I have a 2000 FRC that I've only owned a few weeks. It has given me absolutely no problems until tonight. Early today I put the skip shift eliminator on the car. Tonight I headed out in the car and it ran fine until about 20 minutes into the trip. I started getting trunk lid open messages on the DIC. After that I got Tonneau open on the DIC. Then the courtesy lights started illuminating on and off. We arrived where we were going and I parked it and shut it off. I checked the trunk lid and it was closed.

On the way to where we were headed my wife informed me that there was water dripping on her foot. When we were ready to head home, the car would not turn over or even attempt to start. I am getting "reduced engine power" on the DIC. When I try to start it, absolutely nothing happens. I ended up having it towed home.

As a side note, I also recently removed a CD changer that was mounted in the trunk. The cable for this ran through the passenger compartment. There is a fair amount of water leaking on the passenger side floor, which I have not noticed previously.

Any help is appreciated.

 

Sounds like your cowl udders or AC drain are plugged. In either case, sounds like your BCM is getting wet and that is not good. Under the passenger floor mat, at the toe kick, there is a panel that covers the BCM and a fuse block. Open that area and get it dried out immediately. Don't try to start the car until it is dry.

You can search "clean cowl udders" to find out locations and how to clean. Good luck!

 

Oh man there's sometimes a ton of gremlins on these modern cars where to begin?

Good plan!

A replacement BCM may be warranted.

 

After closer inspection, it appears that all of the water is coming from the AC unit. My question is, do the cowl udders have anything to do with the drain off from the AC unit? I can't imagine they could.

I have removed the seat and carpet, the BCM was wet. Can anyone tell me how to get the BCM out of the car? I tried loosening the tiny nut at the bottom (mine has a ground wire going to it) and it will not loosen, it turns but does not back off the stud it is on. I'd like to get the BCM out and stick it in a dehumidification chamber at work. It works on i-phones so I'm hoping it will work on this too!

Once its dry, if it is messed up will it just not work or can it cause something else to fry?

Thanks!

 

Great question, sorry I can't help, who knows why moisture is condensing...

Might try grinding off the nut, can't hurt right...you just have to re-ground, at the least...
However, seems like you have a handle on the plan.

 

That ground wire that you're referring to, might be connected to an LMC5 "steering column lock bypass module". That is a good thing. You can tell this, if you also see a round, blue "thingie", about 1/2" in diameter, tucked in, near the wire harness. I'd try "lifting" on the BCM bracket, as you unscrew the retaining bracket, It shouldn't need to be "torqued" in place, so hopefully this wasn't "bubba-ed" in there....

 

Yep, pretty sure the little blue thing was in there! I got the BCM out, didn't realize that the tab at the bottom pulled out, I thought the nut had to come off first!! Rookie mistake, what can I say, live and learn. I started another thread with pics of the BCM, I'm pretty sure it is fried. I'm really perplexed how the thing could go from fine one day to completely clogged the next.

 

Look on YouTube for a video on installing the LMC5. They show how to remove the BCM to install the LMC5 wires.

 

If your AC drain is clogged, this will cause water inside the footwell. If you pull the vent hose off the blower motor under the dash (easy), it may be full of water. If it is, report back and I will go over the procedure to clear the drain (a big pain in the azz).

 

Robrote: Pulled the hose off, no water! The blower motor housing is rusty around where the hose plugs into the side of it, so its obviously had moisture of some kind on it.

 

Did you check all 4 udders, the 3 on the drives side and the one on the passenger side?

 

I did, they were clean as can be. I'm positive the water is coming from the HVAC unit. The car is stored in my garage and has not seen rain since I've owned it. In addition, when I pulled the interior apart, the panel that sits under the ac unit was soaked. So what fix were you going to tell me about?

 

The AC drain is in the firewall on the passenger side, behind the passenger head. Depending if you have headers or exhaust manifolds, it will be easier to access. You need to get the front end of the car up in the air. This is assuming you do not have a lift. You need to get your head under the firewall and look up. You will see a small angled rubber hose. Get a pair of long needle nosed pliers and remove it. You will not be able to reach it. It right around the back of the head. One you get the rubble drain hose off, get a length of wire, such as picture hanging wire, and shove it in the hole in the fire wall and work it in and out. If it's clogged, you will break the seal and get very wet. One you root it out good, you can try to get some compressed air up there to clear it out some more. I do not recommend blasting 100psi into the AC box. I cut the bottom of my rubber elbow off to aid in the water getting out of the drain. Re-attach the rubber tube and you're good for another 50K miles.

 

So does the rubber hose on the blower motor have anything to do with this drain line that comes through the firewall?

 

No. That's an air vent for the blower motor to keep it cool when it's running

 

Gotcha! Thanks for the help and advice!

 

Take a look at this Post for pictures and more details.

 

Phil, it sounds like your BCM and fuse panel in the passenger side foot well has gotten wet. It was one of the first issues I encountered with my C5 when I purchased it in 2004. The udders get blocked and water (condensation) backs up in the evaporator above the passenger side foot well. Water over flows and drips/runs through the blower motor into the passenger foot well where it gets the BCM wet. A wet BCM will give you all of the extraneous indications you saw and even more.

Pull out the passenger side mat and you will see a panel that runs up the firewall from the base of the foot well. Remove the panel and you will see the BCM and the interior fuse panel. Look for signs of water intrusion. You will likely find water and a wet BCM. If you find evidence of water you will need to dry the BCM (and the foot well area), carefully. Bill Curlee has posted some great instructions on just how to do this. If your carpet and padding is seriously wet, you may however elect to remove them to dry everything out.

Here's a good picture of what you'll be looking at. You do not need to go to any where this extreme removing the seat and carpeting, but for illustration purposes, the BCM is the shiny box with the writing on it in the lower right corner of the foot well.


You will need to address the plugged udders of course to ensure the problem doesn't reoccur.

It's a good habit to get into as you walk away after using the A/C, to look under the passenger side foot well of the car to be sure you see water, either dripping or a wet spot. Do this to confirm that the A/C is draining and the udders are working as intended.

Good luck... GUSTO

 

At the suggestion of forum member GCG, I pulled the BCM apart and carefully cleaned the corrosion off the circuit board with 91% Isopropyl Alcohol. I made sure it was completely dry, reassembled and plugged it back into the car. Re-installed the battery and she fired right up with no messages on the DIC! Now I have to tackle theAC leak but thanks to the forum I'm pretty sure I know where to look for that.

I appreciate all the replies and suggestions, thanks!!

 

Glad to be of service and that your car is back in business!

Note: make sure to thoroughly dry your carpet.