Hi!

Forgive me if this has been discussed to death already. I read several threads that dealt with fixing cowl popping and leaks, but I couldn't find an answer to my question below.

Against my better judgement, I had my battery replaced at the dealer, and they botched the reassembly of the cowl top cover. I pulled everything apart and noticed numerous missing and broken clips (replacements are on the way). Anyway, is there supposed to be some kind of seal or sealant in the channel that fits over the bottom edge of the windshield? Mine is just bare plastic. I'm concerned that water is going to get into the HVAC air intake.

 

There WAS a foam type strip that goes into the cowl where it seals up against the windshield. However, like most (mine included), I am sure that it has long since disintegrated. Water will eventually leak through and get your cabin air filter wet. Depending on how much leaks through, it can leak into the blower box, onto the floor, and potentially ruin the blower motor.

Some have used foam backer rod. I chose to run a small bead of silicone sealant across the entire length of the cowl (I ended up doing both sides as added insurance) and pressed it up against the windshield with new clips. It might make the cowl a little more difficult to remove in the future, but... Your methods may vary.

 

+1 on the RTV. I put a 1/8" bead across. Means I have to scrape that off and redo every time I remove the cowl, but that's minutes and pennies comparably. I've not seen any foam products that I feel would seal without warping that plastic part.

 

Google: Foam weather stripping

 

yep - all to thick IMHO.

 

I mean if you got the money the options are endless.

 

 

Does anyone else need the remaining 35 yards?

 

OK, I got a better look at it, and the foam rope seal in in place. The problem is, I'm working in the bowels of a parking garage with dim lighting.

Anyway, here's what I'm up against:



I think the reason why the passenger side cowl cover won't engage properly with the driver side cowl cover is because they broke the vertical piece off the tab that engages the pawl on the driver side. Compare my photo below to part "D" in the diagram from the FSM and you'll see what I mean.





The stand-in service advisor (the service advisor I started with left on paternity leave shortly after I left the car with him) claims they're ordering me a replacement passenger side cowl cover, but I have my doubts. After all, they broke mine, and apparently hoped I wouldn't notice.

In the mean time, what do you think I should do? I can silicone the joint between the cowl covers and windshield glass, but what about the gaping space between the passenger side and driver side cowl covers? I'm leaving town on a 160-mile trip on Friday, and they're predicting thunderstorms.

 

Take it off the cover the fresh air duct with a rag/tape/bag until the dealer can fix it.

 

First, I would verify that the dealer is going to replace the RH cowl. If you add silicone or anything to the cowl itself they can then turn around and say they didn't do anything wrong.

That said, I would not stress over the LH side as it is the RH side that causes issues. Depending on the result from above, I would remove the RH cowl, and add some silicone sealant to the areas marked in red arrows:

Also, I would remove the two plastic nuts to the fresh air intake duct and apply silicone to the bottom of that plastic piece and reinstall- make sure the plastic nuts are snug but do not go ape on them. This could be considered "preventive maintenance" and is a simple insurance policy regardless of whether the dealer does right or not.

Now, if the dealer is not going to replace the cowl, then you could add the silicone to the cowl channel and reinstall that way. Even with that broken tab the two halves should come together seamlessly- mine did.

 

Ok, after some fiddling, I got everything lined up a lot better than it was before. The pawl still doesn't click in place thanks to the tabs the dealer bent and broke off.



Anyway, I'm thinking about running a piece of weatherproof tape across where the cowl meets the windshield. Any downside to this? It would be a temporary fix 'til I get the replacement RH cowl.

Thanks again for all the advice. I really appreciate it.

 

Tape shouldn't affect the 'well, you broke it not us' issue.

At worst - you can get used ones on ebay or from whatever pick-n-pull is nearest - the model G37 (or late G35) doesn't matter so there's usually a few in every yard. Plastic trim like that surprisingly isn't usually scavenged.