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Water in Driver Side Rear Tail Light - 2025 Lightning Flash
rufustlong
Active member
Good luck to you on yours. I had a crack in mine (drivers side) on the inward tailgate edge. Ford denied it and said it was caused by me even though there were no visible impact marks. Even my dealer lobbied they could not see any impact marks.
Check it over good for cracks. After Ford told me to go blow I pulled the light, pulled the radar sensor, put the tail light in the oven at 120-130 for 10-15 minute sessions over a couple hours until it was dry inside then used clear window caulking to seal the cracks. Yes it looked terrible to me but nobody even noticed and protecting the wiring harness from corrosion and radar sensor is more important than looks at this point.
Unfortunately I was unable to find a drivers side (low trim) tail light on eBay so I ended up dropping $1,600 on a brand new light from myfordpart.com. I could have lived with the silicone for a while but I was concerned about the availability going forward specially with our trucks being cancelled so I went ahead and ordered it. There was a 2 or 3 day backorder and I received it in about a week.
If you venture into it, there are only two 8mm bolts holding the thing on between the housing and the tailgate. Take those out, then the housing can be pulled out from the rear at about a 30-40 degree angle and it pops out. Just make sure you don’t lose the retainer clips that hold in the front of the tail light, mine didn’t pop out but a couple on YouTube videos I watched did and the guy lost them. Disconnect the single plug to the truck and the tail light is free. Then take it inside, there are a couple screws holding on the radar sensor and cover, remove those and unplug the radar sensor. I would suggest taking a picture of the orientation the radar sensor is attached the first time you do it to make reassembly easier, you wont need it the second time. Be very careful with the radar sensor during removal and handling, it is sensitive and even says on it, “set aside if dropped”. These radar sensors are programmed to our VIN and if broken are a few hundred dollars and the dealer has to reprogram a new one to your VIN. At this point you should be able to dry the tail light out in whatever fashion you choose. I would keep the heat low and just be patient if you can. Even setting it down over a home heat register may dry it out over the course of a day or night.
Good luck, let us know what Ford says. I know this sucks but just wanted you to know there is another option to giving ~$3,000 to the dealer because we all know they don’t deserve it.
Check it over good for cracks. After Ford told me to go blow I pulled the light, pulled the radar sensor, put the tail light in the oven at 120-130 for 10-15 minute sessions over a couple hours until it was dry inside then used clear window caulking to seal the cracks. Yes it looked terrible to me but nobody even noticed and protecting the wiring harness from corrosion and radar sensor is more important than looks at this point.
Unfortunately I was unable to find a drivers side (low trim) tail light on eBay so I ended up dropping $1,600 on a brand new light from myfordpart.com. I could have lived with the silicone for a while but I was concerned about the availability going forward specially with our trucks being cancelled so I went ahead and ordered it. There was a 2 or 3 day backorder and I received it in about a week.
If you venture into it, there are only two 8mm bolts holding the thing on between the housing and the tailgate. Take those out, then the housing can be pulled out from the rear at about a 30-40 degree angle and it pops out. Just make sure you don’t lose the retainer clips that hold in the front of the tail light, mine didn’t pop out but a couple on YouTube videos I watched did and the guy lost them. Disconnect the single plug to the truck and the tail light is free. Then take it inside, there are a couple screws holding on the radar sensor and cover, remove those and unplug the radar sensor. I would suggest taking a picture of the orientation the radar sensor is attached the first time you do it to make reassembly easier, you wont need it the second time. Be very careful with the radar sensor during removal and handling, it is sensitive and even says on it, “set aside if dropped”. These radar sensors are programmed to our VIN and if broken are a few hundred dollars and the dealer has to reprogram a new one to your VIN. At this point you should be able to dry the tail light out in whatever fashion you choose. I would keep the heat low and just be patient if you can. Even setting it down over a home heat register may dry it out over the course of a day or night.
Good luck, let us know what Ford says. I know this sucks but just wanted you to know there is another option to giving ~$3,000 to the dealer because we all know they don’t deserve it.
Vishvish
Member
- Thread starter
- #3
@rufustlong Thank you for taking the time to walk me through that. My fingers are crossed that the dealer will fix this but now feeling a bit anxious at the possibility of coming out of pocket. No visible cracks but I may need younger eyes on this to confirm.
Vishvish
Member
- Thread starter
- #4
UPDATE - I finally got around to bringing it to the dealer and they are replacing the tail light with no charge. @rufustlong is correct and dealer confirmed , the part is 3k!!
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