Soaked carpets/floor under front passenger seat (2022 CX-5)

[trevwoller]

I own a 2022 CX-5. The floorboard/carpet underneath the front passenger seat is completely saturated with water and soaked.

I noticed a little spot of white mildew/mold when I grabbed something out of my car (gross). So I went to clean it and I noticed the carpet was REALLY moist. Particularly right under the front passenger seat. So I looked further and found that right underneath some vent opening the carpet was soaking wet. I put so many paper towels down through that opening in the carpet and it just kept sucking up water. I keep pressing on the carpet and water still bubbles out; it’s so moist still. So I soaked up as much as I could, left all the windows open in my car, and left a towel down in there overnight… but what do you think my next step should be? I can’t imagine having that much water underneath my car flooring is good, haha.

Anyone else have this problem? If so, what fixed it? My car is still under warranty from the dealer I bought it at (in Portland, OR area) so I am hoping this is covered. Any tips or clues? Thanks for the help.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

Sounds like front right sunroof or HVAC evaporator drain is clogged

 

[Conrad 16.5]

You're going to need a LOT of rice and really a BIG bowl!

Kidding aside, you're going to need to get a shopvac and suck up as much water as you can. Lifting the carpet would be a good idea too. You're also going to need a fan or two. Get it as dry as possible otherwise you're going to be dealing with mold and the smell.

You say it's under warranty? Get thee to the dealership ASAP! Document everything but get the car dried out NOW.

 

[HyFlyer]

Yes, shop vac or go to a car wash with vacuums if you don't have one to suck up all that you can.

Unless you know of a reason for the liquid (spill, window left open, snowy boots, etc) there's really just two possible sources I can think of ...

HVAC condensation drain blocked or has become disconnected somehow. If this is the case, don't run the A/C or defroster.

Sunroof drain blocked or disconnected.

(If drains are dislodged/disconnected, mazda *may* cover that but likely wouldn't cover a blocked drain)

 

[cz5gt]

Check also the Cabin filter to see if may be wet.

The drains may be disconnected as mentioned above or clogged somewhere.
there is a TSB on water in the hvac system if I recall. Your car is under warranty. They dont cover clogged drains but will cover other issues like disconnected drains.

 

[dayman123]

Check also the Cabin filter to see if may be wet.

The drains may be disconnected as mentioned above or clogged somewhere.
there is a TSB on water in the hvac system if I recall. Your car is under warranty. They dont cover clogged drains but will cover other issues like disconnected drains.

Do you know where the drain is located or have a photo/video I can't find one for this generation? I have the same problem right now and I have the wife's carpet pulled up and letting it dry.

 

[cz5gt]

behind the plastic panel(s) on the bottom left side - passenger feet.
The cabin filter is behind the glove box. Gotta remove the box. I would check the filter first - If dry then check the drain. Third option may be is the sunroof drainage.
I would suggest the dealer - if your car has warranty.

 

[dayman123]

behind the plastic panel(s) on the bottom left side - passenger feet.
The cabin filter is behind the glove box. Gotta remove the box. I would check the filter first - If dry then check the drain. Third option may be is the sunroof drainage.
I would suggest the dealer - if your car has warranty.

Thank you! Just to be clear right here?

 

[cz5gt]

yea. keep us posted , its interesting issue.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

I've been hit with a clogged sunroof drain on my Infiniti. Passenger side got clogged and vehicle was parked downhill and on a grade to the right so water couldn't get to the driver side before pouring over into the A-Pillar. Common design.. same in Toyota/Lexus too.

A lot of water came in down the a-pillar. A really bad design on those cars but I bypassed the drain at the A-pillar and plumbed into the large HVAC drain as it exits the car

A week in the garage with carpets pulled, fans on, small heaters and windows open. Never got any mildew but it did cause a premature failure of the nav unit.

Of course.. dirt cheap for used ones these days.. got a used replacement for $45.

I now check my drains a couple times a year and use a large plastic syringe to inject some washer fluid down the line to help keep it clean.

 

[trevwoller]

You're going to need a LOT of rice and really a BIG bowl!

Kidding aside, you're going to need to get a shopvac and suck up as much water as you can. Lifting the carpet would be a good idea too. You're also going to need a fan or two. Get it as dry as possible otherwise you're going to be dealing with mold and the smell.

You say it's under warranty? Get thee to the dealership ASAP! Document everything but get the car dried out NOW.

I soaked up as much as I could, have a fun going, and leave all the windows down. I have an appointment to take it into the dealer tomorrow morning. Depending on the diagnosis and if they cover it, I have a friend who has a shopvac that I will take it to. Really hoping that they cover fixing this, even if it's just a clogged HVAC unit. Thanks for the help.

 

[trevwoller]

Yes, shop vac or go to a car wash with vacuums if you don't have one to suck up all that you can.

Unless you know of a reason for the liquid (spill, window left open, snowy boots, etc) there's really just two possible sources I can think of ...

HVAC condensation drain blocked or has become disconnected somehow. If this is the case, don't run the A/C or defroster.

Sunroof drain blocked or disconnected.

(If drains are dislodged/disconnected, mazda *may* cover that but likely wouldn't cover a blocked drain)

Thanks for the help. Appreciate it. I really hope that my dealer will cover it. I have an appointment tomorrow morning. What's really interesting is about three months ago I heard a really bad noise coming from the front passenger side storage box. It sounded like a lawnmower was going and defroster wasn't working well. But the noise was intermittent, so when I called into my dealer they told me NOT to bring it in because if they don't hear the noise, it won't be covered by the warranty and I will have to pay a fee. Seems like these two are connected now. Even if it's a clogged drain, feels like they should do something to help me out. Ugh. Thanks for the help

 

[trevwoller]

Check also the Cabin filter to see if may be wet.

The drains may be disconnected as mentioned above or clogged somewhere.
there is a TSB on water in the hvac system if I recall. Your car is under warranty. They dont cover clogged drains but will cover other issues like disconnected drains.

Thanks for the help. Appreciate it. I really hope that my dealer will cover it. I have an appointment tomorrow morning. What's really interesting is about three months ago I heard a really bad noise coming from the front passenger side storage box. It sounded like a lawnmower was going and defroster wasn't working well. But the noise was intermittent, so when I called into my dealer they told me NOT to bring it in because if they don't hear the noise, it won't be covered by the warranty and I will have to pay a fee. Seems like these two are connected now. Even if it's a clogged drain, feels like they should do something to help me out. Ugh. Thanks for the help

 

[theblooms]

My Mom's Grand Marquis had a leak that I never could find the source of. I cleaned her sunroof drains, and it didn't help. Same thing happened in my 89 Prelude, 02 Civic, and 06 Saturn way back when. It's simply a "thing" you have do deal with when you get a sunroof.

What I wound up doing is drilling a 1/4" hole in the lowest part of the floor pan after ensuring there was nothing underneath there that I was going to hit.

On all of the cars, never had a wet floors ever again.

 

[Busch]

I had a Rav4 with the same type of clog. All I needed to do is remove the door sill plate to access the interior fascia fastener. There was a clear plastic tube behind it. I disconnected it, wiped off the end, and blew into it ( hold the jokes please). A mini volcano-like spew blew out from beneath the windshield wiper grill with small debris. The accumulated water then flowed through the tube normally. Just be quick to point it away from your face and floorboard.

 

[Conrad 16.5]

I soaked up as much as I could, have a fun going, and leave all the windows down. I have an appointment to take it into the dealer tomorrow morning. Depending on the diagnosis and if they cover it, I have a friend who has a shopvac that I will take it to. Really hoping that they cover fixing this, even if it's just a clogged HVAC unit. Thanks for the help.

You have already observed mold in your car on the first day that you noticed the issue, which means that it's been going on longer than just the one day at this point.

"I noticed a little spot of white mildew/mold when I grabbed something out of my car (gross)."

The carpet is still wet after at least four days, including today. The mold has been growing and growing and you have not yet used a vacuum to suck up the water? Your dealer is not going to be able to perform some sort of magic act on your carpet to remove the water, the mold, and the smell (if there's no smell yet, there will be soon enough).

YOU should have been all over this as soon as it was discovered and worried about warranty coverage later.

Depending on the cause of the leak, it could be covered under warranty, what if it isn't? In that case, it's all going to be on you, and it might be too late now to get this mess cleaned up right. It's not just the carpet that's wet, everything under the carpet is also most likely wet.