Misting Up

[Gatewaya89]

Hi All

This is a really wierd problem that only happens when it rains! The problem is that the whole of the front screen drivers window and passenger window totally mist up when just sitting in traffic! one minute your driving along no problems pull up at a aprking space or traffic lights or traffis jam and suddenly within less than 5 seconds all screens to vehicle are misted up so much you can't see anything?

Have checked for any damp inside the vehicle but its bone dry front well and back floor! I have front screen demist button and when you turn it on it takes forverever to clean the front screen and side windows (In fact its quicker to wipe it)air con works perfectly but when you select demist that cancels that out anyway as it should? Looking for ideas as to where to start looking to solve this problem, Have noticed that on demist button engaged fan pumps out really fast on passenger side but is pretty weak overall but still isn't slearing front screen as fast as I would think it should work.

On a normal sunny day this isn't a problem but on wet days like today it became a problem when we were out shopping had to pull over in garage to allow window to demist some 20 mins later, then was alright driving home when it had cleared but the second I arrived home on to the drive and placed it in park to windows again all misted up fully again so you couldn't see outside the vehicle?

Any ideas from anyone would be help

Car has only got 48,000 miles on the clock its immaculate inside and out hence why I brought it drives amazing smoothas a baby's bottom pick up unbelievable just had all filters changed at 48,000miles and full service....So as I said any idea's anyone??

Ansley

[jeff1954]

Hi This to me sounds like a Climate Control / Air con problem. Try cleaning the little vent on the dash on the left hand side of the steering wheel. Use a small flat bladed screwdriver to prise the cover off.

Hope this is of some help.
Jeff

[Gatewaya89]

Hi have just about tried everything but problem is still here and not going away, Aircon has been checked and re-gased that seems to be working fine but the problem still remains unsolved as to what is the cause in fact there is a video link to watch the problem as it happens if anyone thinks they have the answer? if you want to see it send me your email address and I will send you the link to view?

[J44EAG]

My car tends to do that especially if your clothes are damp when you have just sat in the car.

I use the window setting on the heater controls and blast some heat around. That often cures the issue but atmospheric humidity can also cause the issue. If you have a heated front screen that is an added bonus. Its really a condensation issue.

Mike

[Gatewaya89]

Hi Mike

You really have to see the video its not just the front screen its all windows in the car front and back and sides! and its not when you get in the car in the morning or if you have damp clothes this happens when you are driving along merry minding your own business and then white out! the windows just start misting up very very quickly and if you don't pull over then you are going to cause an accident! I never seen anything like it! I was under the impression that by using your demist button then that should clear any misting up! but not in my car it doesn't it makes it worse I'm sure?....The sensors have been checked and the cabin is dry as a bone! also the filter in the engine compartment has also been checked and found to be as dry as a bone! so where all this water is getting in no idea?perhaps it may even been a fault front screen seal? who knows but its now back at the garage and up to them to sort it as its still under warranty thank god!

[J44EAG]

Possibly a hole in the heater matrix or other leak.

We had this on a Rover 820 years ago. Nasty smell of curry also!

We put two egg whites in the header tank and the problem was fixed. The car soldiered on for a few more years after that!

May be a small can of K-Seal might help. Used it myself. The RAC and AA use this stuff as a quick fix. Might be worth a try.

Mike

[Gatewaya89]

Hi All

Update on problem...Seems that the rear door seals have gone and carpets and foam completly soaked through hence misting up in cabin!(We hope) as I speak car being dried out and new seals being fitted on both rear doors should we hope clear this problem of misting up in wet conditions! Well done the guys at the garage for finding the fault and fixing it!

[J44EAG]

Ah, yes.

Any standing water in the car will of course do this. Similar effect to getting into the car with wet clothes on.....I should have remembered the wet carpet situation from an old XJS that used to steam up badly.

The seals are effectively just sheets of building grade membrane material. A sheet of the appropriate size is cut to the shape of the inner door and affixed with dum-dum type seal and glue applied from a silicon bathroom sealant gun. It is essential the sheet is stuck all around the door frame and around areas where bits and pieces poke through the membrane. The material allows any rain water to remain behind the door cards and drain down to the horizontal external sill and then onto the ground. If the seal is not right, the car fills with water! As a last resort wear wellies.

I suspect the door cards have been removed at some point for internal repairs such as new door locks or a broken window winder mechanism. Two hot tips here. NEVER slam the rear doors with the door glass down. The winder mechanism will break. Secondly Vaseline all window rubbers from time to time. This will stop the rubbers drying out and the glass slicking in the rubber channels. Failure to keep the window rubbers supple can cause premature breakage of the window wind mechanism. The operating cables are very small gauge stainless steel. Stainless steel is not good in tensile load situations. Over stretch it and it will break. A new winder mechanism will set you back abound £100. Grease the rubber channels and you will avoid replacement of drive units.

Mike

[Montana5]

I have a similar intermittant problem, though only slight misting up of rear Windscrean and mainly at night, I know the water is getting into the hollow of the Door Seal somewhere and dripping out onto the kickplate, (see pic2) then if really wet, spills over to rear Footwell Carpet.
I would have suggested this to you sooner but you clearly stated in your opening post that both front and rear Footwells were bone dry, let us all know which Seal the Garage replaced.
I know that there was a TSB for earlier Cars prone to this problem, it had the Tech realign the Chrome Kickplate after drilling a Drain Hole to let the water drain into the possibly already rusty Sill...crazy.





Doug.

[Gatewaya89]

Hi All


I did check both front and back carpets but of course they were dry it wasn't that which was soaked but the foam underlay beneath and as they said unless you removed all the cabin carpet you would never know there was a problem? As far as I know both rear door seal rubbers and splash plates (what ever they are?)have been replaced and foam has been dried out of the car also floor pan checked and dried should all be put back together next week hopefully and then perhaps the problem will now be fixed but I won't know this of course until it rains again and then we can check to see if it starts to mist up yet again? But I would say after drying car out and foam and replacing all rear door seals and splash back plates then surly this should keep the cabin dry and moisture free? shouldn't it?

[Martec]

I am also suffering from this misting up problem and as it is a pre 2002.25 car we don't have front screen heating elements. I drove home for 3 hours and parked up out side the garage, unloaded it and then as I was about to drive it into the garge it steamed up!!!!?????, I put the demisting blast on and turned the temperature control right down to 'LO' but it would not clear. Warm screen and humid air (if you have used a basic shot blast cabinet it all sticks together as the humidity increases).

The Focus does this and has heater elements, but our older cars (40 and 50 year old) don't steam up as much??

I need to look into the air ducting arrangement onto the screen.

Brian

[J44EAG]

This does seem to be a problem with the S-type.

The cleaner in our local Tesco store has a 2000 W reg car which he was keen to show me this morning. He too complained of steaming up and when I sat in the car, there was a definite smell of warm antifreeze present. Leaking/pinholed heater matrix? As I`ve said before, my Father had this issue on a Rover 820 that steamed up and smelled of curry. Two egg whites in the radiator sorted that out and the problem cured.

Perhaps better is a small bottle of K-Seal which the RAC and AA use. I sorted an unfindable coolant leak on J44 with a dose of this stuff. Perfect ever since.

Then of course we have the common standing water issue which can occur in the boot and on the passenger compartment floor wells.

Even when the model was fairly new on the market, the S-type could steam up even when the car was quite young. I remember my first V6 S on a W plate could and would stem up readily. I don`t think this is a new problem but it would certainly be good to find a root cause.

Mike