Ok, lifted back the spare tire and found it drenched in water. pulled the plug out and there was white foam/cotton under that, but it slowly drained. What could be causing this? The car was painted over at one point in time, and I am thinking the seals may be bad or the drains clogged. Any Ideas? If there are seals I need to replace, I will just go ahead and do them, better safe than sorry.

 

There are a couple drains under the rear hatch glass. Make sure those not plugged. The drain hoses should run inside by the tail lights, and back out behind the bumper. Check to make sure they are intact.
Other than that, the rear hatch seal may need replaced.

 

Note: Some early models had 3 drains under the hatch, later models just have 2.

 

ok, i remember not seeing any drains.

 

Clean out the recess at the bottom of the hatch. There are drains located in that on every 1st gen I have ever seen.
My 83 has 2, one on each side. My freinds 79 has 3, the same on each side, and one in the center.

 

I guess I will be using a magnet to find the holes then?

 

I was wondering about those tubes under my car and leading to the taillights when I noticed they lead up to the hatch area. I had my Shop-Vac with me and just stuck the hose over the drain holes to suck the debris out. They should easily be noticed, as they contrast with the rest of the pain job usually.

You can't use a magnet to find the holes as the entire car body is metal, therego, the magnet will stick to the car.

With the hatch up and you're standing directly at the car's 6, imagine the hatch area to be a clock. The holes (if there are two) will be at 7 o'clock and 8 o'clock. If there's three, the third one will at be at 6 o'clock.

 

the drains should be easy to see. they are just a couple of holes. but another way to find where the water is coming in is to be inside the car and have someone spray water on the back glass and watch where it is coming in. i did this and i found that the little metal "lip" that the seal is on had rusted and was letting the water in through it between the seal and the metal.

 

Good thing to find those leaks and replace the hatch seal before CO leaks in and kills you.

 

the drains arnt easy to see cause i think they bondoed over them, hence the magnet comment

 

Pull the inside rear cover behind the tail lights, then feel around for the tube flanges.

 

Take my advice on their location. Hopefully, you'll see a slight change in the bondo. Also, bondo is non-metallic so I still can't understand the use of a magnet. Unless you're looking for an area that isn't going to attract the magnet. Just stand at the car's 6, and look at the 8 and 4 position, or possible around the 7 and 5 area, between those.

 

Tail light gaskets.
If yours (like most) are original, they will be SHOT. So everytime you wash the car, etc. you can be sure water is leaking NOT just into the spare well, but into the rear quarter panels too! (note how the lights wrap right around the corner of the car...) The SA gasket is quite complex in how it wraps around the light body assy. You'll likely finish killing it just removing the lenses :p Buy a new set while you still can! Not cheap but these are a unique part. Old mechanic taught me to apply a thin (as in: with finger tip) film of plain old axle grease on both faces of the gasket. Get a more complete seal AND if you need to remove the lenses or light assy, the gasket doesn't stick and then tear as you remove them. FWIW I would by TWO sets if you plan to keep the car "forever" - since this gasket will be long-extinct by the time you need to replace it again!
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Good info on the taillight gaskets, 7aull.

Also, be careful with the fragile plastic lip that the gasket mounts on. It breaks easily and then you have a bigger problem.