I lifted my subwoofer box out of the tool well the other day and found this nasty mess:



We hit the wet season a while back, and I've apparently been getting water in the trunk. The MDF did a lovely job soaking up water and conducting some really fun science experiements with mold growth.

The trunk lining:


And with everything removed:


I found/fixed the leak (backed up drains from the convertible top gutter), and it's time to rebuild the box. The old box housed a JL 10w0 that's been in 3 different cars of mine since I bought it way back in 1995 (and the S for the last 7 years). How's that for kicking it, old school?

Well, I decided if I was going to go through the effort of building a new box, I was going to get an ideal subwoofer this time. I have to say, I'm really impressed with the quality and longevity from JL, I mean, the 10w0 is still going strong after 14 years of duty in hot Florida cars. That's enough to earn me back as a repeat customer...so I bought a 12w3v3. With a little polyfill, I believe can get a Qtc around .86, and it looks like it will outperform the old speaker by ~4dB throughout the low frequencies. I have a PPI amp that's good for 320Wrms bridged into 4Ohms.

I built the box yesterday, and it's sitting in the garage waiting on the silicone to cure fully before I install the speaker. I hate the waiting part! With any luck, I'll get it installed tonight.

 

Sorry about the leak. How do yo unclog those drains? That's a long time for your sub to last. Really good build quality!

 

There's a thread in the under the hood FAQ that shows some of the different trunk leaks. I used a piece of 5/8" vinyl hubing that I taped into my shopvac hose to clear out the leaves and debris. The "sink" and drain is just behind the door on either side - between the convertible top brushes and the exterior body panel. You can get to it from above when the top is lowered.

 

Fiberglass enclosure FTMFW!!

 

I am thinking about coating the exterior of the new box, just to make sure this can't happen again.

And on a sour note, I left the car out in the rain this afternoon, and found....more water in the trunk. So, it seems I haven't cured my leak yet, so the installation will have to wait until that's settled.

 

sucks...when i had my craptastic plastic rear window i had water leak through and ruin one of my amps...