2 quick questions (air con and leaky doors)

[Fab vRS]

Hi everyone

Two quick questions for you:

1. With the air-con and re-circ buttons both on (lit), is the re-circ light ever supposed to switch itself off automatically? Several times now, I put both the air-con and re-circ on together yet 10 minutes later I notice that the re-circ button has gone out (the air-con remains on). Is this normal behaviour or have I got a fault?

2. I apologise for the picture, but I have a leaking rear door! I have read the other posts and it SEEMS the problem is water leaking from the door inside. My question is, is the water leaking in through points C1 and C2 or all of them in my pic? If it's at C1 and C2, then (because only I use the car) I was thinking of putting some transparent sealant along C1 and C2. Good idea?


Thanks!

Fab vRS

[ultra_joel88]

Mine is coming in through the bottom of the door

[sparky2]

Its extremely well known fault that water leaks in passed the glass and down the inside of the door frame and 'should' pass over some foam seal at the bottom of the door carrier and then come out of the drainage holes in the bottom of the door. In practise it leaks passed the foam at the bottom of the door and then appears against the interior trim and onto the door rubber and then onto the carpet thus misting up the car. I have had to reseal all 4 doors and am again ! just resealing the rear passenger door as it seems to be an neverending job !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Fab vRS]

Yes, I know that the water comes out of the door at the bottom, but I'm trying to understand how it gets INTO the door in the first place.

So a bit of transparent sealant at C1 and C2 would fix it?

[*tim*]

1. Thats normal. Not sure of the length of time through.

2. C1 and C2 I'd say (get confirmation first). Clear sealant would be a bit of a bodge, and will peel off and look awful. Your car, your rules

HTH

[sparky2]

In a word NO you would have to seal the glass into the frame to make it waterproof, I have been thinking of inserting a plastic membrane on the door carrier to keep the water away from the inside bottom seal, or even drilling a hole just above the foam seal in the back plate to enable the water to drain away.

[Fab vRS]

Oh . . .

So I'm f***ed then?

[ap0gee]

1. The recirc light going off by itself isn't normal AFAIK, but is a sign of an electronic fault with the flap motor controller rather than with the motors themselves (in which case the light would go straight back out again). Resetting them with VAG-COM (or the dealer's diagnostic tool) ought to put that right.

2. Rainwater runs down the bottom of the window on EVERY car that has windows that open by retracting into the door. If it didn't, you wouldn't be able to open them! What's supposed to happen is that the ancillaries carrier inside the door is supposed to be sealed, so that as Sparky2 says, the water runs over the outside of the carrier and out through drain holes in the bottom of the door. However, in the case of the Fabia, the seal between the edge of the carrier and the door structure isn't very good, so some water goes the wrong side of the seal and leaks inside the car. The situation isn't helped by the fact that the drain holes are so close to the sill that the surface tension of the water prevents it all draining away properly, which is why you're greeted by a little trickle of water from the bottom of the door when you open it and break the surface tension...

Not Skoda's finest hour, that's for sure...

[*tim*]

Originally Posted by Fab vRS

Oh . . .

So I'm f***ed then?

Well no, I'm sure there are people here that had leaking doors and have fixed them. Either by Skoda, or other wise. Have a search I think theres a guide somewhere.

[*tim*]

Originally Posted by ap0gee

1. The recirc light going off by itself isn't normal AFAIK, but is a sign of an electronic fault

Hope not I'm sure mine goes off by itself , have to have a look into it. Although I think I've only used it twice

[Fab vRS]

Hmm, okay!

As well as resealing the doors, would it be worth drilling some holes into the bottom of the doors so that the water drains away faster?

Or is that just a daft idea?

[ap0gee]

Originally Posted by *tim*

Well no, I'm sure there are people here that had leaking doors and have fixed them. Either by Skoda, or other wise. Have a search I think theres a guide somewhere.

Here!

Originally Posted by *tim*

Hope not I'm sure mine goes off by itself, have to have a look into it. Although I think I've only used it twice

Maybe it's me that's got it wrong, but it stays on as long as the car's running on mine and my wife's. Mind you, what with the reverse / recirc function, it may be that it turns off after you've finished reversing?

[*tim*]

Mine doesn't come on when I reverse, well at least the light doesn't

[ap0gee]

Originally Posted by Fab vRS

Hmm, okay!

As well as resealing the doors, would it be worth drilling some holes into the bottom of the doors so that the water drains away faster?

Or is that just a daft idea?

I wouldn't bother - the holes that are there are fine apart from being so close to the sill (see above). Unless you do something about that, I don't think any extra holes will do anything other than promote rust. On thing I did consider was to cut a circular hole in the rubber door seal (i.e. the seal between door and car, not the one around the ancillaries carier!) at the bottom, and put in a piece of rigid plastic tube long enough to go from one side to the other. I did this because the water arrives on the seal rubber first of all, and then runs inside the car once enough has collected. The logic was that if I prevented it collecting, it wouldn't matter if the carrier seal wasn't perfect. But then I did the re-sealing as described in the link I posted above to Stu's website, and it's not been a problem since!

In the meantime, old newspaper in the footwell is the best solution, as it'll soak the water out of the carpet, and you can just chuck it away once it's done its job!

[ap0gee]

Originally Posted by *tim*

Mine doesn't come on when I reverse, well at least the light doesn't

Err, it should (sorry - two conversations at once! ) A sesh on VAG-COM should tell you more...

[Fab vRS]

ok, thx everyone!

[*tim*]

Originally Posted by ap0gee

Err, it should (sorry - two conversations at once! ) A sesh on VAG-COM should tell you more...

Yeah, sorry Fab_vRS

No error codes were found last time I checked. But I'll have a look again later this afternoon

[ap0gee]

Originally Posted by *tim*

Yeah, sorry Fab_vRS

No error codes were found last time I checked. But I'll have a look again later this afternoon

Okey-dokes! Actually, I can't remember whether the light actually goes on, or whether the flaps just move. But you'll be able to tell if you have the fan on 2 or more, as the noise will get considerably louder...

[*tim*]

Damn your memory...

I generally have it on 'one' so maybe thats why I haven't heard a change in noise either.

[ap0gee]

Originally Posted by *tim*

Damn your memory...

I generally have it on 'one' so maybe thats why I haven't heard a change in noise either.

Okey-dokes! Actually, I can't remember whether the light actually goes on, or whether the flaps just move. But you'll be able to tell if you have the fan on 2 or more, as the noise will get considerably louder...































* just kidding! *