[Fulton-722]

How do they "pressurize the cab" ?

Since a cab is not normally pressurized, why would they do that since it seems that a pressurized container would be LESS likely, or impossible, to leak from the outside of the container ? ? ?

 

[Fulton-722]

... so if we seal the 10 drain holes at the front of the bed, and the two open 1/2" x 4" slots just below the left & right edges of the rear window, would this keep water out of that area pictured where it can leak into the rear floor area of the cab ?

 

[Fulton-722]

This will work !

 

[Fulton-722]

Water intrusion is tough to nail down because it is so dependent on environment and the vehicle’s attitude when exposed to rain or water. Given the design, it appears all trucks have a potential to leak. Minor leaks are likely never noticed. It’s only stank or fogged windows that get folks looking for the source. The trucks with major leaks are probably rare and major leak events in those trucks are also rare. The leaks are noticed days after the leak event when stank or fogged up windows prompt a look for a leak. And since major leaks are highly dependent on how the truck sits wrt gravity, they can be very difficult to diagnose. I’m sure the dealers hate this. Not sure they get paid by Honda if they take time trying to confirm a leak and can’t get it to reoccur in the shop.

While the above is true, if Honda design engineers put more emphasis on eliminating water intrusion, and Honda assembly line personnel were more attentive to detail when applying sealants, etc., the vast majority of water related problems could be eliminated. Any vehicle just off the showroom floor that leaks is not acceptable !

 

[Fulton-722]

Cbayman, from your observations, if the 8 front center most bed drain holes were sealed, and the 2 front outer most holes were left open, and the drain slots at the top of the bed (just below the left & right edge of the rear window) were sealed, would this eliminate the majority of the water (coming from above the truck) from getting to this problem area ? Thanks !

 

[Fulton-722]

Klossfam, any pictures that you can share ? Thanks.

 

[Fulton-722]

OK ... your description of the problem area helps ! Thanks anyways.

Hope they get yours fixed. I have a 2021 Sport, so there is no rear sliding window on mine, and no moon roof ... another potential area for leaks.

 

[Fulton-722]

Got the truck back Friday morning. Have had a few heavy rains and no puddling yet. So hopefully it's resolved. The service advisor was wrong, it was not sealed from the inside but from the outside by removing the bed liner covers. It was a higher passenger side seam leak towards the upper corner so they said.

They did not replace the carpet and caused multiple other small damages to my truck while repairing the leak. Overall not impressed with the execution but if it's not leaking water it's a step forward for now.

You said that they "caused multiple other small damages to my truck".

Are you accepting these "small damages" ? Did they acknowledge that they messed up your truck ? Are you going to pursue having the Honda dealer fix them ?

 

[Fulton-722]

They brought in an expert from Honda and they still had to guess and test at which seams needed sealing for three weeks?


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Did the "expert" consider sealing ALL the seams, where water entry was a possibility, while they had your Ridgeline torn apart ?

 

[Fulton-722]

Did they happen to say if they’ve seen this problem before or repaired any in the past?


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Let me guess the answer: They never heard of Ridgeline's having water intrusion problems !

 

[Fulton-722]

So after the second “repair” and about a month of total time at the dealership, the leak is still not fixed. I checked this morning and the floor is soaked again!

I have tested my 2021 Ridgeline Sport sitting outside during rainstorms, with the garden hose, driving in the rain, etc., and I have yet to find any infiltrated water, so I believe my Ridgeline does not leak; however, the precautions that I took prior to having any water issues: 1) sealed the open slots at front top bed corners, 2) taped the front 8 innermost bed drain holes closed, 3) installed a tonneau cover, MAY have helped to keep any water from infiltrating the interior ! ! !

The North Mountain soft tonneau does allow a minimal amount of water into the bed (mostly at front below rear window), and a little at the sides; however, the water that does enter into the bed does NOT create any problems with stuff in the trunk (since it remains perfectly sealed & dry), and just a little water at the low bed floor channels allows stuff in plastic crates to remain dry.

I would try the above measures if I found water in the interior of a Ridgeline BEFORE I would take it to a dealer and allow them to touch my vehicle.

 

[Fulton-722]

Great pic D.T. !

Would like to see one similar to that of the rear cabin wall (from the inside) with seats & carpeting removed.

 

[Fulton-722]

In my opinion, if Honda would not have included those damn open slots (at each end of the molding pieces immediately below the rear window) in their design, and only had 2 holes in the bed floor (at each front bed wall corner), instead of 10 holes across the front of the bed floor that direct water onto the rear outside area of the cabin wall, and which eventually finds its way inside the rear cab and onto the floor, this water infiltration problem would be minimized.

 

[Fulton-722]

do you have pics of those open areas? Just curious. Thanks.

Pics attached.

Right Corner:

Left Corner:

Left Corner after silicone, then tape applied, and finally a North Mountain tonneau:

I have since slightly adjusted the tonneau cover about a half inch forward towards the window, covering more of the black tape. The pictures make the silicone application look very sloppy ... in reality it doesn't look that bad, and is much smoother !

 

[Fulton-722]

Fulton, that tape looks reasonably good. where Did you get it? How thick is it?

Gorilla Waterproof Patch & Seal tape (Lowes, Amazon, etc.). About 1/16" thick. Once it's in position, it's not moving.

 

[Fulton-722]

Question... Do you think this thing would work? I'm sick of thinking/fretting/being paranoid about "water intrusion". The little sensor part could go under the carpet behind the back passenger seat...and would set off an alarm if water hit it.

water detector, thin sensor.

I suspect it would work since I have a similar device that is part of my security system that detects any water on my basement floor (from water heater, infiltration, etc.). I have tested mine, and it only takes a small amount of water between the contacts to set the alarm off.

 

[Fulton-722]

Update: Spoke with deal yesterday , they stated, repaired all the leaks and need to keep my RL an extra day as they wanted to do more water test to be sure. Should have it back this afternoon - they stated there was no charge , I guess they realized it wasn't done right the first time.

The dealer should have realized that it wasn't "done right" at the factory when your vehicle was originally built, and the shoddy factory workmanship resulted in a situation hidden from your view.
In my opinion, this should be a totally free repair due to Honda's negligence.