Wet passenger side carpet

[Elbe57]

Greetings! I have just purchased a sweet 04 xc70..... great car, solid..
But after a drive yesterday I noticed the carpet was wet on the passenger side. I live in Arizona so I had the ac on for a bit.... is this a serious situation, or is it just condensation from the ac?
The water doesn’t smell.... and everything else seems fantastic.
Any help will be appreciated!

Also, looking for a passenger side interior door pull.

Thanks!

[billr99]

Number of things possible. Make sure that the cowl drains are clear (thinking it might not be AC drainage) and make sure that the filter panel on the heater box (in the passenger side foot well up by the firewall) has a gasket, it is installed properly in the groove in the cover and that the cover screws (T25, I think) are done up tight. Finally, make sure that you don't have wet leaves, varmit nests, or other obstructions in the fan box. It is not normal to have a wet carpet just because you have run the AC and if you leave it, over time the carpet will start to rot and that will smell.

Cheers,

Bill

[Elbe57]

Thanks! I will check all this out and reply! Cheers

[vtl]

Heater core lasts about 10 year and then starts leaking. 3 out of 3 P2s I had started leaking on the passenger side.

[billr99]

Heater core lasts about 10 year and then starts leaking. 3 out of 3 P2s I had started leaking on the passenger side.

Very true although I have never had a core leak in any of my white block cars (knock on wood). Anyway, note that the OP stated that the leakage had no smell indicating fresh water vs. the sweetish smell that you would expect from a heater core containing coolant. In fact, coolant soaked carpet is pretty much hard to miss as that coolant smell will really saturate the interior in my experience.

Cheers,

Bill

[Xfingers]

IF you're leaking coolant from the heater core, I would think sooner or later the level in your coolant reservoir/overflow tank is going to go down.

[vtl]

Very true although I have never had a core leak in any of my white block cars (knock on wood). Anyway, note that the OP stated that the leakage had no smell indicating fresh water vs. the sweetish smell that you would expect from a heater core containing coolant. In fact, coolant soaked carpet is pretty much hard to miss as that coolant smell will really saturate the interior in my experience.

Cheers,

Bill
It's hard to say for sure if the liquid on the carpet has smell or not, because 10-15 years old carpets stink even if the owner took care of them. If the leak is too bad it leaves the traces on the carpet.

The easy way to tell if the heater is leaking and poisons car passengers is to look at the low air vents. This is right side vent on a 2005 I've got a month ago:

https://a.d-cd.net/4564675s-1920.jpg

See that fattish residue? This is coolant. I had the same stuff in my other P2 wagons when they aged to 10-12 years. No traces on the carpet, no harsh smell yet, but you breathe it.

[MoeB]

Another clue is what part of the carpet is wet. Directly under the air vents along edge of hump = heater core; front of footwell = cowl vents.

[Xheart]

Heater core looks real old in the pix!

Replacing heater core is small but extremely difficult DIY task for a first timer. Removing brake-pedal sensor itself is a first challenge for human dexterity. Use Volvo's aluminum clips when installing.

Let's hope it is a clogged AC drain.