have anyone had any problems with water leaking inside in the floorboard

870

Asked by dhill878 Mar 03, 2010 at 11:51 AM about the 2003 Toyota Camry LE

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I have a 2003 Camry and I have water leaking in the floorboard driver side but can't find what's wrong. I have taken it to a body shop and a mechanic and couldn't fine the problem.

63 Answers

1,735

the problem its on the heated core

74 people found this helpful.
870

I really don't know. The water is not leaking for I can see it. It's not dripping from under the dashboard. I'm thinking it might be when it rains.

67 people found this helpful.
510

Mine is a Toyota Avalon '02 which I believe is pretty much the same body with the exact same problem. I recently purchased the vehicle and didn't notice until recently. Did you find out where the problem is?

51 people found this helpful.
910

I had the smae issue on my 2008 Toyota Camry (passenger side). After stripping back the carpet and taking apart the glove box and going under the dash to check all the normal stuff, clogged line, vent ect.. I ran a water hose and discovered it was a windshield seal leak and the water was running straight onto the floor board on the passenger side. THe water did not appear until it was at the foot of the kick panel. The crack in the seal was very minor but enough to let the water run straight in. I'm going to call windshield folks in the morning and have a new seal put, much cheaper than a heater core what most people disgnosed it as. Good Luck!

46 people found this helpful.
295

Yes, check our windshield. Mine leaks there and drips onto the steering wheel than to my seat or floor. If you get water when it rains, I bet it is a bad seal on your windshield. My dealer said they can't reseal the windshield without risking breaking the glass. They recommended I see a windshield specialist.

23 people found this helpful.
890

try bolwing compressed air into the AC drain (located under car at center of front wheels) if the AC drain is clogged it will cause a water leak through the front and rear floor vents resulting in wet carpet throughout the vechile.

85 people found this helpful.
1,050

If youve got a sunroof I bet you the drain tubes, there are 4 of them are stopped up. You can take a cup of water and pour in the sunroof channel. If thats the problem you'll see water run out inside the car by the kick panels. Let me know if you think this is it I spent the whole weekend addressing this a few weeks back and mines good as new.

64 people found this helpful.
460

I had the exact situation with wet carpets in the front driver & passenger and rear carpets in the 99 Toyota Camry LE. This happened after I used the air conditioner during the hot summer months. I discovered even through my Evaporator drain hose was connected at the bottom of the passenger side floor and exited though the floor and the drain hose was in good condition but was clogged. Since the drain hose was clogged it was dripping (a slow drip) directly a foot away on the side of the center console. This of course, was causing my passenger side carpets to be so wet that it spread to the rear carpets as well as to the driver side carpet. I used a wire hanger bent at the end to make sure that I did not puncture the hose -- and wishing that I had bucket when I pushed it the water rushed out -- luckily I jammed the hose back into the grommet (it was in good condition) where it exited through the floor. I made sure that I did not push it very far since I didn't want to puncture the evaporator cooler. I noticed that since I cleared the air conditioning drain hose, it was still constantly dripping water (slow drops) about 1 foot away from the drain hose just behind the cooler cover No.1 I have placed a flat small dish to see if there is anymore dripping of water at this location so hopefully I will be able to see if it is still dripping or it has stopped when I run the air conditioner. (update - I checked the dish under the dripping water which now seems to stopped). I will also pull the drain hose again out from the grommet though the floor to check to make sure that its working properly and draining while running the air conditioner. I want to be sure its still not backing up before replacing the carpet since its all mildew and moldy since I had waterproof mats over the car's carpet.

45 people found this helpful.
210

I just bought a 2013 Nissan Altima, I've had it less than a month, only has a few hundred mils on it.. I just noticed the floor board on the passenger side front and back seats, were wet. The back seat floor board was actually soaking wet so much that my kids could splash in it! I took back to the dealership today and they said it was the seal i the windshield that apparently had some air pockets in it and caused the leak. They say they are going to fix it but now I'm starting to wonder if I should just accept this or expect more from my brand new car. I paid over 30K for the car.. I got all the extras.. bells and whistles .. Any advice will be very much appreciated.

21 people found this helpful.
70

Less than 30 days old.....I would take that baby back to the dealer and deposit on its front drive and request a complete refund while you can. Most states carry the 30-Day Lemon Law. Recently I rented a 2013 Nissan Sentra, brand new showing 68 miles on its odometer. I was so glad to turn that pile of metal in, I was ready to shout. Enroute, door locks would open without cause, power suddenly lost, steering irritational, etc. I have owned a 1996 Sentra since new and have not had such problems even after driving it more than 175,000 miles. I understand Nissan is building a lot of their vehicles overseas which do not carry labor law and integrity which the USA built vehicles enjoy.

7 people found this helpful.
170

Marie.......I just bought a 2013 Altima and paid 30,000 for it. My back floorboards are soaking wet. What did they finally determine was wrong with yours and did you keep the car? Have you had anymore problems?

17 people found this helpful.
130

Camry 2010, Twice I had a flood into my car and all the carpets soaked wet both front and back including under the seats. First time after a very heavy rain during the night the car parked. I finally found out the seal at the base of the windshield dis shrink leaving about 1 millimeter crack open. I sealed it with large 2 inch scotch tape until I replace the windshield due to a small crack 2 inch long at 50$ cost being the deductible on my insurance... Second time flood due to airconditioner drain tube completely plugged, as found by my next corner service garage man: I paid him a 15$ pizza.... Now I know, I hope... byra36

13 people found this helpful.
90

Tracy, I also purchased a 2013 Altima late May and about a month later noticed leaking on the passenger side. They determined it was from the windshield and insured that no other damage occurred. 1 month later I had white mold covering the back floor carpeting!

4 people found this helpful.
90

I mean Marie! I'm also now hearing a lot of creaking in the console area and just noticed a small crack on the center console.

5 people found this helpful.
1,070

I have a 2005 Camry with the same situation of leaking. No apparent moisture anywhere except the floor boards. Most of the time it's the driver side front and rear. I've taken out the floorboard plugs and squished down every day for the past month. I get quite a bit of water coming out on very damp or rainy days. I've had Safelite come out and inspect the seals around the windshield. They're completely okay. Then one day I started looking at the side seals that run along the roof from the windshield to the back glass. I noticed a quarter inch gap between them. I poured water into the gap and saw the water running inside the windshield. I'm going to put silicone into the gap and see if that's what's wrong. I'll attach a photo pointing to the area in question. I'm also going to Toyota Dealer and see if this is a defect that needs to be recalled. Probably not, though.

70 people found this helpful.
60

Tracy, did you get the problem resolved with your altima? I have a brand new 2013 SL (two weeks old) and have put only 200 miles on it. Rear Passenger floor is soaking wet! Bringing it in next week to have them look at it. Any info you have would be helpful.

6 people found this helpful.
1,070

Well! I had a body person look at my 05 Camry. He took a high pressure water hose and sprayed the windshield from the side. Water came through to the inside and down the glass. So I took it back to Safelite. I had them take off the current one and put a new one in. They showed me the old windshield and the bead was intact. So, I'm going to wait a few more days and see if the leak stopped. If not, may have to go to Toyota for analysis. Anyone get other results? The roof seals I mentioned above were sealed with silicone and still leak. Help!

10 people found this helpful.
1,070

After replacing the windshield as stated above, the moisture under the front driver floorboard stopped. However, the rear driver floorboard continues to produce water whether it's raining or not. So, I'm going to put silicone around the rear window to see if this helps that leak. Anyone have a similar problem? Would appreciate any response!

10 people found this helpful.
230

My 2008 Camry has a leak that gets the rear floorboards wet after heavy rain. Three years ago, the dealership checked it out and told me that the drains from the moonroof were clogged. It was OK until about a month ago -- they checked the A/C and the drains from the moonroof and said it was a problem with the moonroof drains again. Now, just three weeks later it's wet again. Now I have to make an appointment and Toyota dealership is telling me that it's going to cost me. I'm planning to put up a fight. This is clearly a design defect with Toyota (and apparently Nissan). I'm sick of having mildew in my car every time it rains.

23 people found this helpful.
260

My 2008 Toyota Camry is saturated with water and massive amounts of mold. I took it in thinking it could be the AC and they did a high pressure leak test which indicated it was the sunroof. This is going to cost me nearly $2,000 without labor included. THIS IS CLEARLY A DEFECT AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED!

20 people found this helpful.
6,835

Ac drain hose is there hock it back up Fell under carpet

8 people found this helpful.
6,835

Maybe heater core of its clear it's ac dirty rusty Heater core

7 people found this helpful.
420

I have had an ongoing problem with a water leakage on the passenger side floor carpet. It was fixed for awhile, like a couple years, but now it is back. Anyone know if it is dangerous to have this problem? Like if I wait to get money to pay the car place and have to live with this problem, will my life be at risk because an engine part might explode?

11 people found this helpful.
1,070

What did they do with your car initially to have it fixed for awhile? Have you had the air conditioning drain checked to see if it's clogged? Does the leak have an odor? If so, it may be a heater core leaking. Otherwise, have the windshield seal checked. That's what was wrong with mine. I had Safelite install it initially & it still leaked. They redid it and it stopped. You have some drain plugs underneath all 4 floorboards. Take them out (from underneath the car) so the water can drain out. It can cause rusting, mold, etc. Let me know how it goes.

8 people found this helpful.
420

I can't help but feel unskilled as a 23 year old woman to deal with cars. Are you sure I would be able to take out the drain plugs myself?

5 people found this helpful.
1,070

Yes! They're just small rubber plugs; about a quarter size. Getting them back in is a bit harder, but not bad. Each one has 2 ribs that hold it in place. When you go to put them back in, just push it so the metal flooring goes between the 2 ribs. If you push it too far, it will go all the way into the floorboard. In that case just reach in and pull it back out. Then push back in easily. It's not at all hard and worth getting the water out of the floor. When you get them out, go into your car and push from inside with your foot and squish the water out. This will help keep it from molding and/or rusting. Do you remember what did the technician did to fix it the last time?

7 people found this helpful.
420

I noticed today that my sunroof was open a little. My sunroof has been kind of faulty because it has about 10 different places it will go, not 3 like it's supposed to. It's difficult to tell if I closed it but looks like last time I closed it it didn't close all the way. I know it's unlikely to be the reason for a flood being in my car but is it possible this could be the reason? I closed it so now there is no gap in the window. About the technician fixing it I don't really remember. I don't think they found a specific problem and the only real service they did was empty out the water and dry up the floor.

420

Oh wait I apologize, that's wrong. The technician actually fixed the A/C. It was not working properly at the time. It works fine though so I thought that couldn't be related.

2 people found this helpful.
1,070

The A/C drain may be clogged, making the drainage go into your car interior. Might want to have it checked out. They can blow out the drain and be an easy fix. Even if your sunroof leaks, you still need to drain out any water that has collected under your carpets. I'd still pull out your rubber drain plugs and squish them out. It will also give you a frame of reference to see if your car is still leaking. Are your seats below the sunroof wet? How about the inner rim of the sunroof? See if these are wet; that would indicate a leaky sunroof.

2 people found this helpful.
200

My 2001 camry has had water on both sides in the front but mainly on the passenger side. I stuck a piece of hanger up the AC vent and it was completely clogged- it drained at least two quarts of water. The molding on the rugs just pop off and are easy to re-install allowing easy removal and drying of the padding under the rugs

13 people found this helpful.
420

Today I went to a car mechanic and he said he fixed it so it will never happen again. It was $115 though so that seemed a bit of a rip off.

2 people found this helpful.
200

if he had to unclog the AC and took out your rug pads and dried them $115 is not a rip off and it will save you from getting a moldy interior. Hopefully he solved the problem

7 people found this helpful.
420

Ok I accept that, however on a broader aspect I really am beginning to resent society and the cost it is to make a simple living. I mean I am trying to go to school and get a degree and there are so many people including government officials who say education is the most important thing yet one simple class at a junior college (not even a 4year college) is over $100 plus the books which with that makes it cost $200 or more. So don't mind me when I am complaining about having to take my car in in addition to me trying to make a life for myself, and having to pay $115 for the AC parts to be cleaned out. In my opinion college costs should be brought way down almost to the point of free in order to go so that humanity is more well-rounded and there isn't such a harshly divided class system. That way, impoverished people can find a way out and not have to worry about paying so much just for a simple degree.

7 people found this helpful.
110

You guys needs to check the sun roof at the corner at the front on both sides there is an opening that the water leaks through down by the windshield post the door moulding to the floor under the carpet had that problem correct it by sealing both corners no Lela's after that Toyota camry

11 people found this helpful.
190

I have a Toyota Camry 09 LE.. For about 4 mnths my carpets have been soaked recently had carpets cleaned whole car riped apart.. Nothing blew in the a/c hose water poured out.. guessing it was clogged.. Now everything's replaced smells good and is dried.. When driving I hear water back in the a/c box what's wrong with my car??????

19 people found this helpful.
80

2003 toyota highlander (I know you capitalize names) but this toyota does not deserve that privilege. It started leaking from the roof,(Roof joint panel) on the drivers side. Now it leaks on the passengers side. Leaving both the front and rear soaking wet. If this was a submarine we would have drowned.What an embarrassment spending $30,000 on this piece of crap. Now I can watch my gray leather interior turn to a nice green mold! Never again..........

4 people found this helpful.
20

My 2010 Toyota Camry was in storage for 8 weeks in my garage. Noticed moisture on the windows yesterday. Opened the door and the car is loaded with mold. Had it towed into Toyota. State Farm doesn't cover mold damage. Now What? Mold is a really health issue and can even cause death. Will Toyota stand behind this loss?

1 people found this helpful.
260

My Camry Hybrid was in the parking lot for two days in rain and reeked of mold thereafter. We took it in to the Mark Motors here in Plover WI and they sat and sat on the job. We had full coverage under Progressive, and the agent worked with the Toyota dealership to fix the unfixable. I still had to pay $1,200 out of pocket to repair the sunroof seal, sunroof and deductible, as the technician claimed it was the seal. We found out later that the heater core was also shot and needed to be replaced. The dealership let my Camry sit in their lot for two weeks IN THE RAIN before ever getting to it! The mold, of course got worse, and I called for updates only to be told that they were 'busy' and would get to it when they could. I tried to take it to another dealership, as my insurance agent and I agreed that they were doing a poor job. Unfortunately, I didn't want to tow it to another city, since it was not drivable and that was my only other option. My Progressive agent called in a mold restoration company to clean it. The result was another $400 bill and still mold! After over a month of headaches with this, the mold smell remained even after having all new carpeting etc., new sunroof etc. new filter,heater core etc. etc. installed and supposedly being professionally cleaned. I reluctantly had to call my insurance agent again and report this to have it considered a total loss. I signed it over to insurance and they bought it to sell for parts. This was very sad since it was an inheritance gift from my father who passed suddenly and he used to drive it. Now I drive an old Oldsmobile and just don't care what vehicle I'm in, as long as it gets me from point A to point B safely. Toyota should step up and take responsibility!

5 people found this helpful.
20

Thank you for your response. So, I understand insurance doesn't cover mold. With that said if the seal on your sunroof caused your mold problem Toyota should have absolutely paid for whatever repairs necessary. I intend to pickup a rental through State Farm and hopefully the rental will push State Farm to push this issue for me sooner than later. I absolutely will not pay Toyota a penny for this issue. I do believe that my car is a complete loss at this point. The mold is everywhere visible in the car which obviously indicates it's in the ventilation. I don't even want to attempt to have it cleaned. My daughter almost died as a child from asthma. This is the car I bought for her and refuse to let her drive in this car. If you don't mind my asking are you satisfied with the payoff Progressive gave you for the car?

1 people found this helpful.
260

I would agree that your car sounds like it's a loss at this point. My progressive agent was great and really tried to help me salvage my car, but it was nearly impossible considering the nature of mold and it's spores. I agree that it's not a risk you want to take. We, as a family of four, my youngest being under one, had to drive it one day and it was very stressful and a big concern considering she had irregular breathing at the time. My agent came and viewed my car to determine its condition. He entered information in a vehicle valuation report which compared other cars in the surrounding cities that were for sale and their values and features. Since my Toyota was a fully-loaded Hybrid with all the extras, it increased its value and I was very happy with the compensation. It was slightly above bluebook, which made up for what I paid in useless repairs. It all varies though as the report he used was comparative.

1 people found this helpful.
520

I'm having water issues with my 2013 Nissan Altima too. Drivers rear and front floor boards are full of water. The rear is the worst. Anyone ever figure out what causes it?

2 people found this helpful.
80

It sounds like we all have similar leak problems, but from different areas. And possibly different part failures. I had my car checked out by a mechanic. Areas checked was the AC lines,Air vents to see if they were clogged.Ran water down the the lines to see if they were plugged up , and still nothing. Now I understand it could be a leak in the heater hose. I will post again if this is the problem. That's unless my floor boards haven't rusted out and I fall threw Fred Flintstoning it . Or I get ill from mold spores. The part about falling threw the floor boards was my attempt too lighten up a sad situation. The second part about the mold is very serious. Keep a record of any and all respiratory problems you or your family might contract. Food for thought,

4 people found this helpful.
50

My 2002 Camry had a water problem on passenger side. Problem ended up being a short hose (approx. 12 cm / 5 inches) that was positioned under front passenger side carpet near consul had become disconnected. Put back in place, wait to see if problem is fully fixed. Water coming in at front but carpet sucks it along to spread to the back. Placing towels over the wet area sucks water up from carpet. Probably have to do this a few times.

5 people found this helpful.
110

My 2009 Toyota leaked on drivers side Toyota said sunroof drains clogged Fixed leak next day sickening smell from car Took it in they said carpets must be replaced 1900$ really . Anyone have this awful smell after drains cleared ?

2 people found this helpful.
50

I have had the same problem and I must tell you I did everyone of the fixs above. My 1998 Camry still leaked on the passenger side when it rained. My mechanic kept the car for 3 weeks and a lot of money. He said the Toyota mechanic said this was common and he installed set of "Windshield Cowlings " from Toyota. IT WORKED

5 people found this helpful.
60

My 2006 Toyota Camry has had wet floorboards through the past eight months, so it was not a seasonal problem. The level of moisture does not seem dependent on weather either, as on sunny days the back driver's side floorboard is completely saturated. My mechanic just checked the A/C tubing under the glove compartment and it was totally not clogged. He did find the beginnings of mold on the underside of the interior carpet which I know to be a major health hazard. I do have a sunroof, but it appears tight as a drum! The last thing I need is to go to the dealership uninformed to be hosed for hundreds of dollars. I am a single woman, so am skeptical about being treated fairly when it comes to car repairs:) I have read through this forum, which was helpful, but does anyone know if there is a more concrete source of information available by which to diagnose this issue?

6 people found this helpful.
590

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEPzbCxEJaU I had a similar issue. Turned out there is an AC pipe that was leaking. Watch the video. HOpe it helps.

7 people found this helpful.
80

I know this is an old thread, but my AC did the same thing. I am pretty sure that the AC drain hose was pushed up into the front floorboard from beneath. It could just as easily have been a blockage. When I investigated the front floorboard, it turned out to be saturated. Problem is that it is waterproofed from beneath, and there is no way to tell it is wet. The water easily spilled into the back floorboard. I took everything apart and filmed it. These results can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYUd-cniTwY

8 people found this helpful.
110

My 2011 camry has the same water leak issue so I called (800) 331-4331 Toyota customer service and made a claim that this leak issue was likely a car defect. Toyota needs certain number of claims to consider the issue as seriously as recalling our cars. Please call (800) 331-4331 and leave your claim, so Toyota recalls and fixes our cars before heavy rain comes again.

11 people found this helpful.
70

My 2005 collected water in the passenger rear floor pan; front carpet seemed dry. I pulled front and rear floor pan plugs from under the car and they were filled with water. Problem turned out to be that the A/C drain hose had been displaced from the grommet hole in the front floor pan at the front corner of the console hump and the condensation water was running under the front carpet, under the seat and collecting in the rear floor pan. The hose can easily be displaced with a strong suction from cleaning the carpet. Duct tape should prevent the hose from coming out of the grommet hole again.

3 people found this helpful.
70

p.s. in retrospect, I should have noticed that condensation was not dripping under the car after the A/C had been running.

2 people found this helpful.

Solution guaranteed. I rolled up all windows from front drivers side. Divine intervention: both back windows still down approx 2 inches. Used button at that window. And rolled up snug on both sides. Had water problems 2 years before. Roll up back window AT the window and it will go all the way up. GOD IS GREAT.

60

I have a 2002 Toyota Camry with the water leak on my drivers side, at first I really thought it was coming from my wind shield, wrong, this car has a sun roof, and that is were I found the problem, open the sun roof window all the way, the next thing I used my 5 gallon bucket or use a ladder and look in the front of the sun roof, and you will see a semi deep tray, black in color, that is where the water goes when it rains, on the drivers side and on the passenger side, there is one little hole to let the water drain.My tray was caked with a brown silt, and the passenger side hole was blocked, you can pour water in the tray like I did, and then I took lots of paper towels to clean the tray out.To clean out the holes,I took my roll of weed wacker plastic and pushed it through both holes and WA LA, got my jug of water and both sides drained complete out, and no leaks on the passenger side, so given that statement,I hope this will help, and if I can do it, you can do it,take care Dave from Pa.

6 people found this helpful.
10

Seems everyone is having problems with Toyota Camry, has anyone had a water problem on the floor both front and back of passenger side of Toyota Matrix, would love to know if anyone has any info. Thanks.

1 people found this helpful.
10

I have a 2007 Toyota Avalon with occasional very wet DRIVERS side floor boards (front and back seats). Checked moonroof, all four drains holes drain fine. AC condensation "leaks" outside and underneath the car as it should. I THINK the problem is the outside roofline strips. I pulled them off to clean out a bunch of crud and think I reinstalled one incorrectly. I noticed the drivers side strip had pinched into the rear windshield raised rubber seal. The passenger side looked ok and never leaked that side on the floors. I have reinstalled them, now waiting for next rain to see if it works. I will update if that solves the problem. Good luck.

1 people found this helpful.
10

We took our 2002 Toyota in to our local shop and it was the AC drain. Over a gallon of water came out. No cost. Thanks for the information here it has helped.

1 people found this helpful.
10

We have a 2004 Toyoto Camry LX. Has anyone investigated leaks coming from around the door seals? When it rains we are soaked on both sides and even the sunglass holder fills up with water. Help!

1 people found this helpful.
20

I have similar problem as stated , water is dripping from upper left pillar of camry 2007 driver side. I still does not found source of water leakage.

2 people found this helpful.

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