc..

That area can also cause leaking if it gets left dirty long enough.... there is a seal that separates the a/c unit and firewall that can deteriorate allowing water to slowly get in down the back over time, this happened to my E36.

Do you have a sunroof? as these can often be the culprit too... or a badly replaced windscreen not sealing properly.

I think one of the best ways to identify is to dismantle the car interior and remove the carpet, if thats damp it can be pretty soaked as there's a lot of absorbing foam in behind and it's a clear indicator of where the waters settling at least. ( if that is the case).

Get one of those electronic moisture readers and poke around the carpet, see if you can find any damp spots.

[nath 131]

Fingers crossed problem fixed, 2 top corners of windscreen outer seal have foam corners which were disintegrating or damaged and certainly letting water in. Lifted edge of rubber seal and filled void left by foam once removed, with silicone sealant. No damp smells in the lasts periods of rain.

I should add that both A pillar furry coatings are a bit wavy and peeling, I had thought bad quality but may have been water.

[rowans17 19]

Ha. I had this problem in my 328ci also after heavy rain, only it was a classic wellington 36mm of rain in an hour which left a puddle in my passengers footwell. Fix was to take the door panel off and re-seal the vapor guard with some silicon sealant (about $7 from bunnings) once i had taken the door panel off it was obvious with water marks this was the problem. Plenty of good guides on how to do this check out;

Might not be the problem but worth a check.

[nath 131]

Hey cheers for that, seems to be solved, I've had both doors apart before doing the cable-tie regulator fix and saw no damp patches or other evidence