Hi
I've recently discovered a bit of water coming out of the air vents underneath the drivers seat - the carpet is very wet in the back drivers side.
From my research it sounds like this is being caused by a blocked air con drain?
Air con still works fine and is very cold.
Taking it to the garage this week but would appreciate a little advice..

Is this is a well known problem?
Is the drain easily accessible?
Best case scenario/worst case scenario?
Cost to fix?

Also a little concerned about water in carpets. Getting a wet dry vax and will suck out as much water as I can, perhaps with a carpet treatment.

Volvo s40 2009.
Any suggestions appreciated.
Cheers.

 

yes this is a common issue for many models of car. The drain tubes require you to pop off the side of the center console. Water won't hurt the carpets or the floor of the car - short of potential mold. A shop vac is a good start then find a sunny spot and leave the doors open - you can even use a fan to help dry it out.

I had a slightly different experience - my wife bought a can of paint and the shop failed to secure the lid. It fell over and spilled paint on the rear carpet. I wound up washing with liquid detergent and a lot of water, using my shop vac to suck up the paint+water. Carpet came out perfectly clean. I just put a fan on it to dry and life was good (thank goodness it was only a quart of paint...)

 

Many thanks.
Sorry to hear about the paint, but glad you got it sorted.

I suppose it's the smell and mold issue that concerns me. I might see if I can find a friendly carpet treatment I can put down to stop any nasty spores.

 

Hi mate im jon from the uk.

i have a 2010 c30 drive with the same problem.
i have checked the drain from my heater box to the floor inside the car and its fine all clear.
my problem is when i put my a/c on the heater unit fills with water and the only way it can escape is through the floor vents under both seats. resulting in wet carpets.
i cant afford to pay £1000 in labour charges to get the unit removed so i pulled the fuse from the a/c unit and put a dehumidifier in the car to dyr it out. there is a video on youtube look up volvo s40 water in vents and that is how mine is too.

 

Hi Jon
Sorry to hear about your problem.

A quick update: all fixed.
The drain was blocked.
Central console - the 90 degree bend was full of mud and gunk.
Garage cleaned it out and now there is water underneath car when AC is on. Thank goodness.
£25 labour.

 

the other common problem area for interior water is the sunroof drain channels.

 

The carpets have 1 1/2" of foam underneath. If they are drenched, it can take FOREVER to dry. It is much quicker to remove the seats (four bolts and two electrical harness junctions) and pry the carpets out to dry. The car can be driven without carpets while you wait.

 

Hi mf30
Thanks for your suggestion. I thought the issue had been fixed, but the car had started to smell. I pulled out the front drivers side carpet and the rear carpet to expose a pool of water.
I have a wet and dry vax, so vacuumed it up.

Took the car for a spin and although no water coming from underseat vent, there was some water coming from the drain on the central console (just a little but had pooled in back by the time I got home). Felt dry above the white plastic bend, but seemed to come from around the seal to the metal.

Am I right in understanding this little white plastic 90 degree bend simply clicks to the metal work (it has a little rubber washer too) - and I can see some foam or fireguard behind the hole of the central console, when I remove it.

Does it not connect to another pipe?

Not sure what to do now. Seems clean enough and I can feel vapour from it when the A/C is on and I've disconnected it from the metal central console.

Is it simply the case, I need to get some sealant cement or something to stick this in place?

I'll drive around for a bit without the carpets to get it all dried out if possible and have given it a good clean with some anti-mould cleaner.

Any advice here would be great.

Oh, and I think the air-con needs a service, doesn't seem to be very cold when running and still no water dripping from underneath the car.

thanks again. Happy to upload some photos if it will help?

Full strip out and clean took about an hour and half.

 

My carpet problems came from the more common sunroof drain problems, so I can't help with the air con drain specifics. I would do a debug on the drain system, testing each step of the system to find out where it was leaking (perhaps a clog IN the elbow?). AFIK, the air con drain just exits the bodywork at that elbow with no further plumbing. I KNOW that is the case with the sunroof drains; the forward ones exit at the base of the "A" pillars, venting into a space behind the door hinges.

I agree with your plan to drive around without carpets for a while to verify that you've got the leak under control.

As to effective air conditioning, these cars often have a weakness in the compressor clutch. The "usual symptom" is ~15 minutes of cooling and then none. It can often be fixed by re-adjusting the clearance. There is an OEM Volvo part consisting of an assortment of shim washers for the compressor that costs $7.50. This is how I fixed that problem.