I notice some dampness on the drivers side carpet ('96 OBW). I also notice the bolt for the seat has some rust residue where it sits on top of the carpet. I couldn't see any place for moisture to come in. Door seals look good. Any one ever see something like this?

I notice some dampness on the drivers side carpet ('96 OBW). I also notice the bolt for the seat has some rust residue where it sits on top of the carpet. I couldn't see any place for moisture to come in. Door seals look good. Any one ever see something like this?

Heater core? Hope not. I had rust on my seat bolts years before I had trouble with heater core.

I notice some dampness on the drivers side carpet ('96 OBW). I also notice the bolt for the seat has some rust residue where it sits on top of the carpet. I couldn't see any place for moisture to come in. Door seals look good. Any one ever see something like this?

 

Do you smell any coolant in the cabin or vents? A heater core leak introducing coolant through the vents could account for the rust on the bolt. I had a water pump leak that trickled onto my oil pan, eating up the finish and allowing it to rust quite impressively.

 

Andrew

If your heater core was leaking, you'd smell it and it would have fogged your windows up with a film.

No smell of coolant. My dampness could have been from melting snow from the other day underneath my new rubber mats that wouldn't have let the carpet dry out.

 

Rust around the bolt is from previous owner's doings. Could have been a similar circumstance over the years. I'll just have to keep an eye on the dampness.

My 96 Legacy wagon was damp the same way. I figured it was cuz I was a slob and got snowy feet all over the place. The seat bolt was rusted, so the previous owner (Hi Scott!) must've had the same snow issue. We had salt, too. Ick...

My 96 Legacy wagon was damp the same way. I figured it was cuz I was a slob and got snowy feet all over the place. The seat bolt was rusted, so the previous owner (Hi Scott!) must've had the same snow issue. We had salt, too. Ick...

 

 

That's a good bet since I did head into the snow this past weekend. Lots of residual snow from the xmas tree and sorel boots. In fact, the previous owner had the car in Boston the first five years of it's life. And they definately use salt in those parts. The seat bolts on the passenger side aren't experiencing the rust residue. I jsut bought rubber floor mats (costco) and am thinking they are good in the fact that they hold rain and water from soaking though. But they also trap moisture underneath.