Hi folks,

Recently swapped my XF for a 56 plate 4.2 NA XK - traded in about 10 years but gained a lot of fun in the process! She's been well cared for, however the seller did point out the fans weren't working. I noticed in the paperwork for the car that the previous owner had the duckbill replaced (with the resulting huge labour costs!) last year.

On the drive home my passenger got the classic wet foot and drips, and when I took the blower motor out it clearly had been exposed to water. In fact the motor had seized, so after a lot of cleaning and oiling it's now running fine, once I'd installed a new resistor. That was on Sunday, I've driven the car a few times since then for ~30m at a time, with air con on the whole time. No wet floor, no drips. On the last journey the fan had got a small squeak, so I decided to take it out and oil it again.

We had a bad storm here last night, lots of rain - when I went to remove the blower motor this morning I noticed the carpet was wet, and the motor housing was full of water. So the same process again - drying, oiling, etc. I've had a play with the end of the duckbill and I can feel a little moisture, though nothing substantial. I've tried the tapping method and running the blower with the vents closed.

So I'm wondering if it isn't the duckbill / condensate at all, but rainwater - in which case, where might it be getting in? The cabin filter seemed dry.

Or, if it is the AC Condensate - what else can I do to encourage it to drain? The only other fix I've seen is adding a bypass hose behind the passenger carpet.

Thanks all!

 

What a shame that anyone would removed the duckbill and then replace it with another one. I cut the end off mine a couple of weeks ago whilst I had the gearbox out but I certainly wouldn't replace it with another one as it's totally unnecessary in the first place.

I doubt whether it will be the duckbill after such a short space of time. The obvious source of rainwater would be that it is leaking past the windscreen. The best way to check for rainwater leaks is with a hose pipe.

Richard

 

Have you looked in the cabin air/pollen filter housing under the bonnet?

 

Get hold of a bore scope, go in through the fan opening and check the coil and drain pan for blockage.
Test the drain by adding tap water using 5ft of vinyl tubing and a funnel along side of the bore scope.

Finding no flow, I used an aluminum safe industrial detergent. Poured in using the same tube and funnel.

Agitated by moving the tube briskly.

Finally, a thick, translucent sludge began to flow.
Flushed with warm/hot water until free flowing.

Kinda like a netty pot for the car with a very bad cold.

 

On closer inspection, the windscreen scuttle panel was totally detached from the bottom of the screen in this corner and above the pollen filter, allowing water to run through.

There's a 'U' shaped channel which fits onto the bottom of the screen, then the rubber lip which sits on the glass. I put some kitchen sealant along the U channel and fixed that back onto the screen, then a dab of silicone under the lip.

Next time it rains I'll find out if it's worked - I like the netti pot idea though... is there such a thing as an evap cleaner with a long flexible nozzle? Kind of like a cavity wax tube.

 

I take it all back, it IS the duckbill.

Driving today in the rain, puddle starts to form. Wasn't far from home so whipped the fan off and the pollen filter was bone dry - the vent to the right had a lot of evidence of water droplets.

Gave the triangle piece near the funnel a tap from the footwell, and then the car took a long wee on the drive!

Has anyone encountered this issue with the new duckbill / any suggestions on how to make the draining reliable?

 

Coat inside of duck bill with krytox 205, or maybe spray inside with krytox oil ( forgot the #)
wj

 

The only sure-fire method is to do what the garage should have done and either snipped the end off the old duckbill or simply not fitted a new one. Unless you specifically asked them to fit a new duckbill, I would think twice about using them again as they have charged you a lot of money for nothing.

There are plenty of threads showing how the duckbill can be slashed in situ with a home-made bladed tool. It's tricky but doable.

Richard

 

once a year, I direct the airflow through the dash vents, close the vents, then run the. fan on full for a minute. It has kept the drain tube clear and operational all these years.

 

Fan motor rebuild and consolidated references:
Duck-bill, wet floor fan motor aftermath - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum