So, finally got a good go at the blocked duck bills (or drains) under the windscreen.

As well, I covered the exposed wiring which by the looks of it goes into the car interior.

Something I noticed, as I scooped this 'fine mousse' like composition of dirt out of the duck bills, I figured once torn apart it was very 'wire like', and thought it actually looked like a million spider legs...

Anyway, onwards I went , covering up the wires. I used a hairdryer to get the wires all bone dry, and peeled a few bits of wiring loom off which were broken up, and soggy.

It was rotten, the old wiring loom tape stuff was rotten and just pulling off.

I thought it was worn down due to rubbing, but it seems the weather had made the material rot.

It's all neatly re-crafted now, and to keep the water out, I made an old bicycle tube cover it, held in by cable ties.

Hope that's the end of it, but has anybody else noticed that this could be what is blocking the drains? Really looks like the material clumping together in the duck bill drains.

Its mostly, dead leaves blocking the drains. They get into that space, get carried into the duck bills when it rains, where they lodge, block the drains and then rot down - so basically, compost! The bits resembling spiders' legs are likely the 'veins' of the leaves.

To prevent this happening, open the bonnet and clear away the whole leaves from the outer vent grille before they become dry, crack up and become small enough to fall into the inner space. (Avoid parking under trees too!)

it was the first thing i did to my 2010 1.1 eco panda which i bought last year the drains were filled solid with silt so a bit of prodding with a spoon handle got it loose then a good clean with soapy water had them nice and clear. I now check them every couple of weeks and have not had anymore blockages

I pull the rubber drain boots out of any car I have now since bumbles floor was like a swimming pool after a week of heavy rain last august whilst it was at the airport carpark. Since pulling the boots out I have never had a blockage since.

That works for water drains but the duck bills are there to stop engine smells entering the passenger compartment.

The easiest option is to blast some water though when you wash the car. Just be careful to not fill the heater air intake.

I'd love to know what the gushing of water noise is when I start the car right enough.. anybody ever gotten to the bottom of that?

dry foot wells.
No bottles in the car

Hmmm

SB1500 said:

I'd love to know what the gushing of water noise is when I start the car right enough.. anybody ever gotten to the bottom of that?

dry foot wells.
No bottles in the car

Hmmm

Click to expand...

usually a sign of trapped air in cooling system

more common in 16V punto's - which are tricky to bleed

varesecrazy said:

usually a sign of trapped air in cooling system



more common in 16V punto's - which are tricky to bleed

Click to expand...

But we've bled and bled and bled it :-(

And hot air comes out the vents.

What should I try now?

what level mark is it at..?

I always run it to the MAX mark.., and not had "sloshing" with mine..,

It's at Max or a small bit under. We even had it overfilled slighly and spent ages siphoning it out to MAX :-(

My 1.2 8V has a vent screw in the hot hose to heater. Leave it open while filling the cooling system. Run the engine then allow to sit for an hour and release any air that collects. That should be enough.

It's a plastic screw so be careful.

Okay, today this is what I did:

Before starting the car, undid the bleed screw. Squeezed it to see if any air came out, none. Fluid came out.

Checked my level, it's down a bit (we had it at max a few hundred miles ago / two weeks ago). Filled it to around max using the dipstick method.

Ran the car to temperature whilst in neutral stationary. Hot air came out the air vents the whole time (and the past few weeks too).

Checked the bleed screw, and coolant came out straight away, tightened it back up again.

Is it all fine now?


p.s. noticed there must have been a pressure blow around the lid of the expansion tank down by the radiator as I can see coolant coloured splashes around the area.... But we had it filled precisely to MAX back when it was last attended too, and as mentioned, hot air through heater since then.


Thinking this gushing water is the drain, as today it didn't happen. But when I was washing the car and water planed down the windscreen into the plastic drain holes the EXACT gushing noise happened. Also noticed only on wet days or soon after rain I hear this... gutter related?

This area in front of the screen collects silt and leaves and 'bungs up' depositing water over the drivers feet. It needs a proper clear out every 3-4 years. Tooth brush or bigger bottle brush to get the gunge out + hose blast out. When I had my SAAB I waxed this area so that the water would bead away from the electrics.