How to eliminate passenger side floorboard leak in a 97 TJ

NyTj13

Member
Joined
Oct 17, 2017
Messages
47
Location
Beacon, NY, United States
I searched every forum and website I could find trying to track down the source of the leak in my 1997 TJ, but could only find how to unplug the drain under the cowl. One problem, the drain under my cowl wasn’t plugged, but the puddles kept coming...
I took apart the cowl and began to inspect it and quickly found what I thought might be the issue. The double sided tape used to secure the black plastic sections to the bottom side of the cowl had finally given way to 23 years of sun and elements. This was allowing water to flow right into an open hole leading directly into my HVAC box, resulting in a short in my blower motor resistor and subsequently melting its harness into unrecognizable plastic art.
46A46CD0-A9B1-495F-AE7B-D9648CB75515.jpeg
Taking the cowl into my shop I began to slowly and carefully pry all of the plastic guards away from the cowl, leaving a lot of still STRONG double sided tape behind on both the plastic and the underside of the cowwl.
B4D5D026-6ED2-4183-B786-42D269BE0389.jpeg79CE44D6-39F3-4A52-BA05-34B2A35FA375.jpeg
I used a sharp edge scraper as shown in pic to remove the residual tape from the cowl. If you can work the blade underneath a section and push forward it may come off in one strip like mine did. I used a razor blade scraper to remove the tape from the plastic, being careful not to gouge The plastic. Once all of the tape was removed I cleaned the surfaces with acetone. I chose Gorilla 1” Double Sided raps to replace it, which in retrospect, 1/2” tape would’ve been easier because I had to trim mine. Once all contact areas on the cowl were taped I re-installed the plastic guards, being sure to provide the force needed to bond the two surfaces. I reinstalled the cowl and waited for a few heavy rainstorms to report that this fix had eliminated my passenger floor board puddle issue. It also fixed the moisture inside my hvac box causing my blower motor resistor and harness failure which was a nice bonus.
So if your cowl drain isn’t plugged, but you continue to have moisture on the floorboard of your 97 TJ, take a look at the double sided tape holding the guards to the underside of your cowl and it might help.
 
Hmmmm. Maybe I'm misreading this...or you're missing a very important bit of plastic!

There is a "box" that sits on top of that "open hole" that leads into your HVAC. It acts as a separation from the water that gets into the space under the cowl and the AC/Heater system. I'll find some pics and post them up shortly. Should be an easy find from a salvage yard or ebay.
 
never new they existed. Just thought this was a terrible setup and it took me forever to track down this leak as I couldn’t see the tape cracked under the plastic. I’d appreciate the pics!
 
Took me a while to find some pics 'cause my computer was being a complete ass-jack (Microsoft suuuuux). These pics are from a recent post where I responded to another "passenger side leak" question and the post-it-note arrows point to places I sealed.
The part you need is the black plastic box that is just to the right (driver's) of the lower, right post-it note, with the rectangular piece of foam rubber on the top of it. It is held in place by 4 or 5 (can't remember right now) screws that hold it down to the body panel that sits under the cowl. Without it, you will certainly have big-time water intrusion issues.

I have not yet found this part in the service manuals/parts list but you should be able to find it pretty easily. I'll do a quick ebay search here in a sec.

IMG_20200603_171349.jpg


IMG_20200603_171345.jpg
 
Last edited:
OK, so maybe it's held in place by only 3 screws...:unsure:
Here's an ebay listing for one at $20 with free shipping...not bad, considering what some people want for crap...uh... gently-used previously-loved merchandise on fleebay these days.

EDIT: There is a seal on the bottom which is completely missing from the unit in the above listing. You can see it in third pic of this other listing that may be a better deal, simply because you can see how the seal goes on, even if you have to replace it. If the seal does not have enough pressure left in in to really do the job, you can replace it with some peel-and-stick foam weather stripping from the local hardware store.
 
Last edited:
This site contains affiliate links for which Jeep Wrangler TJ Forum may be compensated.
Hmmm, I wonder if this is why mine is leaking, it’s fine if I park it with the nose down hill, but if I park her on level ground I end up with a puddle in the passenger floorboard. Just cleaned out my cowl a little while ago so I’ll have to take it off and see if I’m missing this “plastic box”
 
  • Like
Reactions: TJ Hunnicutt
Thanks, ballpark. I didn't realize the '97 was different. Still there was a plastic dam that goes there to keep water from just running into the air intake...just a different style...and that is def missing from the OP's TJ. There may be listings for that part out there on fleebay or in used jeep parts houses. I also wonder if the later style like the one I have in my '06 and had in my '01 would fit if you just drilled the proper screw holes.
 
Sooo.... this isint gonna work with my 01?
Yeah, it'll work. The box was the same on my '01 Sport.
EDIT: If it's there, remove it and verify the foam seal is still working and, if not, replace it.
Here's the link to the post those pics were originally from...just another thing to check.
 
Last edited: