I bought a '21 F-Pace SVR earlier this year with less than 3k miles on the clock from our local main dealer.

A week ago, I noticed a considerable amount of condensation inside it which I thought was unusual but didn't think much more about it. Then, a couple of days later, the PIVI PRO screen didn't boot up at all and I booked in for a diagnostic check yesterday. Then, on Thursday night my rear seat passenger noticed she had wet feet and I suddenly realized there were several litres of water flowing between the two right hand footwells and we could actually hear it moving about!

I took it into the dealership yesterday and I'm waiting to hear back from them. I had a good look at the door seals but couldn't see any obvious problems there and not being a big fan of coincidences, I suspect the water ingress and the PIVI failure are connected. This then makes me think the ingress is behind the dash / under the windscreen and I'm concerned there are multiple ECU's and other components and harnesses that may be potentially affected in the long term.

Has anyone else had a similar experience and should I be concerned about owning this vehicle over the next few years?
Any advice would be most welcome.
Andy

 

Hi Andy,
I don't know if there is any connection to my experience. Our MY21.25 had dust entry through the rear passenger doors resulting in the rear seats being covered in dust. I reported to dealer and, after they checked it, new inner and outer seals were ordered and fitted last week. I asked what the difference was and was told the new seals were "a different pattern". The rear side doors now require a firm push to close fully. Maybe we'll never know whether it has actually resolved the issue. We had driven in heavy rain with the original seals without any apparent leaks though.

 

The other way water can get in is via the heater intake plenum chamber. This has a drain, but if this gets blocked, water accumulates and eventually flows into the heater then out onto the floor.

 

Thanks BazJag
I did have a good look around the two seals but there was nothing obvious to see and the seats and doors are bone dry. Also, the car hardly gets used and my feeling is that most of the water found it's way in on Thursday whilst parked up.
Andy

 

Thanks Fraser
Where is the heater intake plenum chamber and the drain? Is the drain something an owner is supposed to keep clear? Presumably it is at the front of the cabin and this could allow water to find it's way into the front footwell?
Andy

 

Update
I heard back from the dealer yesterday and I had a long chat with their master tech which was very helpful.

He confirmed the water was gaining entry through the offside 'A' pillar and coming in low down, into the front foot well. I didn't quite understand how it was getting into the pillar but I think that is more down to my level of understanding rather than his explanation. I was right in assuming the PIVI display problem was connected with the water ingress, but had incorrectly assumed the problem was behind the dash, as it turns out the control unit for the display is under the drivers seat and therefore became very wet.

My understanding is they removed the front seats and the carpets, vacuumed the carpet to get as much of the water out and left it to air dry for five days. Apparently, they had to refer to Jaguar Engineering to approve the repair strategy and get authorisation to replace the control unit which is apparently 'very expensive'.

I collected the car this morning and all seems well but should I be concerned about potential long term problems?
Andy

 

Hi Andy, thanks for the update. Did the dealer do anything to stop further leaks?

 

Bazjag has asked the key question. If water got in once, it'll get in again. I haven't had a problem with my XE, but early this year my Mercedes-Benz SLK dumped a bit of water into the cabin in the passenger side, (car is UK RH drive). I investigated the heater intake plenum chamber to find, horror of horrors, it was full of water. The drain was blocked. Once I had poked a stick down it, the water drained away. Yet there is a cover over it to stop leaves. The crud blocking it was much finer than leaves, so I made up a mod that consisted of fine mesh, and a resolution to check twice-yearly.

On my XE the plenum chamber entry can be viewed and inspected at the rear of the engine bay with the hood raised. The F-pace is probably similar. There are normally two covers, on each side, with one hiding the brake fluid reservoir, and the other the plenum chamber cover. The plenum chamber cover will have a grid moulded in it to allow entry of air, the other probably will to cater for swap-over for RH and LH drive. In front is a rubber seal across the back of the engine compartment. This stops engine compartment air from escaping that way and also entering the plenum chamber. The older jaguars had a grill on top of the bulkead cover, normally chromed to make it look nice ! Crud and leaves wash down off the windscreen and large stuff is blocked by the grid. The smaller stuff passes into the plenum and hopefully is flushed out down the drain hole, except that sometimes enough goes down in one go to make a blockage.

 

Hi Andy - also check the rear windscreen washer operation - apparently the hose has a habit of becoming disconnected and one place that can occur is under the door-sills. My own 2017 F-Pace (3.0 Supercharged Sport) has a non-operative rear washer, problem is not at the pump as I've checked that, but I don't activate it in case it dumps fluid onto the wiring loom that runs along the door sill.

 

Thankfully, we've not had any further water inside the car, however the nav system froze on us the other evening and although the map was still moving, the guidance had stopped. Then, after about ten minutes the whole system shut itself off and then rebooted itself, all whilst trying to navigate our way in the dark and along very unfamiliar rural roads. This happened whilst away on a pre Christmas family gathering several hundred miles from home and now that we are back home, I'm booked in for a diagnostic check first thing tomorrow.
Whilst I'm there, I want to catch up with the Master Tech who dealt with it previously, and get him to explain how the water was getting into the pillar.

I hear the comments about water getting in through the heater system and from the rear washer system, but having looked, I just can't see how water could be getting in there.
I'll let you know how the conversation with the tech goes tomorrow.
Andy

 

Talking of Nav systems - I see there is now an upgrade for earlier Jaguars (my F-Pace is 2017) with the SD Card system (at least for NZ & Australia). It cost me around NZ$200 to update (previously free) it so I hope they are not going to come up with annual releases at that cost, given a Tom Tom GPS in my truck has lifetime upgrades. The only other significant issue I've had with my F-Pace is an Oxygen Sensor dying recently. The Jag has only done ±30,000 Kms, just out of free service & mechanical warranty - so I guess that's Murphy's Law at play. Otherwise I am enjoying the ride.
Cheers & Xmas Greetings from Kiwiland

 

With respect to the water intrusion problem, is there any chance that there are water drains leading down, through the car, from the sunroof, and they've gotten plugged?