Interior water leaks

115022 Views 540 Replies 168 Participants Last post by whiskerbiscuit, 9 d ago

Brew Carry

Discussion Starter · Jun 2, 2017

Moderator's note: More than a dozen threads on interior water leaks were merged on November 20, 2021. This is the correct thread to discuss interior water leaks. There is also a poll on the subject. Please use the poll thread only to answer the poll.

bought my G2 on June 29, 2016. Since then my floors have been wet after most rains. First time i brought it to Honda they said it was an improperly sealed grommet in the floor behind the driver seat. The second time i brought it in they had it for over a week and told be the body seam behind the cab was improperly sealed. Less than a month later the carpets were wet again and i brought it back. Honda has had it now for over a week. I was told that the body seam by the right front wheel well was improperly sealed also. The service manager told me the machine sealing the seam improperly sealed the seam with caulk. LET THIS BE A WARNING TO EVERYONE WHO HAS AN EARLY PRODUCTION G2, CHECK UNDER YOUR CARPETS. MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT GETTING ANY WATER UNDER THEM.

Reactions: 1

521 - 540 of 541 Posts

Solo

· #521 · 5 mo ago

Johnrini said:
I had the leak on the rear passenger side a year ago. It was repaired under warranty. They checked the entire rear cabin for more leaks at that time and found none. 1 month ago, the left rear leaked. Same issue. A bad seam. My concern is that these seams are "gapping" or similar as you utilize the vehicle. I am not sure how that is possible given that these seams are spot welded. The only conclusion I can come too is that the seam sealer deteriorated. It is a 2019. It was out of warranty but the dealership covered the cost. Of course a few small clips holding the trim on the interior of the vehicle and the bed trim was damaged in the process.

My '94 Civic developed a leak at the L/front, in that corner. It took me all weekend to find it, a weak weld/seam. The car was over 14 years old when this started.
So, yes. There is body flex going on. Any weak welds/seams may manifest as a leak.

Oliver1774

· #522 · 4 mo ago

Still thinking about purchasing a 2023 RTL. Is there any evidence that the leaking issues have lessened in the later model years? Probably not much data yet on the 2023 models?

thanks

Reactions: 1

zroger73

· #523 · 4 mo ago

Reports of water leaks haven't stopped, but they have become less frequent suggesting that Honda has made improvements in this regard.

Reactions: 1

RL Guy

· #524 · 4 mo ago

Oliver1774 said:
Still thinking about purchasing a 2023 RTL. Is there any evidence that the leaking issues have lessened in the later model years? Probably not much data yet on the 2023 models?

thanks

Here’s at least one account of it still occurring on the ‘23:

www.ridgelineownersclub.com

2023 RTL-E w/ indoor pool.

Hello, First time posting here, I unfortunately have recently joined the club of those with water intrusion, and mine is pretty bad. The entire carpet is soaked after the heavy rains we got in California, a little over 4k miles on the odo. The first sign was heavily fogged up windows on the...

www.ridgelineownersclub.com

www.ridgelineownersclub.com

DockingPilot

· #525 · 4 mo ago

And a macro ? micro ? Sample
My 23 is as dry as a Mormon

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Reactions: 1

SouthPawn

· #526 · 2 mo ago

DockingPilot said:
And a macro ? micro ? Sample
My 23 is as dry as a Mormon

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My 2023 RTL-E is in the shop a second time as the pads are soaked ... again.

Just to think, had the California rains not returned, I would have not had any idea.

Reactions: 1

Cleggy

· #527 · 2 mo ago

DockingPilot said:
And a macro ? micro ? Sample
My 23 is as dry as a Mormon

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Keep checking. As the body flexes and more miles are put on the truck, you may be affected..

DockingPilot

· #528 · 2 mo ago

I will.
Seems like easily preventable at the factory level.
Amazing this happens.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Reactions: 2

RL Guy

· #529 · 2 mo ago

SouthPawn said:
My 2023 RTL-E is in the shop a second time as the pads are soaked ... again.

Just to think, had the California rains not returned, I would have not had any idea.

Good luck. Hopefully your fix won’t take as long as mine. After 1.5 years, multiple trips to the dealer where they replaced the rear window (it was leaking too), missing seals, multiple field tech visits and attempts by the dealer to seal the seams, the visit to the body shop appears to finally have fixed my leaks (hopefully- crossing fingers!)

Ridgeline23MA

· #530 · 2 mo ago

I just found this thread, not because I have the issue and hopefully I won't. If I would have seen this prior to leasing my 23 RTL-E, I would have opted for a different truck. I wouldn't have even looked at a RL if I had known. I should have researched more deeply but every vehicle has something. My last vehicle had vibration issues but this one is just brutal. I lease/buy new vehicles to avoid trips to the dealer, not invite them. This is a lot of truck owners with the same problem and the 20% poll results are scary. I'm surprised there isn't a class-action suit yet.

My truck is not garaged and one of the reasons I installed a very expensive hard-top tonneau cover was the keep the bed from taking on a lot of water. A few leaks here and there into the bed are expected, of course. It never occurred to me I'd have to be concerned about water in the cab.

I bought a moisture meter to have in the truck.

With over 500 posts, and all these dealer trips, I'm curious if there is a DIY solution anyone has tried and been successful with once they identify the leak location.

I understand owners want Honda and the dealerships to fix the problems, especially under warranty.

As I said, I lease/buy new to avoid repair trips, particularly Honda of all brands. If there was some fix at home I could apply myself, I would do that in a heartbeat, even if it cost money out-of-pocket to avoid 1, 2, or 10 trips to the dealer.

See less See more

Reactions: 1

Thopper

· #531 · 2 mo ago

The water leak issue is still a thing? Seemingly so, very discouraging.

SouthPawn

· #532 · 2 mo ago

Has anyone who has had the water leak had it successfully go away completely since they or the dealership stuck more goo in ? I've started wondering about the permanence of the fix they perform.

Specifically about how the dealership fixes it vs how the factory is supposed to apply it, and if it's even the same thing.

RL Guy

· #533 · 2 mo ago

SouthPawn said:
Has anyone who has had the water leak had it successfully go away completely since they or the dealership stuck more goo in ? I've started wondering about the permanence of the fix they perform.

Specifically about how the dealership fixes it vs how the factory is supposed to apply it, and if it's even the same thing.

In my case, Honda finally determined that a body shop needed to get involved. The body shop showed me pics of the work they did and they had to take the rear fenders off to get access to some of the joints- some of which had zero sealant from the factory. It’s been 3+ months and still dry so far. Time will tell…

Reactions: 1

Celltech

· #534 · 2 mo ago

SouthPawn said:
Has anyone who has had the water leak had it successfully go away completely since they or the dealership stuck more goo in ?

I check mine every few months and still dry. The areas you can see when you are under the truck look like a 6 year old just went wild with the goo...but who cares as long as it works. I think they got frustrated with having to take it apart 2 times and made damn sure it would not happen again.

Reactions: 3

Cookster72

· #535 · 2 mo ago

Since my second trip in October 22, the truck has remained dry.

Reactions: 1

RogersRTS

· #536 · 2 mo ago

SouthPawn said:
Has anyone who has had the water leak had it successfully go away completely since they or the dealership stuck more goo in ? I've started wondering about the permanence of the fix they perform.

Thus far, mine has been dry since repaired, and has been parked outside for extended wet periods. However, as someone else mentioned, the rear fenders need removed to correctly seal the joints in the upper unibody frame.

RogersRTS

· #537 · 2 mo ago

Ridgeline23MA said:
I just found this thread, not because I have the issue and hopefully I won't. If I would have seen this prior to leasing my 23 RTL-E, I would have opted for a different truck. I wouldn't have even looked at a RL if I had known....

I understand owners want Honda and the dealerships to fix the problems, especially under warranty.

As I said, I lease/buy new to avoid repair trips, particularly Honda of all brands. If there was some fix at home I could apply myself, I would do that in a heartbeat, even if it cost money out-of-pocket to avoid 1, 2, or 10 trips to the dealer.

A couple thought come to mind:
1). On a new RL that is fully covered under base warranty, I would not do anything DIY. The most important aspect is Honda does not warranty against leaks past the base 36 months so look early and get it addressed formally by your dealer.
2). Your dealer, if they have any clue as to how this is actually fixed already knows that Honda's reimbursement for this fix is grossly inadequate and they will easily loose $1000's in shop income by actually fixing it. They will do as little as possible unless demands are made.

The simple fact that your truck is leased is an advantage in this situation. If it leaks and they don't fix it correctly, you will eventually have a smelly, moldy mess to return (i.e... dump in their lap) at the end of the lease. That fact might create some leverage. After all, on a lease it's technically their vehicle, not yours.

Reactions: 1

Ridgeline23MA

· #538 · 2 mo ago

RogersRTS said:
I would not do anything DIY.

Given the fairly significant changes and investments I've made already, it's a little bit late for that.

RogersRTS said:
The simple fact that your truck is leased is an advantage in this situation. If it leaks and they don't fix it correctly, you will eventually have a smelly, moldy mess to return (i.e... dump in their lap) at the end of the lease. That fact might create some leverage. After all, on a lease it's technically their vehicle, not yours.

Technically true, and I guess also technically, I could return everything to stock at this point for that purpose. Although, I don't think I could de-Dynamat the doors. That's the only thing I've done so far that can't be undone.

When leasing trucks, I generally make a lot of changes/upgrades and then buy it out in the last year of the lease, drive it for a while more, and then trade it in.

But, yes, the dealership doesn't know that and the lease would be reasonable leverage, as would my state's new car lemon law, which requires 3 repair attempts in the first 15k miles, and then one final attempt, for an issue that either affects safe drivability or future value.

DockingPilot

· #539 · 2 mo ago

Does it actually leak ?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ridgeline23MA

· #540 · 2 mo ago

DockingPilot said:
Does it actually leak ?

Are you asking me?

Not yet, or not that I've seen, but given there is a 1-in-5 chance based on the polling on this board, and other owners with 2023 models are reporting it in real-time, it's definitely something I'm watching out for and concerned about having to deal with.

521 - 540 of 541 Posts