my apologies if this has been covered, i've been trying to find what i'm missing, but starting to think it's just such an obvious answer nobody bothered to ask it...

what is supposed to stop the water from entering where the red arrow is? water(or anything that can fit through a 1/4" hole) is coming in through that opening, then pooling near the blue arrows and soaking my trunk.


the seal seems to be in pretty good shape, but is water really not sealed off at the lock cylinder? this seems like a crazy design if water is allowed to get in under the decklid, and pool all around the outside of that trunk seal. what am i missing?

Water should drain out where the red arrow is (unless someone sealed it up).
Normally there's a gap between the bodywork and the metal trunk below the trunk seal.
Pull the seal back in the area to check that it is open.
It IS the low spot where water will flow to and out.


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[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 09-16-2019).]

I suspect the water is ponding and then flowing over the weatherstrip. Try adjusting the trunk lock hasp and the bump-stops on the trunk lid to get a tighter seal. The bump-stops will screw in or out and the hasp will move up or down . It worked for me.

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Mike in Sydney

quote Originally posted by fierosound: Water should drain out where the red arrow is (unless someone sealed it up). Normally there's a gap between the bodywork and the metal trunk below the trunk seal. Pull the seal back in the area to check that it is open. It IS the low spot where water will flow to and out.

hmm. that area where the red arrow is, is definitely not a 'low spot' on my car. it just seems odd to me that it's so 'open'.

i'll take a look for a gap, but obviously i do have a problem. the trunk was soaked after i washed the car

EDIT: ok, i think i see what you are talking about with the lock cylinder. it seems that my issue is where the blue arrows are. if i pour water where the red arrow is, it drains onto the floor. if i pour water where the blue arrows are, it drains into my trunk.

[This message has been edited by fierce_gt (edited 09-16-2019).]

quote Originally posted by fierce_gt: EDIT: ok, i think i see what you are talking about with the lock cylinder. it seems that my issue is where the blue arrows are. if i pour water where the red arrow is, it drains onto the floor. if i pour water where the blue arrows are, it drains into my trunk.

It should flow around to the back of the car.
Sounds like someone may have siliconed something up or "D" plates aren't in right.
Someone had same problem:
https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/000194.html

[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 09-17-2019).]

To find my leak in the trunk the only way I found it was when it was dry was to spread Talcum Powder around the seal and outside the seal area. Close the trunk and run water all around it and follow the white line that will lead into the trunk.

[This message has been edited by 1Packrat (edited 09-17-2019).]

oh there's no doubt where it is(there might be more, but i KNOW it's leaking from the sides). I guess I'll pull back the trunk seal and have a look to see if the gap has been sealed up.

I have to say though, this seems like a really sketchy design. I'm honestly kind of shocked that the intended path is to have water flow under the decklid, and around the trunk. Like the trunk isn't at all sealed, it's just relying on the water never pooling up.

Uhhh, most cars have a panel gap between the trunklid and the quarter panels. Water is allowed to enter the gap; water must then be drained from the channel below the gap. Typically, the water is drained towards the rear of the car.

For example, see a recent Toyota Corolla:


But it's not just the Corolla; this trunk sealing setup is quite universal.

A little bit older:


Same thing there.

In the case of the Fiero, the spaceframe (and its trunk) was clearly designed with the notchback body in mind. Since the fastback (and its higher-up decklid) was added later, they made the opening in the rear clip drop down to mate with a notchback's trunk. So that's a bit weird. The drop-down is obviously a consequence of a non-clean-sheet design, but today we can appreciate the parts commonality.

[This message has been edited by pmbrunelle (edited 09-17-2019).]

i guess i just never thought about it with cars that have trunks that aren't entered 'from the top'. And yes, i have only had notchies before, and that's the way it looks like it was 'intended'. the water actually runs around the trunk, not over the trunk(d-plates).

There is something messed up there.

Looks like the trunk corner has been notched out or something.



The D plates divert water to the side and out the back between the trunk and body.
That along with the gap at the back is hidden by the trunk weatherstrip.

[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 09-19-2019).]

yes, ok, so that's what i was wondering. If it's supposed to look the same as the left side, there's something missing.

Guessing i need to make some kind of 'dam' to act like the original?

i don't know if i'm reading too much into it, but the carfax report(actually just found it yesterday under the seat) says there was a collision at the right rear with an estimated repair cost of just over $2500. This was in 2007 and the vehicle has been registered several times since.

anyway, back to the fix. i have one of those like $100 stick welders. Being that this is pretty thin, non-structural metal, would that be sufficient to try and copy the left side. Or am I better off using a glue or epoxy? I haven't touched the welder in over 15 years, I was 'adequate' in skill back then, it might get messy.

quote Originally posted by fierce_gt: Guessing i need to make some kind of 'dam' to act like the original? i don't know if i'm reading too much into it, but the carfax report(actually just found it yesterday under the seat) says there was a collision at the right rear with an estimated repair cost of just over $2500.

Yup. The leaking problem is not the design of the car, but the quality of the repair that was done on that trunk corner.
That missing edge is what the trunk weatherstrip grabs onto. How would it even attach as it is?

Maybe someone with bodywork/welding experience can chime in on the best approach they would use to fix that.

[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 09-19-2019).]

Also where the blue arrow is, the plastic D shaped filler piece (that notchbacks don't have). There is sealer around these D plates. Mine also had a gap in the sealer. Appllying sealer around these D plates stops a leak. Its accessible for the most part from the bottom. I actually had mine in a dark garage and put a light on one side and could see the light through the gap. I dabbed permatex black over the gap with my finger, no more leak.

The other common leak is the spoiler mount bolt holes.

If water is getting under the trunk seal itself, I'd say put sealer betweente seal and the metal that water can't pass and put it back on. I would then leave the decklid open until it cures.

[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 09-19-2019).]

it seems to just be leaking from the area I identified, but once that's fixed I'll have to check the other areas just in case. right now it seems as though the d-plates are sealed ok, same with the spoiler bolt holes

you guys have been great help though. ID'd the problem much faster. now i just need to figure out how to best fix it. feel kinda dumb now, having talked about welding. went to take some better pics, and on closer look, realized it's just part of that 'd-plate' piece. so i guess what i need is to find a new one that's not broken. But since it's plastic, any kind of temporary fix(not sure how hard it will be to find that piece?) will need to be epoxied i guess


EDIT
Well, I tried a little arts and crafts tonight. Figured the end game is to locate a non-broken right D-plate. I'm not sure any 'repair' will be permanent. But while I'm locating that part, it would be nice to at least reduce the amount of the water in the trunk. I cleaned up the area and sifted through my pile of 'junk' to see if there was anything I could use. I found a plastic piece that seemed to have a similar bend, and was soft enough to cut without breaking it. So I trimmed it down to mimic the 'dam' that directs water away from that corner.

you can see it resting in place here:

I used some automotive 'goop' to glue it in place. It takes 24hrs to cure, so I'm just going to let it sit, then I'll go back in there and fill in any holes to make sure it's sealed.

I don't know if there's much i can do about the missing chunk of lip. The trunk seal is surprisingly secure despite it, but obviously there isn't a great seal there, so if the dam doesn't direct water away, it will be able to leak under the trunk seal there.

[This message has been edited by fierce_gt (edited 09-20-2019).]

well, the little detour seems to be doing the trick. time will tell how 'perfect' it is, but at least for the time being I can wash my car without removing the trunk liner.

thanks again. now on to the next issue...

quote Originally posted by fierce_gt: well, the little detour seems to be doing the trick. time will tell how 'perfect' it is, but at least for the time being I can wash my car without removing the trunk liner. .