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I've recently bought a 2005 Skoda Octavia (in Europe, if that matters) and I could use some help with pinpointing a source of a windlike whistling noise comming from the rear left door.

The door has a double seal (inner and outer) and a standard single glass seal. The whistling noise comes from the very rear of the door but I find it impossible to pinpoint the exact source. The noise is directly proportional to speed and nothing else seems to have an effect on it. The noise is bearable up to around 80 - 100 kph but at higher speeds it becomes very loud and no reasonable volume of radio can overcome it (not that it would be a real solution anyway).

I wanted to ask if someone has an idea how to find what seal/part is source of the trouble before I start a shopping spree for any and all rubber seals money can buy.

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    Could you get us good quality pictures of the door jam and door seals, without cleaning any dirt of grime off of anywhere?
    – Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 ♦
    Sep 27, 2015 at 20:51
  • Very good idea, should have thought about it myself. I'll get some photos later today!
    – Pavel
    Sep 28, 2015 at 13:55

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One way you can find out if it's a leaking door seal is to apply glycerine to the door seals and then drive around to see if the noise changes or disappears. If there's no change at all, the sound is probably not coming from the seal. If it is quieter, or changes tone or pitch, then there's probably a gap somewhere. By applying the glycerine to only part of the seal at a time, you can narrow down where the gap is.

You could use any viscous fluid, such as mineral oil or dishwashing detergent, but those could damage the seal or be hard to clean off. Glycerine is good because it's cheap, very inert, and can be washed off with water.

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  • I'll buy same tomorrow and report back, thank you for the idea. Actually if I apply the glycerine at first on the opposite parts only, I'll be able to see the portions of the seal which don't touch them.
    – Pavel
    Sep 28, 2015 at 14:01

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