# Trunk leak



## joeli16 (Nov 19, 2004)

I got a pretty serious trunk leak last week.The mat was all wet and had a disgusting rotten smell.The wrost thing was I found mashrooms on the met!So I took the mat out and killed the mashrooms,hanged it up and let it dry for a week.After that I completely cleaned the trunk.I guess it hasn't been cleaned for you know how long because I found clouds and clouds of dust there.After this job was done,I found the leaks.They were from the big gaps between the rear lamps and the trunk.Both sides were leaking like a river.I bought a tube of silicone and seal the gaps up.It took three days to finish and now the problem solved.Did anybody get the same trouble before?


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## ifoam (Dec 16, 2004)

i did, but the leak fixed itself?


now i have no carpet or anything in the trunk 

i need to replace that


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## Inspector12 (Aug 30, 2004)

joeli16 said:


> I got a pretty serious trunk leak last week.The mat was all wet and had a disgusting rotten smell.The wrost thing was I found mashrooms on the met!So I took the mat out and killed the mashrooms,hanged it up and let it dry for a week.After that I completely cleaned the trunk.I guess it hasn't been cleaned for you know how long because I found clouds and clouds of dust there.After this job was done,I found the leaks.They were from the big gaps between the rear lamps and the trunk.Both sides were leaking like a river.I bought a tube of silicone and seal the gaps up.It took three days to finish and now the problem solved.Did anybody get the same trouble before?


I had the same problem with my 93 B13. The factory used a sealant on the tail lamps that doesn't work well in the hot Florida sun. I removed both lights and cleaned off the old sealant. Very messy clean up job. I then applied 1/2 inch vinyl foam weatherstipping to the lamp assemblies. I put a small bead of black silicone on the the exposed surface of the weatherstrip to prevent any water seapage. I bolted the lights back in and haven't seen a drop of water in over 5 years!


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## PeaNutB13 (Apr 14, 2004)

Ha Ha I just fixed my trunk also. BTW for future reference the best way to get that sticky tar sealant off of the tail light. Put the tails in your freezer for about 20 min it will harden and make it a lot easier to scrape off. Also I chose to use cord window chalking form home depot to seal the tails in place that way if I ever have to take them out I can. Sillycone just seemed to permanent. I tested my fix with a garden hose and sprayer. No Leaks!

pEAnUTb13


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## Nau (Dec 19, 2004)

I had the same problem.
Resealed tailgate lamps, tested with a garden hose - no leaks anymore.
But then after two days of raining I still find a puddle in the middle of trunk. It's not from tailgate lamps-the area is dry there (i had a paper towel there). Rubber strips around the trunk seem alright (And I didn't see any leaks though I hosed it for like 20 min!)

Oh sh*t. Any advice?


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## Coco (Apr 30, 2002)

I have this problem on my Altima, but I'm not sure where the leak is coming from. From what you guys have posted, it sounds like it only comes from the lights. I wonder if the same can be said of an Altima. Don't want to pay the dealer to fix it either.


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## glowsentra (May 27, 2003)

I had the same problem when installed new taillights on my 91 sentra. the problem is caused by a lack of a seal between the taillight housing and the body. This can be easily solved by taking out the tailight, and applying 3M Strip Caulk ALL the way around the housing, were the old remnants of the original stuff is. Make sure you put it on really thick to, so it leaks out, and u can wipe of the remnants (using goo gone). When applying the tailights back into the car, you may have to push rather hard to get them snug back in. Just make sure the bolt screws are lined up, and it should work perfectly. 

*3M strip caulk is rubber in appearance, but is easily shaped, and will never dry up, making it a wise choice when sealing anything you don't want to be permadent. 

If this doesn't solve it for some reason, your trunk lid isn't forming a tight enough seal with the body of the car. In this case, you should notice a rather large gap on some part of the trunk outside when you close it. However, i'm guessing the sealant is your problem.

-Nate


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## PeaNutB13 (Apr 14, 2004)

Nau said:


> I had the same problem.
> Resealed tailgate lamps, tested with a garden hose - no leaks anymore.
> But then after two days of raining I still find a puddle in the middle of trunk. It's not from tailgate lamps-the area is dry there (i had a paper towel there). Rubber strips around the trunk seem alright (And I didn't see any leaks though I hosed it for like 20 min!)
> 
> Oh sh*t. Any advice?


are you driving in the rain? are all of the drain plugs in place and are they tight? I saw a trick on TV once about checking the weather striping useing a dollar bill, put a dollar bill between the trunklid and weatherstriping and slid it around the seal if there is resistance the it is a good seal if you can easly slide it out then you will have to either build up the seal or replace all together.


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## joeli16 (Nov 19, 2004)

Nau said:


> I had the same problem.
> Resealed tailgate lamps, tested with a garden hose - no leaks anymore.
> But then after two days of raining I still find a puddle in the middle of trunk. It's not from tailgate lamps-the area is dry there (i had a paper towel there). Rubber strips around the trunk seem alright (And I didn't see any leaks though I hosed it for like 20 min!)
> 
> Oh sh*t. Any advice?


A suggestion:maybe it's condensation of water on the trunklid inside.The moisture goes in and forms water droplets inside.When I was sealing the gaps between the tail lights and the trunk,I also needed to dry the water that was condensed on the lid inside.Now I put a bag with stuff that can suck up the moisture inside the trunk(sorry,I don't know what that calls,bought it from a hardware shop for 5 bucks).


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## joeli16 (Nov 19, 2004)

ifoam said:


> i did, but the leak fixed itself?
> 
> 
> now i have no carpet or anything in the trunk
> ...


I suggest you need to take a look at that on a rainy day and see where the leaks come from.It's very nasty and smell evil.After the sealing job is done,maybe you also need to spray something to kill the bacteria that grows when the trunk is wet.


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## Nau (Dec 19, 2004)

PeaNutB13 said:


> are you driving in the rain? are all of the drain plugs in place and are they tight? I saw a trick on TV once about checking the weather striping useing a dollar bill, put a dollar bill between the trunklid and weatherstriping and slid it around the seal if there is resistance the it is a good seal if you can easly slide it out then you will have to either build up the seal or replace all together.


Hey, thanks for your input, I'll try to check on that. It looks good just by itslef, but I like this 1-dollar bill test


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## Nau (Dec 19, 2004)

PeaNutB13 said:


> are you driving in the rain? are all of the drain plugs in place and are they tight? I saw a trick on TV once about checking the weather striping useing a dollar bill, put a dollar bill between the trunklid and weatherstriping and slid it around the seal if there is resistance the it is a good seal if you can easly slide it out then you will have to either build up the seal or replace all together.


And yeah. I get the puddle no matter I drive or not.


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## Nau (Dec 19, 2004)

joeli16 said:


> A suggestion:maybe it's condensation of water on the trunklid inside.The moisture goes in and forms water droplets inside.When I was sealing the gaps between the tail lights and the trunk,I also needed to dry the water that was condensed on the lid inside.Now I put a bag with stuff that can suck up the moisture inside the trunk(sorry,I don't know what that calls,bought it from a hardware shop for 5 bucks).


Yeah, well could be a condenstaion, I thought about it too, and a puddle is quite small. So there's no way to stop that, right? 
In another thread on this topic I read that it could be a rust spot in a fender well which can give rise leaks as well. So I'll check on that this weekend and let you guys know. Also I found 2 holes in the corners of trunk lid right above the hinges. They are in the inner sheet of metal only, look nice and round but are missing on other Sentras, so I don't know if they are supposed to be there. Just in case I plugged them with plasticine


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