Wet & smelly

[guy48065]

My youngest daughter just bought a 2009 Saturn Vue. Car looks very nice & looks to have been recently detailed (scrubbed carpet, paper floor mat on driver side...) but when I opened the door the first thing I noticed was the strong smell of mold & mildew. It felt dry under the seats but I found soggy papers and standing water in the spare tire well. She cleaned that out Wednesday. The car sat in my driveway all day in a light rain Thursday & when I got home I took a look and found puddles every where in the way back.

Doing a walk-around I spotted about 20" of the RR door weatherstrip was pulled loose on the striker side of the jamb and this might explain how so much water got in so fast. (BTW the car doesn't have a sunroof!) I've cleared out the back down to bare metal and sucked up the water with my shopvac but the pad under the carpet that starts under the rear seats is still wet and the smell is still bad.

What can I do--hopefully without special equipment--in cold rainy weather to dry this out? And how do I get rid of the stink?

There's no rust so hopefully this is a recent problem. And hopefully completely due to the door weatherstrip. I don't want her driving this until the mold problem is resolved but her patience is limited :rolleyes:

[Jeremy1976]

Open all doors and setup a fan to circulate air throughout the car. Make sure your dome light is off or your battery will drain.

As far as smell and ridding the mold and odor, either a steamer and/or ozone machine. Check with your local rental places to see if you can rent one if you already do not own one.

Good luck.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[WaxMaster1]

Gotta be careful with a, no pun intended, flood of new cars for sale on the market. They could have been subjected to all of the recent flooding.

[Mike Honcho]

Where'd she buy the car from? Someone she knew? I agree with the above, could be a flood car.

[custmsprty]

There was just a watch out for flooded cars story on our local news last night in Tampa and telling buyers to beware. With all the flooding from Hermine etc. And the tell tale sign they said to lookout for was if you opened the car and it smelled like mold and mildew.

[guy48065]

...sat in my driveway all day in a light rain Thursday & when I got home I took a look and found puddles every where in the way back.
.

[GSKR]

My youngest daughter just bought a 2009 Saturn Vue. Car looks very nice & looks to have been recently detailed (scrubbed carpet, paper floor mat on driver side...) but when I opened the door the first thing I noticed was the strong smell of mold & mildew. It felt dry under the seats but I found soggy papers and standing water in the spare tire well. She cleaned that out Wednesday. The car sat in my driveway all day in a light rain Thursday & when I got home I took a look and found puddles every where in the way back.

Doing a walk-around I spotted about 20" of the RR door weatherstrip was pulled loose on the striker side of the jamb and this might explain how so much water got in so fast. (BTW the car doesn't have a sunroof!) I've cleared out the back down to bare metal and sucked up the water with my shopvac but the pad under the carpet that starts under the rear seats is still wet and the smell is still bad.

What can I do--hopefully without special equipment--in cold rainy weather to dry this out? And how do I get rid of the stink?

There's no rust so hopefully this is a recent problem. And hopefully completely due to the door weatherstrip. I don't want her driving this until the mold problem is resolved but her patience is limited :rolleyes:I would by some charcoal odor bags.Turn the heat on for a hr on floor setting.Pull all the door plastic sills off and see if there is any trace of water.

[Eldorado2k]

In the meantime, cover the car up even if you have to use a tarp when it rains. Otherwise you may never get it fully dry in the 1st place.

Check the bumpers for any minor dents and damage. On my vehicle, I experienced a mysterious reoccurring flood inside my spare tire compartment in the trunk and it turned out being due to a panel in the trunk that had been pushed in allowing water to seep into the trunk during car washes. The cause of it was a minor hit to the rear bumper.


Also, use your shop vac's blower port attachment to help blow dry the area.

Go to the dollar store and buy several synthetic chamois drying towels to help mop up the moisture. They're perfect for this.

[guy48065]

Thanks to all for the tips.
Hopefully it's a clear day Saturday so I can dry this thing out.

[Eldorado2k]

Thanks to all for the tips.
Hopefully it's a clear day Saturday so I can dry this thing out.

I went through the same thing and while my whole car didn't smell like mold I know how frustrating it can be. Good luck!

[Bunky]

Good luck!

[GSKR]

Dangerous

[TTQ B4U]

Doing a walk-around I spotted about 20" of the RR door weatherstrip was pulled loose on the striker side of the jamb and this might explain how so much water got in so fast. (BTW the car doesn't have a sunroof!) I've cleared out the back down to bare metal and sucked up the water with my shopvac but the pad under the carpet that starts under the rear seats is still wet and the smell is still bad.

What can I do--hopefully without special equipment--in cold rainy weather to dry this out? And how do I get rid of the stink?

I would replace the carpet padding. The carpet if you pulled it out can be cleaned and dried without much issues. I would put the weatherstrip back, leave the car as bare metal and take it through a touchless wash to see if any water comes in.

Once it's fixed and not leaking, install the new padding, put the carpet and interior back and run an Ozone machine for 2-3 cycles. I have found that 2-3 cycles is perfect. I let it air out for about an hour or two between cycles.