Leaking and now i'm mad

[RangerFella]

As the title of this thread states, I've got a leak and it's irritating the bloody mess out of me.

*note: I have a sliding back window but my side-rear windows do not open

It's a 97, ext. cab, XLT, 2.3L <80k miles, taken good care of, and NO rust whatsoever. When it rains, I first see a dark spot on the headliner right where it curves. It's right behind (or in front) of the back door open/brake/cargo light (the one on the outside of the truck). If it rains long enough water collects on the roll-out back cover (the one that's hidden until you pull the handle that's protruding slightly from the back of the truck right under the window). If it continues raining, the water will work its way towards the front of the truck and dampen the floorboards on the passenger side.

Now, being as analytical as I am, I first asked myself "why is it leaking?" so I inspected the area where it first gets wet. I noticed a substantial gap between the seal on the light and the body. So, I went to my local auto store and picked up a tube of silicone, high temp, UV resistant sealant. I cleaned the area appropriately and applied liberal amounts of the stuff, let it dry, and it worked okay for a while (I guess, can't say for sure, it never rained for me to test it). NOW, less than 2 months later, it's leaking AGAIN. There's no conceivable way that water is working its way through the seal that I made. I thought perhaps that the rubber that connects to the lens was deteriorated in such a manner that it allowed water in so I applied some clear silicone there. Still, no luck. I got wet head after washing the truck so...I'm baffled.

Where the EFFIN' HELL is this WATER getting in from!? All signs point to the light but...is it even remotely possible that the rear windows are leaking? But if they were, why would the headliner be the first area to dampen?

Please, somebody help me out here. I'm really angry over this because I'm afraid it's going to rust something out eventually and then I'll be really screwed. This truck is my baby...you know how it is.

 

[Rangersrule91]

the seal around my back window leaks pretty bad when it rains or i go through the carwash, just check the seals on everything

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Did you remove the fixture or just try and patch it I would say remove the light from the truck clean both surfaces remove the lens if you can and then on the fixture where the gap is get some good 3-M double back foam tape and shape it to fit the fixture and carefully place it on the cabto where the screw holes line upand give the screws a shot of clear silicone when you put them in. Basically take it apart all the way and reassemble it right or you can take a hammer to the stupid thing.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

Oh yea put a new bulb in while you have it apart just for giggles

 

[RangerFella]

Yeah, that's what I did.

 

[kimcrwbr1]

did you use the foam tape when you mounted it

 

[GreenRanger9096]

I'm actually having the same problem with my 96 STX, sliding rear window and all.


I'm pretty sure that I fixed it the other day, still no rain, but the seal around the 3rd brake light was bad.

Hopefully that'll help, good luck!