Water in trunk

[martinmzfan]

I also have water on the left side .

No stress people! I had the same problem last year. My car has been hit from behind a couple times -- with only minor damage! Replaced the bumper cover and energy-absorbing foam part on first repair. Replaced only the foam part the second time.

1) Here's what I found: There was a small seam gap (about 1/16") at the passenger-side bumper cover attachment bracket (to the body). It's made of thin steel welded and factory "sealed." I used hi-quality silicon caulking to seal the gap.

2) I also observed water stains around the sheet metal panel joints (inside trunk) at passenger-side combo lamp assembly location -- quarter panel. Some of the joints had uneven gaps about 1/16". So I used my silicon sealant and sealed EVERY panel joint I could see and access. You need to partially remove the trunk side carpeting by pulling a few fasteners. It took about an hour or so. Work the sealant in those gaps with your fingers.

3) Reassembled everything and did a water spray test. No leaks. Waited for next rain shower -- 180+ days (it's So. Cal.) -- and found no more water anywhere in the trunk! Fixed! Here's the TSB. I think Mazda never quite "fixed" this simple issue. I don't think the minor accidents opened up the sheet metal panel gaps.

http://web2.airmail.net/theman/protegefaq/tsb/
[this guy is great!)
-----------------------------------
WATER LEAK INTO TRUNK,OPENED SEAMS UNDER TAIL LITE
Applicable Models
Model Starting S/N Ending S/N
1999 PROTEGE 00000000 ZZZZZZZZ
2000 PROTEGE 00000000 ZZZZZZZZ

0003245 Dealer Repair Information
Customer complains of water in trunk. Water is noticed in spare tire and side quarter panel wells, and in extreme cases overflows into passenger compartment.

Inspect body seams under rear tail light for being opened. This condition can be caused by vehicle being moderately rear ended. It is very important that the vehicle is closely inspected for accident damage. It has been reported in some cases that bumper cover showed no to only slight damage but once removed more damage was evident on the bumper reinforcement.


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Copyright Mazda North American Operations

 

[MiltonOS]

This adds a piece to the puzzle for me. I got my 02 Protege ES used. When I checked it out I found water in the left sidepocket in the trunk. I asked them to fix it. They said they did and someone got in the trunk and checked. I don't know what they did but I haven't seen water since. It was just a small used cars dealership. The car has the rear bumper hanging just a tad bit low on the left. I can tell the bracket which it is still attached with is bent down and I figured I'd have to take it off one day to fix it. I'm new to this stuff so it's all quite a project to me, also due to lack of space and tools, but anyway. It all makes sense now. It must be the bumper being alittle off that got the water in on that side. I paid 5 grand for mine. I think it's a steal. 47k miles when I got it. Had my A/C switch and cat conv. fixed under warranty right before it expired which fixed the CEL being on. There are some things I want to change on the car but I gotta learn first and this forum will help. I have one question now though. Would a Mazda garage fix this bumper issue past the 50k mile warranty? Or would I pay for it...and how much do you guess? I'd like to replace that bracket too, to make it look nice and lined up again.

 

[martinmzfan]

This adds a piece to the puzzle for me. I got my 02 Protege ES used. When I checked it out I found water in the left sidepocket in the trunk. I asked them to fix it. They said they did and someone got in the trunk and checked. I don't know what they did but I haven't seen water since. It was just a small used cars dealership. The car has the rear bumper hanging just a tad bit low on the left. I can tell the bracket which it is still attached with is bent down and I figured I'd have to take it off one day to fix it. I'm new to this stuff so it's all quite a project to me, also due to lack of space and tools, but anyway. It all makes sense now. It must be the bumper being alittle off that got the water in on that side. I paid 5 grand for mine. I think it's a steal. 47k miles when I got it. Had my A/C switch and cat conv. fixed under warranty right before it expired which fixed the CEL being on. There are some things I want to change on the car but I gotta learn first and this forum will help. I have one question now though. Would a Mazda garage fix this bumper issue past the 50k mile warranty? Or would I pay for it...and how much do you guess? I'd like to replace that bracket too, to make it look nice and lined up again.

Bumper cover is relatively "easy" to remove and reinstall w/o any fancy tools or a lot of space. The top of the bumper cover is aligned/fastened to (2) flimsy pieces of steel welded above the reinforcement. It is probably very bent on the left-side as you described. If the main reinforcement beam is bent, it needs to be replaced and is compromised. The foam energy absorber should be checked too -- if damaged, it should be replaced. Problem could also be very simple -- missing any fasteners? Some are hidden.

No chance in hell that a Mazda dealership will cover this repair for free. Inspect yourself or bring to a reputable, referred bodyshop. Collision parts for our cars aren't cheap.

 

[DiS]

as far as bumper cover being a little off, its the problem on all protege's that I have seen in person...including mine. Don't know what exactly causing it, but sure as hell that its not only you (thumb)
and i dont think you have water in your trunk because the bumper is sagging on one side.....I never had water problems.

 

[jaguar2884]

No stress people! I had the same problem last year. My car has been hit from behind a couple times -- with only minor damage! Replaced the bumper cover and energy-absorbing foam part on first repair. Replaced only the foam part the second time.

1) Here's what I found: There was a small seam gap (about 1/16") at the passenger-side bumper cover attachment bracket (to the body). It's made of thin steel welded and factory "sealed." I used hi-quality silicon cauking to seal the gap.

2) I also observed water stains around the sheet metal panel joints (inside trunk) at passenger-side combo lamp assembly location -- quater panel. Some of the joints had uneven gaps about 1/16". So I used my silicon sealant and sealed EVERY panel joint I could see and access. You need to partially remove the trunk side carpeting by pulling a few fasteners. It took about an hour or so. Work the sealant in those gaps with your fingers.

3) Reassembled everything and did a water spray test. No leaks. Waited for next rain shower -- 180+ days (it's So. Cal.) -- and found no more water anywhere in the trunk! Fixed! Here's the TSB. I think Mazda never quite "fixed" this simple issue. I don't think the minor accidents opened up the sheet metal panel gaps.

http://web2.airmail.net/theman/protegefaq/tsb/
[this guy is great!)
-----------------------------------
WATER LEAK INTO TRUNK,OPENED SEAMS UNDER TAIL LITE
Applicable Models
Model Starting S/N Ending S/N
1999 PROTEGE 00000000 ZZZZZZZZ
2000 PROTEGE 00000000 ZZZZZZZZ

0003245 Dealer Repair Information
Customer complains of water in trunk. Water is noticed in spare tire and side quarter panel wells, and in extreme cases overflows into passenger compartment.

Inspect body seams under rear tail light for being opened. This condition can be caused by vehicle being moderately rear ended. It is very important that the vehicle is closely inspected for accident damage. It has been reported in some cases that bumper cover showed no to only slight damage but once removed more damage was evident on the bumper reinforcement.


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i should have looked here before anything. i got back from school on my spring break and my parents had found this little fact out. i had never noticed this happen over the 6 months i've owned my protege, somehow it baffled me. so it's good to have short friends that you can throw in the trunk with a flashlight. while you douse the trunklid with water. i actually watched the water make it's way in. GET THIS FIXED! if you would see how easily it flows into the trunk during the rain you'd put silicone over the patch within minutes of seeing it.