No AC. Car is really "straight", all original and in great shape, very little rust (surface), no holes.....interior really nice shape....I purchased it off the second owner and (according to her) was never driven in snow or bad weather and to be honest it looks as such......so the rusting out of the cowl area is questionable...now I have been playing with cars for a long time....first Maverick though.....and I truly understand tha appearance and undocumented "history" often does not always fair true, but she is in great shape.....so I will check out all the suspected areas. To be quite honest, with the car being in such good condition and running great I am not considering any "Major" restructuring as I would a car that needed body and drive train work....simply going to repair some minor areas and possibly some simple but nice upgrades.....and want to find out where the leak is. With that said watch me ended up taking her all apart over the winter, LOL.....Thanks.
Since the car does not have A/C, it will be easier to check the cowl visually from underneath. If there is a problem area, it will usually be near the fresh air vents.
I'm currently tearing into mine for the same exact problem. I found several small pinholes on the driver's side where leaves and pine straw had accumulated and when I washed it out, the holes were a lot larger and more in number than I expected. I only found a small puddle on the drivers floorboard after a hard rain. I removed the splash shield from under the rear portion of the fender and looked into the cowl drain with a flashlight and inspection mirror.
three 3/8" head sheet metal screws. the hole you have to look through is only about 3/4" tall by 2" wide. You can also look at the inside of the cowl lower section near where the vent (non ac) or flat area that forms the floor of the cowl behind the dash. You may have to peel the jute insulation off of the panels. Mine is leaking where the cowl floor and side panel meet (very hard to see) It might be easier to peel the insulation back and have someone pour water in the cowl while you look under the dash.
