Miata floods still

So, I was driving to NJMP on Friday and I drove through a friggin' monsoon. As always, when it monsoons, water pours into the car from somewhere near the windshield. It comes through the dash, hits the fan when I turn left, and pours down the trim near the passenger's right calf.

My theory now is that it comes in through the HVAC inlet which looks like a short (maybe two inch high) snorkel under a plastic cover on the passenger side under the wipers. Is it possible that the water passage under the windshield wipers fills up with so much water that it spills over the inlet walls and into the HVAC system? I checked the function of both drains from that area and they seem to work perfectly.

By the way, somebody recommended a few weeks ago that I look at the drain hose that goes through the transmission tunnel from the HVAC system--this was properly routed and clear. Thanks for the tip though.

This is the area that I'm talking about.

This is the snorkel that I'm talking about.

If this is what is happening, then what can be done to remedy the problem?

To continue on the drain hose theme-did you clean out the blower housing itself? Mine had similar symptoms and I came to the conclusion that the HVAC system filled up with water/AC condensation because of a drain clog and overflowed out the fan inlet. I came to this conclusion because the problem only happened on long trips with the AC on, and the water coming out was FRIGGIN COLD! When cleaning out the drain hose it became obvious that the drain outlet (not hose) was clogged with leaves. Luckily just pulling the leaves out of the outlet helped enough that I didn't have to dismantle the HVAC system. Might be worth looking into.

Great idea! I'll pull it apart next time I get to work on the car.

You should park beside a totally-stock Miata (same or similar year) and see if you're missing an important plastic piece, shroud or weatherstripping. I can't tell from your pictures, but from memory, it seems right. I'll go look at mine in a few minutes.