I have a 68 firebird that has the passenger kick panel removed. I was wondering if this being out, will cause water to enter the passenger side? Where is the drain for the water to go out up in that area? I am still removing leaves and stuff from that area due to the car sitting 6 yrs. The window was resealed and there was no rust around the front windshield. Thanks for a great site!
the typical drain is from the cowl thru that area to the bottom..both sides...the kick panel being out , I dont think would cause it to leak by itself, but the clogging of leaves will...prob. some leaves have deteriorated and make nice 'plugs' in the drain...just a good 'house cleaning' there should work.. you may look up "davey" ( not sure excactlywhich place he posted , but suspect this "tech help"...check some posting back..) w/ this similar problem , think he just got his fixed... Bjorn
Yes , it was "Davey" , you can see the post , last post was dec. 31 , its on pg 2 here on tech pages, maybe you can send a 'personal message'to Davey ( assume you know how, if not you click on the envelope w the guys next to it on the heading above the post, to do that), and he may be able to help you thru this, since he just did it.. Bjorn
Bjorn is right, it will drain (or the water will flow) down the cowl, and down the side, into that area, and there will be a drain slot for the water to run out, But, the kick panel vent is shrouded as it goes into this area and is about 4" - 5" deep, and then has a putty type of sealant to seal the kick panel vent area from this open area behind the fender...
So in most cases, you will be getting water inside the interior from this now open area. Weather it's splashing, or just flowing enough to get some water in there... it's bound to happen.
Try to get some of that type of sealant, and a sheet of plastic, and put the sealant around the inside of this area and see if you can temporarily seal it up... or at least slow the leak down?
But I'd say chances are good that this is the cause of the leak...
Yes it will leak, and quite a bit at that! Water runs down through the opening via the cowl. Be careful because it will make the carpet damp and when the evaporation process happens it can cause surface rust inside the vehicle on bare metal or cause mildew.
The best way to see for yourself is to stuff a towel in the kick panel hole and run a hose in the cowl very briefly, the water will drip from out of the kick panel hole.
What i'm doing as a temporary measure is putting large towels in the kick panel holes and letting them hang out a bit to grab the drips, and covering the cowl with a waterproof tarp. If it rains or you suspect the towel might be wet trade it out with a dry one because the towel holds moisture the same way the carpet would and cause surface rust/mildew.
I'm still working on mine but i'm determined to get an everlasting-super tight seal on the kick panels so they dont have to be removed for a lifetime =)
I would like to add that I just met a guy at work today who is a super duper body man and classic car show quality painter.... AND he has owned a couple of First gen birds and knows all about the body and all that! I'm one happy camper! I'm going to have both of my cars done by him!!!! woohoo!
does anyone have any recommendations on what type of sealent to use when installing the kick panels? I am gettingready to reinstall mine and am not sure on the stuff.
I used what was on there already, that putty type stuff. I removed what I could then made an edge around the whole vent. Just got done with my passenger side today and no leaks at all. Try to scrape off excess putty that has dripped on the back of the panel because it can prevent a tight seal.then make a decent edge around the vent and try to feel it squish into place when you re-install it and test it out. If you dont have the putty stuff that came on it then try to get something that squishes to make a tight seal.
Bjorn
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