Spilled water in the trunk

juyeop · 10-20-2014, 06:57 PM

Hey guys, I'm newbie here. I drive 2013 128i auto. I actually spilled a big chuck of water in the trunk last wed. I quickly wiped out water that accumulated in the battery compartment and on the carpet that covers the battery compartment. I didn't care about drying it in the sun to be stupid (yes, I'm that stupid I guess). day after that, I drove some miles and checked if it's all dried up. there was still water in the battery compartment about inch height pooling around the battery, so I wiped out those water again. Next day, same thing happened, so I wiped out again. This is when I realized I really need to dry up the carpet, so I tried to dry up the carpet that goes in the middle and I wasn't able to deal with the carpet on the side. Today, I went to a dealership and I wanted them to see if everything is dried up and any electricity got wet, but they said the water you see is probably from below the battery where it is holding and even though water is somewhere else, there is some protection for electrical part to be blocked from water. Therefore, I was kinda kicked out by them. I don't know what to do now. I mean I don't have any tool or knowledge to take things apart to check. My question is. Is it probably okay by now since I haven't gotten any problems associated with it? If anything happens because of possible remaining water, what is likely symptoms? any advice guys?

Mach1er · 10-20-2014, 08:13 PM

I had comfort access die because of water in the trunk.

juyeop · 10-20-2014, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mach1er

I had comfort access die because of water in the trunk.

I'm sorry that happened. I mean if something can break down because of water in the trunk, why isn't my dealership unwilling to take a look at it to see everything is alright? I don't get it....... can I ask you about how long did it take you to have that not working after you spilled the water??

Mach1er · 10-20-2014, 08:49 PM

Technically, water got in the trunk from the tail light seal failure, so it was fixed immediately under warranty. I'm not sure where the CA control box is located, but it's somewhere in the trunk. If you have CA, you will notice when it doesn't work. Mine shorted out completely. I would be worried about mold more than anything if I were you. Dry things out really well.

zx10guy · 10-21-2014, 06:15 AM

I had both my comfort access module and the junction box fail due to water in the trunk. Both were replaced either under warranty or by dealer concession where the dealer ate the cost. The reason being was the dealer found water in the junction box which probably shorted out the comfort access module too. They tried to find the source of the water but couldn't. I didn't realize there were so many electronics in the trunk as I had two bottled waters in the right cubby area in the trunk. The dealer initially thought the source of the water was from the bottled waters leaking. But they found the bottled waters were not leaking and were unopened.

We all surmise the issue was when I brought my car in to their body shop to fix a minor ding in the rear bumper cover. I guess somewhere in the process, the car was washed down and that's when the water got into the trunk. Hence, the dealer having to figure out if the water damage was due to an issue in manufacturing (ie leak some where which they never found) or due to the body work done. Either way I wasn't coming out of pocket for it as it wasn't due to my negligence.

edisapimp · 10-21-2014, 07:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mach1er

Technically, water got in the trunk from the tail light seal failure, so it was fixed immediately under warranty. I'm not sure where the CA control box is located, but it's somewhere in the trunk. If you have CA, you will notice when it doesn't work. Mine shorted out completely. I would be worried about mold more than anything if I were you. Dry things out really well.

It's right by the antenna. I can see mine when the top is going up or down.

As for OP problem. If you just spilled it in on the carpet it shouldn't cause you much headache. If the structure of the car is unchanged it should not be a problem going forward. Believe it or not in my e46 I inadvertantly spilled an entire 5quart container of 0w40 Mobil 1 into my trunk (bottle was opened in the store and I got the lucky one), and I had to replace the carpeting, but after I looked at how it drained through the spare/tool area, I cleaned the crap out of it with about a 12-roll pack of paper towels and some Dawn soap, and it's gone another 67k without issue since then.

juyeop · 10-21-2014, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zx10guy

I had both my comfort access module and the junction box fail due to water in the trunk. Both were replaced either under warranty or by dealer concession where the dealer ate the cost. The reason being was the dealer found water in the junction box which probably shorted out the comfort access module too. They tried to find the source of the water but couldn't. I didn't realize there were so many electronics in the trunk as I had two bottled waters in the right cubby area in the trunk. The dealer initially thought the source of the water was from the bottled waters leaking. But they found the bottled waters were not leaking and were unopened.

We all surmise the issue was when I brought my car in to their body shop to fix a minor ding in the rear bumper cover. I guess somewhere in the process, the car was washed down and that's when the water got into the trunk. Hence, the dealer having to figure out if the water damage was due to an issue in manufacturing (ie leak some where which they never found) or due to the body work done. Either way I wasn't coming out of pocket for it as it wasn't due to my negligence.

so I guess there is a million ways of messing up with water present in the trunk. I hope that it is completely dried up by now. I'm just too worried that something major thing goes wrong later if I don't take proper action now.

juyeop · 10-21-2014, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edisapimp

It's right by the antenna. I can see mine when the top is going up or down.

As for OP problem. If you just spilled it in on the carpet it shouldn't cause you much headache. If the structure of the car is unchanged it should not be a problem going forward. Believe it or not in my e46 I inadvertantly spilled an entire 5quart container of 0w40 Mobil 1 into my trunk (bottle was opened in the store and I got the lucky one), and I had to replace the carpeting, but after I looked at how it drained through the spare/tool area, I cleaned the crap out of it with about a 12-roll pack of paper towels and some Dawn soap, and it's gone another 67k without issue since then.

Hopefully, I have no problems because of that in the future just like you. It's been 6 days since that incident happened. No issue so far except CD in my CD player thing skip tracks by itself which I think is CD problem, not CD player.

edisapimp · 10-21-2014, 01:18 PM

What's a CD? ::giggle::

juyeop · 10-21-2014, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edisapimp

What's a CD? ::giggle::

I know that's old thing lol.

zx10guy · 10-21-2014, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by juyeop

so I guess there is a million ways of messing up with water present in the trunk. I hope that it is completely dried up by now. I'm just too worried that something major thing goes wrong later if I don't take proper action now.

It's been fine for a few months now. My car became "that" problem car. Had everyone from the techs to the service managers looking at it. They were all scratching their heads and if it wasn't for the pictures I took of all the weirdness going on with my dash and the nav screen, they wouldn't have totally believed me.

Since then, I have driven through some serious rain storms and washed the car a few times with no issues.

Dackelone · 10-21-2014, 04:25 PM

You can go to any hardware store, Walmart or Target and buy a package that absorbs water. It is a package of those geltabs that absorb the water. Or you could try a tray or rice - to absorb the water(while parked). Remove the rice before driving!

I would also be running your AC(with the recirc ON!) to dry out the car.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...crystals%2Caps

juyeop · 10-21-2014, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dackelone

You can go to any hardware store, Walmart or Target and buy a package that absorbs water. It is a package of those geltabs that absorb the water. Or you could try a tray or rice - to absorb the water(while parked). Remove the rice before driving!

I would also be running your AC(with the recirc ON!) to dry out the car.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...crystals%2Caps

Thanks. I will try that tonight!

10-20-2014, 06:57 PM	#1
juyeop Second Lieutenant 93 Rep 230 Posts Drives: 13 STI & 13 E92 M3 Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: Florida iTrader: (0)	Spilled water in the trunk Hey guys, I'm newbie here. I drive 2013 128i auto. I actually spilled a big chuck of water in the trunk last wed. I quickly wiped out water that accumulated in the battery compartment and on the carpet that covers the battery compartment. I didn't care about drying it in the sun to be stupid (yes, I'm that stupid I guess). day after that, I drove some miles and checked if it's all dried up. there was still water in the battery compartment about inch height pooling around the battery, so I wiped out those water again. Next day, same thing happened, so I wiped out again. This is when I realized I really need to dry up the carpet, so I tried to dry up the carpet that goes in the middle and I wasn't able to deal with the carpet on the side. Today, I went to a dealership and I wanted them to see if everything is dried up and any electricity got wet, but they said the water you see is probably from below the battery where it is holding and even though water is somewhere else, there is some protection for electrical part to be blocked from water. Therefore, I was kinda kicked out by them. I don't know what to do now. I mean I don't have any tool or knowledge to take things apart to check. My question is. Is it probably okay by now since I haven't gotten any problems associated with it? If anything happens because of possible remaining water, what is likely symptoms? any advice guys?
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10-20-2014, 08:13 PM	#2
Mach1er Lieutenant 86 Rep 524 Posts Drives: '13 128i Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Austin, TX iTrader: (0)	I had comfort access die because of water in the trunk. __________________ '13 128i \| 6MT \| SGM \| Black Boston \| Black Gloss \| Lighting \| Premium \| Tech \| HK \| Anti-Theft \| [CDV-Delete \| Clutch Stop \| 30% Pinnacle] Ordered 2.23 \| Production Begin 3.7 \| Ends 3.15 \| Released to carrier 3.18 \| At port 3.19 \| Departed 3.23 (K-line to Brunswick) \| Arrived 4.7 \| Truck 4.12 \| Dealer 4.19
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10-20-2014, 08:49 PM	#4
Mach1er Lieutenant 86 Rep 524 Posts Drives: '13 128i Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Austin, TX iTrader: (0)	Technically, water got in the trunk from the tail light seal failure, so it was fixed immediately under warranty. I'm not sure where the CA control box is located, but it's somewhere in the trunk. If you have CA, you will notice when it doesn't work. Mine shorted out completely. I would be worried about mold more than anything if I were you. Dry things out really well. __________________ '13 128i \| 6MT \| SGM \| Black Boston \| Black Gloss \| Lighting \| Premium \| Tech \| HK \| Anti-Theft \| [CDV-Delete \| Clutch Stop \| 30% Pinnacle] Ordered 2.23 \| Production Begin 3.7 \| Ends 3.15 \| Released to carrier 3.18 \| At port 3.19 \| Departed 3.23 (K-line to Brunswick) \| Arrived 4.7 \| Truck 4.12 \| Dealer 4.19
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10-21-2014, 06:15 AM	#5
zx10guy Brigadier General 5150 Rep 3,241 Posts Drives: 2013 135i Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: DC iTrader: (0)	I had both my comfort access module and the junction box fail due to water in the trunk. Both were replaced either under warranty or by dealer concession where the dealer ate the cost. The reason being was the dealer found water in the junction box which probably shorted out the comfort access module too. They tried to find the source of the water but couldn't. I didn't realize there were so many electronics in the trunk as I had two bottled waters in the right cubby area in the trunk. The dealer initially thought the source of the water was from the bottled waters leaking. But they found the bottled waters were not leaking and were unopened. We all surmise the issue was when I brought my car in to their body shop to fix a minor ding in the rear bumper cover. I guess somewhere in the process, the car was washed down and that's when the water got into the trunk. Hence, the dealer having to figure out if the water damage was due to an issue in manufacturing (ie leak some where which they never found) or due to the body work done. Either way I wasn't coming out of pocket for it as it wasn't due to my negligence.
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10-21-2014, 01:18 PM	#9
edisapimp Civil Rights Activist 115 Rep 949 Posts Drives: E46 Sedan, E88 Vert Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Long Island iTrader: (0)	What's a CD? ::giggle:: __________________ E88 Crimson Red Vert MSport 6MT - Listing your mods in your signature is lame. BMS DCI/MHD E30 Flash!!/AA Sport FMIC/VRSF CP w Tial BOV/VRSF 3" DPs/550i clutch w SPEC SMFW/Apex EC-7s/Whiteline RSFB/E92 M3 FCAs/Bilstein B12 Pro Kit/VRSF inlets
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10-21-2014, 04:25 PM	#12
Dackelone European Editor 10532 Rep 22,992 Posts Drives: N54 e82 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Bayern, Germany iTrader: (1)	You can go to any hardware store, Walmart or Target and buy a package that absorbs water. It is a package of those geltabs that absorb the water. Or you could try a tray or rice - to absorb the water(while parked). Remove the rice before driving! I would also be running your AC(with the recirc ON!) to dry out the car. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...crystals%2Caps __________________ Dackel's European Delivery Museum Guide
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