Wet Electrical Connectors
 

Have a 2008 Aspen 5.7 Hemi with just over 120, 000 miles that up to now has just had the normal problems, brakes, rotors etc., etc.

That said a week ago we had Post Tropical Storm Artur dump on us, I mean really dump and afterwards virtually every indicator light on the dash went nuts, flashing on and off, the cruise wouldn't work (no indicator light) nor would the readouts from compass etc. After doing some research here came to the conclusion it was probably as a result of water getting into fuse boxes or relays so pulled them all and checked them all, both in car and under hood. Which was kind of confirmed in that the drivers side carpet was absolutely drenched under the pedals. Never did find any blown fuses etc and after 2 days of sun and driving everything sorted itself out and worked fine. Till today. Today had another heavy rain and it started all over again only this time seems to be worse. No wipers, turn signals, no radio/nav and every indicator light on. Also takes about 4 to 5 trys to get it started and even then its like there is a lag between turning the key and it starting.

Now my question, is it feasible for all the above to be caused by a water leak and if so what can I do to dry things out and try to keep it from happening again. Saw ref to the "junction block" in a similar problem, where is it?

Thanks in advance for help.

Regards

FCPO

Update: After the rain finally stopped this morning opened up the area by the inside fuse panel, and as indicated somewhere else in the forum, it was soaked as was the carpet under the pedals. So took everything apart, dried it as best I could (heat gun) and put it back together and everything now seems normal, except I still have no idea where the water is coming from. As it has been raining on and off, put mats over where body and door come together, still wet, checked to see if I can find any "drainage channels" which I can't, and cleaned the area immediately under the hood, or the area I can reach. Still leaking. When the area is wet it appears to be dripping directly down from the top, from under the very left of the dashboard. Is there something under the cowling that covers the windshield wiper arms that I need to clean? Or can anyone tell me where else it might be coming from and how to stop it?

Again appreciate any advice.

Regards

FCPO

Your sunroof's drain lines are likely plugged. If they are, water will run down your A pillars when it rains and short things out pretty much exactly as you described. Compressed air is the cure. :)

Thank much for the help. My only question now is, where are they, how do I find them? Once I locate them is it just a matter of blowing them through?

Thank you again.

FCPO200

If you open the roof and look on the inside of the frame, you should be able to find the drains. I haven't needed to clean mine yet, but most people that have reported on this stated that they used compressed air with good results -- literally just blowing air through the line from the sunroof drain down.

Some people test them afterwards to make sure they're draining properly. The drains terminate behind your tires in the wheel wells. Park on a dry surface, blow them out, put some water in the sunroof rail and look for water on the pavement. :)