Fluid under front passenger seat

Hey me and my girlfriend have been noticing a wierd smell in her car and we looked around and the carpet under the front passenger seat is Soaked with some sort of clear fluid (possibly water as it kinda has a sat in sun all day mildew smell to it) The Carpet under the dash is dry so i doubt its the heater core and it doesnt smell like antifrease. doesn't seem to be any leaks around the door seals either. any ideas

Hey me and my girlfriend have been noticing a wierd smell in her car and we looked around and the carpet under the front passenger seat is Soaked with some sort of clear fluid (possibly water as it kinda has a sat in sun all day mildew smell to it) The Carpet under the dash is dry so i doubt its the heater core and it doesnt smell like antifrease. doesn't seem to be any leaks around the door seals either. any ideas

What year is it??
Do you use the A/C

It could be that the moisture from your A/C unit is leaking inside the vehicle instead of out the drain tube for the system. When you use the A/C is there a sign of moisture on the ground? I will look in the manual to see if it shows anything for the system.

EDIT: Check the evaporator drain hose on the firewall to make sure it is not plugged.
The manual also states that these vehicles are known for mildew on the evaporator core. There are Areosol Disenfectants that can be purchased at auto parts stores. The most effective are the most expensive aresol's. IF you are looking at cleaning the core let me know and I will repeat what the manual procedure is. Hope this helps.

Yea happens with the A/C on its a 2005 dodge stratus 6 cyl cant remember the exact engine size off the top of my head. anyways i havent been under that one and have never looked for the drain on my car as ive never had this problem where abouts is it located

Yea happens with the A/C on its a 2005 dodge stratus 6 cyl cant remember the exact engine size off the top of my head. anyways i havent been under that one and have never looked for the drain on my car as ive never had this problem where abouts is it located

Lokk in the engine compartment on the firewall at the glove box areea, it should be a rubber tube. The manual I have is for a 95 to 2002 modil. Check with your local library or auto parts stores sell manuals for about $20.00. Let us know what you find. Good Luck

I have the exact same car...2005 Dodge Stratus...and I'm having the same problem with quite a bit of water forming directly below the passengers seat. There is no water in front of the seat or directly behind where people would put their feet. I'm sure it's only happening when the A/C is ran and I also noticed in the middle of this area where the water is forming...the carpeting has a cut area. Maybe for access to something?? Hopefully someone can help with this! Thanks!

Hey, I know exactly what's going on. My wife and I just went through the same thing. We also have a 2005 Stratus and as it turns out, it seems that on this particular model that they improperly place the drain under the car so that it leaks in instead of out. Just take it to the dealer and he/she will be able to simply reroute it to the outside for you. It shouldn't take long at all. Don't worry, it's nothing major, your car is perfectly ok aside from the aweful smell. That will go away to, may I suggest fabreze and a vacuum cleaner, preferably one that you would use at a manual car wash.

Hey ceddi3...

Thank you very much for your kind response and information! I haven't had a chance to take it in yet...but I was thinking at first that it was leaking in from when it rained or when I went through a car wash...but just the other day I barely even drove the car but it was pretty hot outside and I ran the a/c quite a bit. So far I had only noticed the water directly below the passenger seat but no water was ever in front on the floor board or behind the seat...but this time I noticed a pretty good size PUDDLE that was collecting behind the seat and right up against where the back seat begins. (I think that made sense??) I'm guessing this was only because of accelerating and maybe it moved back there? I noticed that there is a pretty big bump in the floor board towards the front (right below the lever for adjusting the passenger seat) that is large enough where the water wouldn't be able to get past but the bump towards the back isn't near as large. I just can't see why this has never happened before now and the amount of water that is accumulating is unreal! Why do you think this has never happened before if this drain has been improperly installed all along?? I don't know a lot about cars but it seems weird to me that the water is even coming in under the passengers seat!! I figured all hoses or anything like that would still be mounted outside the body of the car and gravity would do the rest!! LOL
Once again...thanks for your help!

I know it seems wierd, but sometimes crazy things do happen. don't feel alone though this has happened to many others in the same way including myself. You are ok if the water is occuring on the passanger side only, whether front and/or back. There is nothing to worry about besides the aweful smell. Hopefully your car is still under warranty and if so then there will be no problem in fixing it. Even if the car's warranty is expired, simply explain to the dealership mechanic the situation and he/she shold understand that this is a factory defect and not a mileage concern. Glad to help. Let me know if anything else comes up.

QUOTE ceddie3 "Hey, I know exactly what's going on. My wife and I just went through the same thing. We also have a 2005 Stratus and as it turns out, it seems that on this particular model that they improperly place the drain under the car so that it leaks in instead of out. Just take it to the dealer and he/she will be able to simply reroute it to the outside for you. It shouldn't take long at all. Don't worry, it's nothing major, your car is perfectly ok aside from the aweful smell. That will go away to, may I suggest fabreze and a vacuum cleaner, preferably one that you would use at a manual car wash."

I have a 2005 Dodge Stratus and I am having the same problem. There has to be something wrong with this many people having this same exact "RANDOM" problem. Do you know what was rerouted? The dealership near me doesn't have a clue what needs to be done because there isn't a service bulletin on this issue. I will fix it myself if I knew what to do.
HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have been a MOPAR guy all my life and this car has left a bad taste in my mouth (and stench in the air) about buying another one. They sure don't build them like they used to.

I also own,
'67 Dodge Dart GT
'68 Dodge Dart GT
'66 Dodge Coronet 500
'73 Plymouth Roadrunner
'95 Chrysler New Yorker

Ok guys, here is the service bulletin!

Technical Service Bulletin: 24-018-05
GROUP: Heating & A/C
DATE: September 24, 2005
SUBJECT: HVAC Water Leaks Onto Passenger Floor

OVERVIEW: This bulletin involves drying the carpet and dash panel silencer pad and installing a revised HVAC drain tube.

MODELS: 2004 -2006 (JR) Sebring Sedan/Sebring Convertible/Stratus Sedan

I just bought a used an 05 Dodge Stratus and I am having the same problems with the a/c leaking on the inside of my passenger seat and all the way into the back seat. Its incredible how much water comes out of there....lol As my car is not under any warranty I am wondering if there is anything I can do to fix it without taking it to the dealership as I am sure that would be really expensive. Any of your help would be greatly appreciated!!! Thank you!

Sorry for not updating after we got it fixed. As stated there is a TSB for it and the dealership fixed it and replaced the carpet for free . As it was a defect from the factory

hope this helps you guys

The drain just sticks straight out which can let the water run back into the car and it is pretty common. The new drain slips over the existing one and it points down like it should have from the factory. You can usually pull the carpet and let it sit and dry for a day or two. The pad under the passenger carpet gets cut out and replaced since it takes next to forever to dry.