No more leaks!

Like most old 90s (and a lot of newer ones) mine leaked when I first bought it. The front carpets are falling to bits from the constant wet/dry cycle and are on the shopping list. But, while most landys do leak, that doesn't mean they have to, or that they're supposed to. I went round tracking down the problems and fixing them one by one. The most productive method was to go and sit in it during heavy rain, and look for where the water's coming from.

I found the following sources of water ingress:

Windscreen seal- replaced along with the windscreen itself which was starting to delaminate.

Windscreen frame to bulkhead- the rubber was perished after 25 years. Fixed it with sealant- bit of a bodge I know but it will last until the summer when I can replace it properly.

Front door seals- replaced them with new ones as the old ones were looking a bit manky. You have to pull them taught as you fit them or the rubber kinks around the curved part of the frame, letting the water in.

Front passenger footwell- strangely leaking through the threads of one of the bolts in that area. Apparently this had been a trouble spot before which a previous owner had 'fixed' by liberally applying something unidentified. I took the bolt out and filled the threads with sillicone before putting it back in.

Front vents, causing the formation of Lake Dashboard- easy enough to replace the rubber seals around the flap.

Sunroof- I removed the hinges and bent the curved part inward slightly to form a tighter seal against the rubber.

It took a while to dry out the interior fully after years of moisture ingress. I took to driving along with the sunroof open and the heater blower on full, and also to wiping away any condensation from the interior each morning. But at last, the 90 is dry inside and appears to be staying that way So if your landy leaks, remember that it is possible to rectify.

Ive done all the same to mine, still leaks through the doors just not as badly.

mine is a soft top so i jsut wear a rain mac. The seal on the bottoms of the doors is so worn the water can run out.

You guys are lucky

I'm more concerned with what's leaking out of my 90 at the mo, than what's leaking in! Oil, oil and a bit more oil!

Haha yeah my PAS box has a slight weep and my PAS pump also but the fluid in the reservoir never does down.... Confused.com lol

I cured the only leak in my 90 hardtop (other than the door seals, which I still haven't managed to sort) by running a bead of clear silicone in the joint between the front and rear parts of the hardtop.

Well done if you manage to fix all the leaks. After lots of effort trying to identify where all the leaks were, I finally gave up with my 110 and drilled some holes in the footwells to let the water out. I applied a liberal dose of Waxoyl over the metal joints and bolts, and I only use rubber mats. Bob's your uncle, damp (not flooded) footwells in the winter, dry ones in the summer. And before anyone asks, no I don't go wading so water doesn't come in through the holes. But if I did it would soon drain out!

BTW, I have a copy of the official Land Rover Water Ingress Manual / Service Rectification Processes. Only Land Rover could issue a full manual about how to deal with leaks!

I hated the leaks in a previous Discovery, lots of soggy, smelly carpets. Yukk. But in the Defender that is not a problem.

For the record, actually I'm not infatuated with my Defender...... I love it!

Yeah I dont have any interior trim apart from 2 seats so no bother if water comes in

One further thought after my post a few minutes ago about leaks in a Defender. I do get small pools of water in the back of my 110, but I soon realised that they were due to condensation dripping from the roof.

This reminds me of an amusing incident when I took my wife out in our 110. (She drives a plush modern car.) Having set off, the first time I braked, a pool of water shot out from above the roof lining all over her. I laughed. Don't worry though, the bruises soon healed.

Mine had the rather annoying feature of the automatic shower from the sunroof whenever I turned left- the condensation was collecting there overnight.