leaking tailgate

[T.I]

Hi, I have a Fabia 1.9 Tdi elegance estate. new in March 07. when it rains heavy the tailgate fills with water, the first time it happened the dealer thought it was the rear light above the back window, and re sealed it , but it happened again last week after heavy rain. Any ideas?????

Trevor I

[ap0gee]

If it's anything like the tailgate on my hatch, there should be a drain hole on the bottom edge, so anything that gets in should get out, even if there is a leak. I find that the design of the hatch's tailgate means that the last few drips don't, and end up coming out around the bumper in the corners - but either way, no matter. Does your rear wash-wipe work OK? Leaks are quite common in one of two places: behind the trim that goes up the side of the rear passenger-side seat back; and where the pipe enters the rear washer pump. The latter could be letting water into the tailgate, and over time, the soundproofing felt gets saturated, meaning quite a lot of water can end up in there. Simple test for a leak is to see if the rear wash-wipe spray reaches the top of the rear screen when you're stood still - if not, you've got a leak. Unfortunately, the trim inside the tailgate is pretty tricky to put beck once removed, so it's up to you whether you want to do the fault-finding yourself, or leave it to the garage (assuming the wash-wipe is leaking, of course!)