My friend and I have a huge leak in our trucks. I think it was comming in from the third brake light because we both have the CB antenna running through it. So, I Put my old 3rd brake light in (not cut) and Dumped 5 gallons of water there. Well it still leaks but Its not leaking right under the light, but more over the jump seat. Anyone has this problem? Also the entire floor was soaked... more on the pass than the drivers side.

The pics show where its leaking into the truck

 

hmmm. i don't have the foggiest notion what could be the problem, but the pictures are very nice. i wish i knew how to post pictures. :

 

hmm.. i could be wrong on this, but i think i remember a thread about the rear windows sometimes having leaks.. something about taking them to ford to having them fixed under a recall possibly??? someone should be able to verify if im wrong or not on this, till then.. bumppp

 

Yea Im having the same problem with my 03 ranger it leaks inside behind the passenger jump seat and my head liner of my car near the third brake light was soaked after sitting in a heavy rain storm here in the East for like 5 days the amount of water that came in was great with it filling up my cup holders near the jack and stuff. I am thinking that the head liner definely got wet from the CB radio that runs through my third brake light that had a noch cut in it to let the cable come through into the car. But I am positive that the CB cable had nothing for the carpeting and under the seats being wet. I am also sure that the window was closed I think that most of the mosture came through the seal on the back of the truck. Any one else have this problem please let me know so that I might be able to claim a recall on it and get it fixed. Thanks

 

bumpp

 

happens to mine, sometimes, too...

 

Im gettin lots of water tho... its filling the cup holders in the back...

 

I had my back glass replaced not to long ago w/ an older style slider, & mine still leaks. But I can lift the lip up & maybe put some sicilone (s/p?) in there & maybe you can do the same?

Brenton

 

Yeah, ill try but its not the slider where its comming in... We got a parts B2300 at school, ill try and get the rear window from that

 

yea I think that the water comes in when there is a terential rain storm, or large amounts of water and the truck is siting it in for long periods of time. I left for spring break and it was sitting there for atleast a week and a half with rain everyday so maybe thats the deal. But still it shouldn't leak at all.

 

It seems pretty common for the 3rd brake light to leak. I think it is the foam gasket thing Ford uses...it seems like they flatten out over time or something and don't seal as well. I switched to a 3rd brake light with cargo lamps from a Ranger a couple years older than mine and had water leaking in the same places. When I put the old light back, no water. I'm going to try a thicker gasket made from generic adhesive backed weatherstripping from Advance. I'm going to try it out tomorrow to see how it holds up to water. I could just get a new light (which would include a new foam gasket), but they are like $50 at the dealer and I got my junkyard one for next to nothing.

BTW - water will not just leak right where the 3rd brake light is...when it gets in the cab from the 3rd brake light it flows to the corners and leaks there too.

 

The same thing happened to mine.. I took it up to Ford and they replaced it, free of charge. Said it happens with alot of them.

 

Update on my previous post...it looks like the gaskets are not the issue...the leaks come from stripped out nylon nuts that the screws for the light screw into. The metal screws strip them out pretty easily. While the light might feel secure, if the nylon nut is stripped, water can get in. My truck started leaking after swapping the light a couple times to try and get a cargo light that wouldn't leak. Replacing the nylon nuts seems to have done the trick. They can be hard to find though. I was not able to find them at any car parts stores and I had to go to a couple dealers before I could get some. Body shops likely have them though.

Like I said, the gaskets don't seem to wear out, but I think they might be different depending on the cab. I took the light off my parents' '02 Ranger Super Cab to compare and the gasket on it is noticeably thinner than the one on my regular cab. The gasket from the '02 looked exactly like the one on the junkyard truck. That doesn't explain why Super Cabs leak, but if you have a regular cab and want to swap lights, keep it in mind.

 

Mine doesnt leak anymore... i used a crap load of sealant/ gasket junk

 

Mine leaked while it was sitting on the dealers lot. They replaced something around the lower rear window and it never happened again.