Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms So how far have you driven your Morgan?

Around 3,000 to 3,500 miles a year over my 12+ years of ownership.

I can't believe that can't be cured. One way or the other it should be possible to track it down. There are only so many possibilities.

Windscreen seal, and or windscreen heater wire hole,
windscreen mounting bolts,
bonnet hinge fixing screws,
wiper spindles,
washer jets,
heater box,
then under the bonnet:
heater box drain which spills onto the panel above the footwell and from there can enter through various fixing points, including under the ECU box,
water getting under the ECU box and passing the rubber wiring grommets.

Perhaps the entry point can be found by sitting the car under a garden sprinkler after putting paper towel in a lot of strategic points and then checking to see which is wet. The dash could stay in for this but with the lower plastic cover removed to get access. Of course the garden sprinkler idea won't work if there needs to be wind pressure to force the water in somewhere. In that case a drive in the rain with the paper towels in place may produce a result.

Could you put a smoke tester in the footwell and see where it comes out?

There are companies that specialise in water leak detection, it might be worth contacting one to see what they can do?

Mine leaked very badly at the seam between the scuttle and the firewall. Water hit the windscreen, ran over the scuttle, under the bonnet, and got down behind the firewall. Then it ran along the wood frame until it got to the sloping section of the firewall that forms the top of the footwell and ran forward until it got to a bolt, where it would drip off.

For months I thought it was coming through the bolts before I sussed out what was happening. I ended up putting nearly half a bottle of Captain Tolley's into the seam, I would trickle a bit in every morning and evening, and repeated it for a full week.

There's still a tiny leak from somewhere, but nowhere near as bad as before. I think it's coming through the air intake for the heater.

Peter....it’s all down to the shape or profile of the top of the scuttle. It is too flat and as it doesn’t follow the curvature of the windscreen frame, the rubber seal does not sit firmly down on the centre of the scuttle. The only cure, apart from bodging with loads of filler is to reform the top of the scuttle. I’ve seen a few cars go through the factory with the same problem so it’s not just down to my car. It’s just bad quality control....it must have been pretty obvious to the guys in Trim that the screen did not seat properly.

Presumably you've tried putting a bead of silicone sealant along under the windscreen frame to seal it?

Or even a shredded copy of Miscellany or two, maybe..?

I have seen the silicone from an earlier attempt John made to fix the problem. I had assumed it must have been coming in somewhere else.

My new windscreen does have this problem to a small degree which just goes to show that the bottom rail of the windscreen can be a variable too.

If a replacement glass could be fitted perhaps a frame, without glass in it, could be "massaged" to fit better and then a new glass cut and fitted.

If John can get hold of the frame of a broken windscreen from somewhere it might be a possibility worth pursuing.

Raises two questions for Morgan: 1. why can't they improve the quality control of the shape in this area, and 2. if they can't why don't they have an (a) and (b) type screen so as to choose the one which gives the best fit.

or 3. Why can't they improve the seal design? It would appear that the current seals are unable to conform to the scuttle shape, so why not extend the forward-pointing lip so that it is deeper and with a thinner leading edge that could be stuck down with a non-setting mastic. I use a good smear of vaseline on mine, but I'm sure something better could be found.

Ok, since this has become a discussion about driving in the rain, I will state for the record that I drive with the top up most of the time, rain or shine (in winter). Driver’s side screen removed, of course. There, I’ve said it!

Shame on you.