I called my Honda Dealer < the biggest in the Chicagoland area > and they don't know anything about the windows leaking. I also called Honda Corp customer service and they don't have a recall nor they will admit anything is wrong with the windows. So now, do we have to wait to see if Honda will have a replacement of the seals soon or should we get our swim suits on :D The rainy season is here and i don't want water on the seats and water within the driver side plastic panels.

P.S> My leak is comming from the little thin rubber seal flap above where the "B" pillar suppose it be. Anyone has the same problem like myself?

I am a bit confused. If your Element is leaking what difference does it make if Honda knows about it, as a defect, or not? As a consumer, you just want it fixed. I would suggest taking your car to the dealer and simply having them fix it. It really makes no difference if Honda has an official recall or not. Your car should not leak at all, and it does. Certainly the dealer cannot argue about this point. They have to fix it.

Jay i totally agree the window needs to be fixed but how??? Honda did not come out with a new thicker rubber sealant for our windows and you sure don't want to replace the rubber sealant with the present ones! For example if your car seats rocks, you sure dont want the same part that rocks also???

[quote:6f0217a1bc="Element"]Jay i totally agree the window needs to be fixed but how??? Honda did not come out with a new thicker rubber sealant for our windows and you sure don't want to replace the rubber sealant with the present ones! For example if your car seats rocks, you sure dont want the same part that rocks also???[/quote:6f0217a1bc]

I agree, but not all of the windows leak. Mine don't leak at all. Therefore perhaps replacing the seal with a new one might do the trick. I am just noticing that not everyone is having problems with the various things being discussed on this site. Maybe I am just lucky, or problems have simply not shown up yet, but I don't have one complaint at all with the car. No leaks, no rattles, no window cracks. Therefore, perhaps replacing the seal with a new one will work.

You may be right but i saw another thread that a head honcho at Honda saw the leak and was about to develope a thicker sealant for the windows. I guess i don't want to go to the Honda dealer twice, i may opt for the replacement when it comes in. My time is hectic and i am a very busy person. :P

Element: You are correct about going to any car dealer. It can be time consuming. Your car is brand new and you have at least a 3 year, 36,000 mile warrantee. You might as well wait awhile to see if anything else pops up and then get it all done at once. It is always a headache.

Somewhere in this forum are some previous posts by myself concerning my b-piller leak. My dealership told me that a designer from Element wanted digital pictures of my problem. They decided to replace molding/rubber and although it's much better, I'm still getting some water. I've told my dealership and am waiting to see what Honda-tech can come up with.

For all Element owners be aware of this. It seems to only happen when I park my E on a declining slope so if you never park it like that you might not know about this leak.

The worse part is that the leak seems to be mostly inside the door. I can see water halfway down rear door where trim changes color and there is a small space.

I not terribly worried about this problem, as long as Honda knows about it, so in the future when I got rust or frozen water problems they will come up to the plate and fix it.

I of course wish it wasn't there but other than that, my E doesn't have any other shake, rattle or rolls to speak of and I'm still hoping Honda can truely work out this small design problem.

The only problem i have is a very small drip or so called leak through my "B" pillar. So far, it only leaks when i washed the car this past Sunday and it was a small 1 by 1 inch square being wet on the corner of the driver side seat. When i open the driver and the back door i might see 1 or 2 drips on the plastic panel and the rubber seal that is pressed on the metal.

Petelement, when the dealer replaced the moldings/rubber, was it different or the same factory moldings you got with the delivery of the car??? I just wanted to know so i can tell my dealer if there is something out there for me :D

I was hoping it was a redesigned molding/rubber but I'd have to say it was the same. The dealership said it was more plyable so it would seal better but I'm not buying that.

Don't get me wrong by my tone. I hoping for a happy ending or at least like I said before that Honda be aware of this problem if it becomes something more in the future.

Overall I'd have to say that unlike other vehicles, the molding/rubber is a major component of the E and will have to be maintained like tires and probably replaced more often then in normal b-pillar cars.

I'd like to see them work a redesign that covers the whole top where the b-pillar is hooked. It kind of reminds me of the openness of the engine compartment. It seems that Honda decided on a few short cuts when they could of come up with better engineering. Maybe they're to detatched with Japan from being in the USA so long. Again, are you listening Honda, I still love your vehicles but we're watching you. :shock:

Thanks,

So i guess we shall have to wait on a new moldings to come out. It's no use going to the dealer and replacing the same leaking moldings. I hope Honda has something for us real soon.

[quote:f820cab98a="Element"]Thanks,

So i guess we shall have to wait on a new moldings to come out. It's no use going to the dealer and replacing the same leaking moldings. I hope Honda has something for us real soon.[/quote:f820cab98a]

I guess the question is, are all of the moldings now being used the same? I sincerely doubt if they are all identical, since most people don't have leaks. I am thinking that there were slightly different production runs of moldings, and some were defective and some were not. I just drove home in very heavy rain for about 100 miles and no leaks anywhere.

Jay did you check between where the "B" pillar suppose to be? It shows up beteen the metal and the moldings. Mines only leak when it's on a downward slope washing my car. I haven't expirence any leaks in heavy rain since my car is garage kept. It's not a bad leak but it's annoying and might rust out some door panel parts over time. I have no other problems with the car, except the leak :D

P.S. Water only shows up when i am either on a downward or upward slope???

[quote:6ce17e477f="Element"]Jay did you check between where the "B" pillar suppose to be? It shows up beteen the metal and the moldings. Mines only leak when it's on a downward slope washing my car. I haven't expirence any leaks in heavy rain since my car is garage kept. It's not a bad leak but it's annoying and might rust out some door panel parts over time. I have no other problems with the car, except the leak :D

P.S. Water only shows up when i am either on a downward or upward slope???[/quote:6ce17e477f]

Element: I just went downstairs and looked and looked for water to be where it shouldn't (but where the "B" pillar would be). I take it thru car washes and also wash it by hand and no water shows up. HOWEVER, I did notice something of interest. Notice the composite panels on the roof, of the car, above the doors. Notice where they join, there is a 1/8" gap with a lower level of composite. This is directly above where the two side doors come together, when closed. It looks to me that water could easily enter that area and gather on the top of the door seals. Maybe that is the area of your problem. Is this the area you are referring to?

This morning after a heavy rain last night, I found a pool of water along the floor on the drivers side. I looked everywhere but could not find the source. It seemed to be coming from behind the molding along the floor. My back windows leaked too! What's up with this?? 8)

[quote:54e620b4f8="Sunstoke"]This morning after a heavy rain last night, I found a pool of water along the floor on the drivers side. I looked everywhere but could not find the source. It seemed to be coming from behind the molding along the floor. My back windows leaked too! What's up with this?? 8)[/quote:54e620b4f8]

Did you drive the car in the rain? The reason I ask is that I have noticed that due to the plastic flooring, the water, from your feet after getting into the car in the rain, has no where to go so it pools up on the floor. Other cars have the carpeting to absorb water. The first time I noticed this was in the snow. The next morning I freaked out when I saw all sorts of water on the floor. It ended up being moisture and water I brought into the car when I climbed in. The floor boards are like a big plastic bag.

Nope, it was just sitting in the driveway, minding it's own business! I don't think I have ever gotten into it yet with wet feet! 8)

Jay Yes!!!!!!....... my source of the leak is the 1/8 gap where the front and back doors meet. It only leaks at the driver side and i have a slight puddle where the bottom foot trim is. The passenger side has very very tiny beads of water between the seal and the metel meets when i open the door, nothing major. I can wipe the seal with 1 finger and it dries out. I am making an appointment next week to see if the new trim < same as the old > will make a diffrence. I just cringle when it rains :shock:

Does anyone has the same problem as myself when you pop open the side windows and there is water between the seal and the window? Should i fix it or is it normal with side windows??? No water on the top of the seal, but it collects at the bottom of the window.

Wow, I've had no water leakage. But it doesn't rain much here in Portland, Oregon, so maybe I'm lucky.

I will definitely keep my eye on this, it could become a big problem, but there has not been a leak so far and I open all the doors at least once each day with all the family members getting to all their appointments.

[quote:dbd17be18d="Element"]Jay Yes!!!!!!....... my source of the leak is the 1/8 gap where the front and back doors meet. It only leaks at the driver side and i have a slight puddle where the bottom foot trim is. .[/quote:dbd17be18d]

I have done a bit more examination. If you open both side doors, on either side, you will notice a very thin flexible piece of "sealant" directly under the 1/8" gap we are talking about. It looks like it is only attached at one end and is quite a useless looking piece of rubber. I think that this thin piece is actually quite important to keeping water from moving around once it runs down this 1/8" gap. You might want to check to be sure this little piece is intact on the drivers side. Maybe I am getting a bit too analytical about this whole thing, but it seems we are making progress finding the source to your problem.

I have an appointment Monday morning to see if the tech can find the leaking problem. They are going to use a pressure washing technique but i don't think it's going to work. My leaks are caused by normal raining and using a regular hose to wash my car. I will post my finding on Monday :?

Another tid bit of information about this b-pillar leak. If you open up rear door and look down where the latch system is you should see an absorbant pad that Honda puts there. I found out about this from my dealership. I assume Honda tried many things to fix this sometimes small leak but couldn't come up with anything better than putting that pad there. Way to go :!:

From looking at it, I think they could of developed a piece of plastic that sits in that whole without getting in way of the hook part of the latch. Then I water could not go down the b-pillar.

And to clarify when I do get a leak. It's only when I parked in a downward angle and the car is sitting in the same place during a large rain storm. Pressure washing does not create the problem. I sure putting the E in a downward position and running a hose from back of E would recreate what's happening.

I glad to have a few other people using there nogen to work out this problem. The best answers could be emailed to Honda. Maybe they need E owners who think "out of the box!" :wink:

Just came back from the dealer and they replaced the whole driver side seals. I also told them their is water between the seal and the side windows collecting at the bottom of the window and they reassure me it's normal < his mini van pop out windows does the same thing >. I will find out this Wednesday when it rains if the leak will go away :D


P.S. The dealer did the pressure wash and they replaced the seals with no resistance because when i picked up my car, the driver side seat belt was all wet!

Came down Noah-style last night and no leaks for me! *phew*

Drew (http://www.arothman.com)

That's great Drew.....but did you check the pop out windows if you had any water between the seal and the window? Since it didn't rain today :cry: i have to wait until Friday too see if the dealer did what they suppose to have done.

Last night it rained heavy and there was a trace of water where the seat belt latch is and of course the seat belt was damp. Since the dealer replaced the whole driver side seal, the improvement is 85% better than before but still not 100% to my satisfaction :evil: I hope Honda will fix this problem so now i have to wait for a better solution!

I just called Honda and they gave me a case number and a engineer will give me a call in 3 to 5 business days. I sure don't want a rusted out door when my 3 year/36 miles warranty expires The pop out windows still collect water between the seal and the window but my dealer said his mini van does the same so i am not worried or should i ??? What if the seals dry out and shrink after my warranty, how much would it cost to replace the seals or would Honda replaced them for free? Going back to the dealer to see if the Honda engineer and the dealer will fix this problem together.

I dropped of my car this morning and my dealer just called to inform me that they need another day :? My dealer and Honda are working together to get my windows leak proof. I even got a Honda Rep from Cali to inform me that they are doing everything possible to get this problem ratified. Just cross your fingers guys that taking my car for 2 day's will help other's out in the long run.

I just got a call from the dealer and he said it's 99.5% better. I asked him what about the 1/2% and he told me there might be a small drip here and there but Honda of America did everything possable to fix my 2 day problem. The dealer said no new moldings in the works but he will give me discounts on service and/or maintanance on my E so i am happy in a kind of a way. It's going to rain in a few more day's and i will post later :D

[quote:45b7e847b6="Element"]I sure don't want a rusted out door when my 3 year/36 miles warranty expires The pop out windows still collect water between the seal and the window but my dealer said his mini van does the same so i am not worried or should i ??? .[/quote:45b7e847b6]

Element: After all of our discussion I did notice the other day, after washing my car, that I also did get some moisture between the seal and the window. Almost like condensation. I am not at all worried about this. Not a big deal at all. Actually I think this is common with many pop out windows.

I consider true leakage to mean that water is getting to a place it should not. In this instance leakage would be water getting to the interior of the car. I don't have this problem at all.

Jayharley,

I spoke to a few dealers and yes, condensation < between the seal and the window > will occur when it's cold outside and it is normal as long it dosen't leak inside of the car.

Now this is day 3 and the dealer goofed in my seal installation and now he has to over night the seals again :evil: The service manager told me that the seals wasn't installed right from the factory and that's why i have a leak to begin with. At least i have a rental for 4 days until i get my car back on Monday, i hope :evil: