Trunk in rain/snow...

[pcons]

So I've noticed this morning that there is a potential design flaw with the model 3 trunk, in that after it rains and has water on in when you open the trunk virtually all that water slides off the trunk lid, and a large majority of it drops right into the trunk area inside the car...fun. It looks like there is a channel under the rear window intended to catch some of the runoff, but the water moves so fast it just skips this channel largely.

I expect this will only get worse in the winter when there is snow there. There seem to be 2 'basic' fixes:

- dont use the trunk
-clean the trunk off before each use

The first one is obviously not going to happen, and the last thing I want to do is use a snow brush 2-3x/day on the paint in the winter and put scratches all over it.

Curious if others are concerned about this?

A buddy also pointed out to me a similar 'flaw' with how the windows drop down a small amount when you open the doors. "When there is snow on the roof, isn't that just going to drop snow into the car?" he asked...I shrugged and thought I'll figure out a way to deal with that....I like the car to much to worry about this right now...but again, I'm curious what other's thoughts are.

 

[marcn]

i1Telsa on YouTube has a few videos about this - and yeah it seems like a pretty obvious design flaw.

 

[fidodido]

I guess I will have to keep a towel in the trunk now on.

 

[WolfHero]

I guess I will have to keep a towel in the trunk now on.

Get a trunk floor mat from Tesla (made by Weather tech)

 

[5_+JqckQttqck]

I have a towel folder under the trunk all weather mat and also a small towel to mop up spills in the frunk, trunk, and driver side seat.

 

[Lasairfion]

This happens occasionally on other cars too. I got water in my boot just the other day because there was more than the guides could handle.

Looking at the door video above, could you not not run something along the chrome strip to create more of a barrier? Likewise perhaps under the boot lid, you could run a rubber strip along under the glass to carry the water to the sides.

 

[pcons]

Damn, so this really could get annoying. I guess I'll just have to figure something out for the winter. I usually go to the gym in the morning, and put my bags in the trunk so in the winter if I dont clear the snow properly it wont be as simple as having a towel on standby because snow will get dumped all over (and in) my gymbag

 

[pcons]

This happens occasionally on other cars too. I got water in my boot just the other day because there was more than the guides could handle.

Agreed, and I'm not suggesting other cars dont have this issue, but on the model 3 its got to be worse than 90% of cars. The back trunk has a pretty significant gap between the top cutaway and rear window, on other cars the pivot point isn't so far set back and thus minimizes how much stuff can get into that space.

Looks like an opportunity for someone to design an after market fix for this...maybe when I get a bit less busy at work (which is likely never) I'll try and think of something. With all the model 3's I saw sitting at the IC there is surely a huge market for this in Ontario and Quebec

 

[Whisky]

I bought the original BMW 135i. It had a design flaw where the water would snake down through the gaps in the trunk and into the part where you'd traditional have a spare tire (BMWs are run-flats, no spare tire). The 12v battery was located there. Needless to say, after a particularly rainy few days, my car was screwed. $18k of damage because it shorted the electrical system. Eventually there was a recall about this (thankfully BMW didn't charge me for the fix, but they did imply they were doing me a favour because it was 'clearly' something I had done).

Design flaws are everywhere. That's why we have recalls.

 

[TrevTremaine]

I bought the original BMW 135i. It had a design flaw where the water would snake down through the gaps in the trunk and into the part where you'd traditional have a spare tire (BMWs are run-flats, no spare tire). The 12v battery was located there. Needless to say, after a particularly rainy few days, my car was screwed. $18k of damage because it shorted the electrical system. Eventually there was a recall about this (thankfully BMW didn't charge me for the fix, but they did imply they were doing me a favour because it was 'clearly' something I had done).

Design flaws are everywhere. That's why we have recalls.

Yeah, my last BMW 5 series touring had the same issue - only because of run-flats they kept the main computer in the wheel well. It got soaked when the drain tubes in the sunroof got clogged (not serviceable by owner) and the water drained straight into the trunk area. No drain put in the wheel well.

 

[mociaf9]

i1Telsa on YouTube has a few videos about this - and yeah it seems like a pretty obvious design flaw.

{i1Tesla videos}

Seems like it may only be an issue if you have something like RainX on your rear windshield. Here's another vlogger's experience in real world, heavy rain. Or maybe one or the other's car is actually anomalous. Until we start hearing that waves of people are experiencing this, or not, I don't think we really know if it's a problem yet.

 

[pcons]

Seems like it may only be an issue if you have something like RainX on your rear windshield. Here's another vlogger's experience in real world, heavy rain. Or maybe one or the other's car is actually anomalous. Until we start hearing that waves of people are experiencing this, or not, I don't think we really know if it's a problem yet.

This is 100% an issue for anyone in a climate that gets snow. Any amount of snow on the trunk will either slide directly into the trunk, or bounce off the rear window and into the trunk. The only way to avoid this would be to not use the trunk in winter or clean off all snow every time you open it, which will lead to scratching the paint over time.

Rain will do the same for sure. Even on the front windows, try driving on the highway and putting the windshield wipers on and spraying them with fluid. It all spills into the car as the catch channel is not big enough to wick the water away.

There is no easy fix, but it is for sure a design flaw (unless you live in California where it never snows and barely rains )

 

[Lon12]

I always brush all the snow off my vehicles before driving anyway so I’m not sure how much this will bother me. I keep the snow brush on the passenger floor mat. Heavy snow accumulations always fall into any car when you open a door. I brush that off the door perimeter with my glove. But if I forget something in the trunk and I’m not going driving I can tell this design will be something I curse at.

 

[Pescakl1]

That is not a Tesla flaw, this is a sedan flaw: I currently have a 2009 BMW 328i Xdrive sedan, and I had the same problem during rain and snow falls.

You have to clean or brush excessive snow off the trunk before opening it otherwise it will fall in the trunk.

That is why I keep my snowbrush in the passenger front seat during winter.
For the rain, I plan to either open the trunk slowly as I used to do, or use a piece of silicone to wipe the water off the trunk.

 

[5_+JqckQttqck]

Same can be said of the new Civic. Enough snow build up - it'll get inside when door opens.

 

[Koflach]

didn't tesla make the gap between the seal and the window larger to fix this issue?

 

[wayner]

This isn't a problem as California has a drought which is getting worse with Climate Change and it never rains there.And everywhere else in the world is just like California, right?

 

[puzz1ed]

In a similar vain, adding wiper fluid is tricky unless you remove the plastic service cover. If you miss, the fluid will run down alongside and possibly into the frunk. I used a funnel and had to be very careful since you can't see the level as it fills. First world problems I guess.

 

[mswlogo]

I swear since I got my car it’s rained 2 out of every 3 days for the last month. Some times pooring.

I have not noticed any issue.

I did suspect that first video had wax or rainx or something on the glass that made it bead oddly.

I always remove snow on any car before opening the trunk.

I agree it’s not ideal and some drips will get in. It’s good to be aware of it.

As long as nothing gets in when it’s CLOSED, I’m good.

 

[drdumont]

I realize this is an old thread, but indeed water ran off the rear glass into the trunk of my two Feb 2020 Model 3s (SR+). There were a couple of add ons promoted to relieve this. I took delivery of my 2022 Model 3 LR AWD and noticed that the gasket is bigger (longer from the glass to the rear), in the shape of a trough, and there are a bunch of holes to drain the trough onto the metal before it can run into the trunk. Thus far, it works!