S40 water ingress after rain - no sunroof! Help!

[swoot]

Hi all
I've posted previously about a water ingress issue I have on a 2005 S40 2.0D with no sunroof. I've replaced the A/C drain plug with the new design component and cleared a small amount of debris from the tube, I've also replaced the cablin/pollen filter and checked for cloggs there - nothing. Last night, the car was parked on a slope, facing downhill slightly and I have water in the passenger footwell again. This is the first time I've had the water ingress back for 3 weeks and the differentiating factor is where the car was parked. I've put gallons of water on the car to try and replicate the issue but never succeeded - looks like mother nature has managed it!

So my question to you guys is this. There's no sunroof to contend with so no drain issues there and I've checked the A/C system - no issues there. After heavy rain and the car parked on a slope, I get maybe a mug full of water in the front passenger footwell. I've had the A-pillar trims off to check for water behind there but couldn't see anything. My suspicions are now drawn to 2 places:

1. 1. Windscreen
2. 2. Bottom of A-pillars near engine bulkhead

Like I've said, I've soaked the car a couple of times for over an hour and haven't been able to replicate the water coming in.

Suggestions please experts!

[iainmd]

Have you ever had your windscreen replaced or is there any suggestion that a previous owner may have had so? The giveaway might be is it a Volvo branded screen or not?

[swoot]

Hi iainmd - thanks for the reply.
Had the car from new, never had a replacement screen. Spoke to auto windscreens, they said if it's an original Volvo screen, this is very unlikely to be the cause. Looking at blower motor seals at the minute!
swoot

[iainmd]

After a bout of rain, I'd pop the a-pillar trim off on the passenger side and inspect the rear of it for any sign of damp. If it's dry then you can rule the screen out completely.

[swoot]

Hi iainmd, been to autoglass today, confirmed windscreen not cause of leak. I've taken the scuttle tray off and had the hosepipe in there, still no water in the cabin. Starting to question door seals now. Real needle in a haystack ! Getting p'd off with it now.

[timpy]

There's no water in the doors is there? It sounds amazing but the very last time I came across this problem the passenger door was filling up and it was over flowing the bottom on the door and running in behind the door card. That took about 4 months to find and was due to a blocked drain in the passenger door.

It can get a bit messy, but if you dry the carpet out as much as possible, and sprinkle some talcum powder around the footwell, and up the sides, the water path may be more obvious. You can try this having lined the footwell wth plastic sheet but the talc tends to accumulate at the bottom and it's harder to spot.

Do you ever get water anywhere else? Facing downhill, water leaking pas the rear lights can end up in the footwell eventually, but should make other bits damp mon the way there.

I had a problem with one car where if facing downhill, water came in through the footwell ducts. Couldn't find the leak, because it was coming from the heater matrix. I wasn't very experienced at the time, and the car always smelt a bit stale....

Hope that helps