In Car Shower / Leaky Sun Roof
By: Chris Brinson

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I have often heard one of the common problems with the 3rd generation Prelude referred to as the "in car shower". Basically what happens is after a heavy rain you start your car and begin driving and water comes pouring into the car through the sunroof. It is certainly enough to make a bad day a lot worse. The good news is that it is an easy fix.

The sunroof of the 3rd generation Prelude has water channels with drain plugs on all four corners. Honda knew that the sunroof seal would not prevent all water from leaking into the car so they built channels and tubes to funnel the water out of the car. The problem is that dirt and grime get into these channels and is carried down through the tubes and over time begins to build up at the end of the tubes.

The solution is easy. Simply pull the drain tubes out of the drain holes and clean the end of the tubes where the clogging generally occurs. There are drain tubes that run through all four roof pillars of the car. However, the rear two pillars tend to clog the most.

The first thing you will need to do is remove your trunk liner. There is an upholstery tool that looks kind of like a two pronged fork that is best for removing those plastic fasteners used to hold the trunk in place. You should be able to find the tool at most auto parts stores. Just pry out all the fasteners and remove the trunk liner. Now look on either side of the trunk just behind the sheet metal that is connected to the wheel wells. You should see a tube that is connected to the fender of the car. Get an old bucket into which you can drain the old nasty mildewed water. Grasp the black rubber end of the drain tube and pull it out of the drain hole.

Chances are nothing will drain out of that black end because it is clogged. Now place the tube into the bucket and twist that rubber end off of the tube. Now you should see a plug that has a small hole in the end inside the end of the tube. I have no idea why that plug is there. All it does is trap dirt in the tube. Remove that plug. If your drain tube was clogged then dirty water will drain into the bucket. After the water has drained out remove and throw away that tube plug or at least trim the plug so that water an dirt can more easily flow out of the tube.

Plug the black rubber end back into the drain hole in the fender and then plug the tube back into that end. If you want, you can use some sealant to make sure the tube stays plugged into the rubber tube end. Now repeat this same process for the other side and you are done.

For most cars this should do the trick. If you are unlucky enough to have your front drain tubes clog up then you will have to clean those out. I don`t think that this happens very often but I can produce a follow up article with pictures for any members that clean their rear drain tubes and still experience the "in car shower."