65 Cutlass 442 trunk water leak question

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Old December 9th, 2020, 12:41 PM
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65 Cutlass 442 trunk water leak question

Hello everyone, having a hard time detecting where water is coming into the trunk. All weather striping is in nice shape and as is the trunk lid. When I wash the car I will find water under the trunk mat. its set up for storage now, my next step would be to climb in the trunk , close it and watch for any leaks. All of the trunk floor pans have been replaced, thanks Jerry.
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Old December 9th, 2020, 12:55 PM
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Yup, the next step is to lay in the trunk with a good flashlight while someone sprays water with a hose.
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Old December 9th, 2020, 12:55 PM
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It could be coming in from the rear window not being sealed properly?
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Old December 9th, 2020, 01:46 PM
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Originally Posted by harleyrules
It could be coming in from the rear window not being sealed properly?
This ^
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Old December 9th, 2020, 02:43 PM
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You say the weatherstrip "looks" good, but does it actually seal? The easy way to test this is to cut a bunch of 1" wide strips of newspaper, place them over the weatherstrip, and close the trunklid on them. If you can pull them out, the weatherstrip isn't sealing properly.
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Old December 9th, 2020, 03:01 PM
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Thanks everyone for the replies, Didn't know about the newspaper test, thanks Joe. It was a little strange as the water would puddle under the mat. We will have to wait until spring to find out, again thanks.
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Old December 9th, 2020, 10:04 PM
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Never use the rubber mat in trunk. It builds up moisture. Take it out in storage. Or wash the car then dry it out for storage.
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Old December 9th, 2020, 11:02 PM
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Originally Posted by Gerald Nickels
Never use the rubber mat in trunk. It builds up moisture. Take it out in storage. Or wash the car then dry it out for storage.
THIS ^^^

If you have a heavy factory-style rubber mat and any kind of a humid climate, those puddles might just be from condensation.
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Old December 10th, 2020, 09:55 AM
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Last edited by jerry63; December 10th, 2020 at 10:00 AM.
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Old December 10th, 2020, 09:59 AM
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I have an after market rubber trunk mat in it, Didn't realize that it was the problem. Do you think this is one of the issues why so many trunk pans rusted out on 65's. Thanks.
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Old December 10th, 2020, 05:21 PM
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Originally Posted by jerry63
I have an after market rubber trunk mat in it, Didn't realize that it was the problem. Do you think this is one of the issues why so many trunk pans rusted out on 65's. Thanks.
Didn't say it was the problem, just that it might be. Take it out of there and see if things dry out.

As for heavy factory rubber mats being the cause of rusty trunk pans in '65s, all I can say is, they probably didn't help matters any. GM used this style of trunk mat for many years over many models.
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Old December 11th, 2020, 01:25 PM
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The problem was the rear window leaking then the water trapped by the rubber mat rusted out the floor.
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Old December 12th, 2020, 02:03 PM
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Check the seals around the taillights.

Best way to find the leak is to climb in the trunk with a flashlight. Have a helper spray the car down with a hose, look for the water leaking in.
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Old December 12th, 2020, 08:46 PM
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I had a 65 Sport Coupe 442 that had the same problem. Found out the trunk lip was bent down too deep to let the seal keep out water. A little hammer and dolly work fixed the problem.
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