Water leak

[CCScott]

Noticed a damp carpet on the passenger side front footwell in my new 2022 Bighorn Crew Cab. Brought it to the dealer and they said there was a leak from the third tail light and also the rear window. They replaced the tail light and I’m waiting for the window to come in.

Anyone know if this is generally successful at stopping these leaks? I know the third tail light has been problematic for sometime now and I dread having to chase a water leak forever.

Appreciate your thoughts…

Scott

 

[Atcer2018]

Noticed a damp carpet on the passenger side front footwell in my new 2022 Bighorn Supercrew. Brought it to the dealer and they said there was a leak from the third tail light and also the rear window. They replaced the tail light and I’m waiting for the window to come in.

Anyone know if this is generally successful at stopping these leaks? I know the third tail light has been problematic for sometime now and I dread having to chase a water leak forever.

Appreciate your thoughts…

Scott

I hear ya! I chased down a water leak over the winter and had the rear seats and cab covers pulled off over a month to find and correct it. Not fun. Most of the typical leaks are easy inexpensive fixes. In your case the rear window is an expensive replacement, hope it’s covered under warranty. What is puzzling in your case is the water collecting on the front passenger floor, usually the water is contained in the rear seat area. Did the dealer check the AC condensate drain line? If that is clogged water will pool on the passenger front footwell area. Did you smell the water in the footwell area for antifreeze? That would be the worst case scenario as a heater core replacement is a big job on these trucks. To answer your question about long term leak issues, it’s typically the easiest to fix things that leak and yes the leak can come back as seals wear out over time. If you keep the truck a long time expect to replace the third brake light seal every few years along with the rear exhauster vents. Both are inexpensive and easy fixes.

 

[mikeru]

There's no such thing as a Ram Supercrew (that's Ford). Assuming you're asking about a 5th gen 1500 (DT), there have been lots of people with the water leak issue, including me. For most it was the rear window (cracked frame), and replacing it cured the leak (myself included). A few people have had leak issues even after replacing the window and CHMSL. Other causes people have seen were the cab vents, sunroof drains, and cab seams. But by far the most common has been the rear window frame. And replacing the rear window cured it in most cases, although for some it came back after a period of time. There is a TSB out for the rear window, so it's a known issue. And they seem to have changed the design of the window frame slightly. But it's still made of plastic and prone to crack, especially at the top where the vertical slider frames are.

 

[CCScott]

I hear ya! I chased down a water leak over the winter and had the rear seats and cab covers pulled off over a month to find and correct it. Not fun. Most of the typical leaks are easy inexpensive fixes. In your case the rear window is an expensive replacement, hope it’s covered under warranty. What is puzzling in your case is the water collecting on the front passenger floor, usually the water is contained in the rear seat area. Did the dealer check the AC condensate drain line? If that is clogged water will pool on the passenger front footwell area. Did you smell the water in the footwell area for antifreeze? That would be the worst case scenario as a heater core replacement is a big job on these trucks. To answer your question about long term leak issues, it’s typically the easiest to fix things that leak and yes the leak can come back as seals wear out over time. If you keep the truck a long time expect to replace the third brake light seal every few years along with the rear exhauster vents. Both are inexpensive and easy fixes.

Thanks for the reply…I just happen to notice it when I was vacuuming. It’s wasn’t soaked but damp mostly along side the trim by the door jamb. Honestly I was sort of leaning towards that AC drain line but the dealership wanted to replace the rear window and brake light under warranty. Thankfully the liquid has no smell to it. I’ll have to keep a close eye on it. I checked all around the rear of the cab and didn’t find any other damp areas

 

[CCScott]

They finally got to the bottom of it… Turns out it was a small piece of insulation on the firewall. Sort of shaped like two connected circles. Evidently during the manufacturing process, one was folded over slightly, which allowed the water to seep in. They had the truck for a few days to do the repair and evidently it involved removing the dashboard. Anyway, just wanted to follow up in case anybody else has the same issue

 

[mikeru]

Thanks for following up. Glad to hear they fixed it. Yours was definitely a one-off problem. Since they removed the dash you might want to keep an ear out for new rattles. That's always my biggest fear when a dealership needs to remove the dash to fix something.

 

[Jonnyb]

On my 5th ram. 2018. First thing I did when I got this one was seal the sliding window shut with silicone. Next seal the brake light with silicone. Yes I know it can promote rust. One of the screws was loose from the factory. Silicone around the fin. When the big one came it was the cab vents. Took me a while to find it as this one was a new one I had not experienced. Removed the rear seat and changed them out.