Cabin air filter soaking wet

[antho]

I was just pointing you to the thread. There is no attachment. @fordhouston

Sponsored

 

[VRFlyer]

Is Ford saying owners should be doing clean outs on that little hole as part of maintenance ? Does the owners manual mention it anywhere, hah!

It is a weird take by FORD, how many people wash/maintain their engine bays free and clear of dust, let alone leave debris?

 

[UGADawg96]

It is a weird take by FORD, how many people wash/maintain their engine bays free and clear of dust, let alone leave debris?

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

It is a weird take by FORD, how many people wash/maintain their engine bays free and clear of dust, let alone leave debris?

more than you think……..

 

[Deleted member 22921]

I had the exact same cowl drain issue. Two years ago, I suffered through a waterlogged carpet under the passenger seat of my 21 F-150 SuperCrew FX4. The cabin air filter was fully soaked with water, and the entire wiring channel under the plastic door sill covers was filled with water from the front to the back of the rocker panel.

Greene Ford of Gainesville, Georgia fixed it all under warranty. They did an outstanding job.

One thing to note: the mechanic advised me not to park under trees.

I’m not able to stay away from parking under trees, so I make it a daily routine to check the top of the front wiper cowl grille cover for any leaves, stems, twigs, seeds, and other tree debris. If there are any, I use a leaf blower to blow them off.

Also: some of that pesky very small tree debris gets stuck right on those tiny drain holes under the windshield wipers. I vacuum these out.

I haven’t had any water leak problems since.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

So what is the community fix?

Do we all need to go drill holes into $50k trucks to fix a design flaw?

Every few months grab a gallon jug of water and pour it on the passenger side cowl and check the drain. If you see crap clogging the holes run a coat hanger, pick tool, or compressed air up in there to clear the drain out.

You could drill a larger hole to fix it once and for all, but it's not the easiest to reach.

 

[Snakebitten]

I'm forced to SEE under the hood often since I leave the hood up when I park in the barn. It might be there overnight. It might be there for a week or more.

The hood is up to prevent the engine bay from being an inviting place to nest, if you know what I mean.

So I see the dust that settles there.
And I see the two drain holes.
In fact I have seen the engine bay so often that it no longer looks as complicated and busy. (which it is)

Cleaning it up takes less effort than you might think. A spray bottle, a rag, and a few minutes to spend is all it takes.

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

So what is the community fix?

Do we all need to go drill holes into $50k trucks to fix a design flaw?

The fix is don’t park under trees

 

[Porpoise Hork]

The fix is don’t park under trees

Unfortunately that isn't always an option.

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

Unfortunately that isn't always an option.

then you will need to check the cowl and clear the drain. Can’t blame the debris upon Ford, talk to the trees and the parking location

 

[Porpoise Hork]

then you will need to check the cowl and clear the drain. Can’t blame the debris upon Ford, talk to the trees and the parking location

I do blame Ford for this. Not only is this a piss poor drain design but had they actually documented that these drains need to be checked cleared regularly in the owners manual, maintenance schedule or anywhere for that matter I along with multiple others would have been able to avoid the issues these drains cause in the first place.

 

[Kanuck]

I will have to add "check the cowl drains when washing truck" to my routine list...

 

[CoolCoyote]

Henry Ford is rolling over in his grave so fast he generates enough energy to power all of Ford's operations.

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

I do blame Ford for this. Not only is this a piss poor drain design but had they actually documented that these drains need to be checked cleared regularly in the owners manual, maintenance schedule or anywhere for that matter I along with multiple others would have been able to avoid the issues these drains cause in the first place.

All I’m saying is they cannot engineer everything for everything.

The choice of the owner to park underneath a tree creates a situation where a little bit of common sense must be applied. If you park under a tree, & you have leaves all over your windshield & around your wipers and cowl, it’s only common sense consider that some of the debris is going to get down into the cowl area. It shouldn’t take a step in the owners manual to accentuate that you need to clean this area of debris.

It’s the trees fault, it’s the owners fault, it’s the parking lot location fault.

are you the type of person that would take a toaster into the bathtub if it wasn’t for the warning on the toaster?

 

[Porpoise Hork]

While I do agree that they cannot engineer for everything but they sure as hell can at the very least bring attention to it in the documentation that it should be checked regularly. ESPECIALLY when you take your 60K 1.5 year old truck with just 12K miles on it with a flooded passenger floorboard to the dealer to get fixed and they deny warranty claiming it's a maintenance issue but cannot provide any proof from Ford that it is.

The design is faulty. You cannot properly clean area out due to how they designed it. Access is completely blocked off from the top. Even if you remove the plastic you are prevented from accessing the well to properly clean it. Instead have to resort to poking at it with a wire rod and hope you got all the debris out.

Sponsored