Astra collecting water in the rear doors - is this a design fault?

I bought a Vauxhall Astra from my local dealer 12 months ago. I have taken it back to the garage three times over water leaks. The main problem is the rear doors, with water getting into the door panels. It's so bad that you can hear the water sloshing around. The dealer has told me that the doors have drain plugs at the bottom of the doors and that I should release the water by pulling out the plug. Is this a design problem or something I simply have to live with? Surely water shouldn't be getting into the car, regardless of the plugs?





Asked on 5 December 2016 by rosemarie walker

Answered by Honest John
This is quite common on Astra J models. Water always flows through the insides of doors on every car. It's impossible to seal the windows against this and doors also suffer from internal condensation. The water is supposed to flow out through drain holes in the door bottoms, but sometimes if the car is parked at a fore/aft angle it doesn't. And, of course, if the drains get blocked with anti corrosion wax, the water cannot drain. It's a simple matter to poke the drainholes through with a wooden skewer or cocktail stick (wooden so you do not damage the paint allowing corrosion to start). I hadn't heard of door bottoms being fitted with plugs or ever seen this, but if yours are then the answer is the one given by the garage.
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