Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Leak in floor and trunk

A common problem to Contours and Mystiques is the wet trunk. However a little detective work will usually
give the answer. There are two places that water seems to like to enter...around the taillight, or the little
flow-through grille in the bottom sides of the trunk.

My leak was around the passenger side taillight. Remove the taillight from inside the trunk, check the foam
gasket seal...it usually is real cruddy with dirt/mud. Re-attach with some silicone sealer on both sides of the
gasket. Problem solved...unless it's the vent.

If you pull back the trunk liner on the side, look down by the rear of the fender well. You should see a grille
with a rubber flap. Air is supposed to go from the passenger compartment through the slots below the rear
window into the trunk, then out through these vents. The rubber on the outside is to prevent water from
coming in. The only way to remove these grilles is from the outside after removing the rear bumper.

Try the taillight(s) first.

My daughter's '96 Contour has a leak also, but she won't stay out of the car long enough for me to take a
look!