Land Rover Repair: Land Rover Discovery rear door leak, land rover discovery, water ingress

Question
Hi, my 2000 Land Rover Discovery II leaks at the top of the rear door. It is almost like a bath in the floorboard after a high powered car wash. It does have the rear wheel and ladder on the back. I have tried aftermarket rubber sealant and it seems to make it worse. Any suggestions? Thanks

Answer
Hi Evan,

first I would take a closer look at the tail door itself.  Is it hanging properly? Does the door close correctly? Perhaps the hinges are loose?  Can you tighten the hinges, even add a shim to make the fit tighter.

Next, I would examine the rubber seal (weatherstriping) around your tail door, try to find the area that is not pressing against the door frame.  If the rubber is too worn or not compressing properly, replace it. (salvage- www.car-part.com; aftermarket-Atlantic British; OEM -Dealer$)  

I had a simiilar problem that I solved by tracking where the water ingress was located, in my case the top corners of the tail door. A friend of mine gave me a piece of thick adhesive-backed expanded neoprene he used for his sailboat.  I was able to cut a pieces in such a way that it was concealed when the door closed on them.  It was only a matter of mm's but this tape did the trick.  But first, I made sure the door was seated correctly by adjusting the hinges - not an easy job!

3M has all sorts of industrial foam tapes that also could do the job.

As mentioned, I had trouble with the hinges on my Disco and had to shim the door to get the proper fit. The door was slightly scraping against the bumper and there was some water leaks.

This is a two-man job that requires a great deal of patience. I was able to adjust the hinges and tighten the bolts onto a a piece of tape I had cut out.  It did not take much to change the way the door closed.  Once the tail door was closing correctly (no scraping against the bumper) I was able to apply the neoprene tape and this seal remained for many years after.

Here's a couple of websites that can help:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5531316_repair-car-door-seal.html
http://www.diybuildingandrepairs.com/auto-repairs/how-to-repair-car-weather-stri...

You also try www.discoweb.org and look for water ingress in both the forums and the technical sections.

Best of luck,
JohnMc