Any common water leaks? Update posted. Need advise

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JasonK94Z

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Hi all. I have a 2011 Ram 1500 quad cab. I am having a horrible issue with condensation inside of the truck. I am assuming this is an issue when there is a water leak in the cab. I wondering if anyone can tell me if there are common problems with water leaks in these trucks, and where they are.
I am also thinking about calling Safelite back out because almost a year ago they replaced my windshield and I'm trying to remember but I believe this may have started shortly after that. Not sure.

Just don't know what to do here. Water dripping off the inside of windows sucks!
 
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mtnrider

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One of the most common leaks are the vents behind the rear seats and the third brake light at the rear of the cab. And of course sunroofs and cab lights on the HD trucks.

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JasonK94Z

JasonK94Z

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Thank you. I will check the rear vents and the third brake light asap!
 

nlambert182

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To be honest, it's a royal PITA to really find out if the rear vents are bad without removing the rear seats and the back wall carpet. Total cost to replace both is less than $40.... I had condensation as well so I went ahead and ordered the vents since I had to remove everything anyhow. Glad I did.... the flaps on my vents were distorted and the vents were loose fitting. Swapped them both out in 20 minutes and condensation went away.

Also same for the 3rd brake light. It's an $8 fix and takes 20 minutes at most. If I buy a Ram I just go ahead and plan to replace both as soon as I get it.
 

Socalramfan

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To be honest, it's a royal PITA to really find out if the rear vents are bad without removing the rear seats and the back wall carpet. Total cost to replace both is less than $40.... I had condensation as well so I went ahead and ordered the vents since I had to remove everything anyhow. Glad I did.... the flaps on my vents were distorted and the vents were loose fitting. Swapped them both out in 20 minutes and condensation went away.

Also same for the 3rd brake light. It's an $8 fix and takes 20 minutes at most. If I buy a Ram I just go ahead and plan to replace both as soon as I get it.

Excellent point :waytogo:
 

Atcer2018

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To be honest, it's a royal PITA to really find out if the rear vents are bad without removing the rear seats and the back wall carpet. Total cost to replace both is less than $40.... I had condensation as well so I went ahead and ordered the vents since I had to remove everything anyhow. Glad I did.... the flaps on my vents were distorted and the vents were loose fitting. Swapped them both out in 20 minutes and condensation went away.

Also same for the 3rd brake light. It's an $8 fix and takes 20 minutes at most. If I buy a Ram I just go ahead and plan to replace both as soon as I get it.
+1 on this advice. I tried all the other leak fixes but still had condensation and wet carpet in the rear. Finally pulled the rear seats, carpet and insulation. I have a 2018 and it already had the newer style vents but they were indeed leaking. I assume the the weatherstripping on the exterior deteriorated and allowed the vents to move around. The replacement is pretty easy. After you have the new ones in spray it down with a hose and check to make sure it’s not leaking. Even though I replaced with the latest and greatest part it was still leaking. I used plain old clear silicon caulk and filled the perimeter of the new vent mount like a 6 year old with play dough. Waited two days and sprayed it down again, no leaks now. I recommend replacing and caulking.
 
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JasonK94Z

JasonK94Z

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I’m bringing this back with an update.

I checked under the back seat. The drivers side rear seat lifts up and is dry underneath.
The passenger side backseat storage area was holding a pool of water in the storage area underneath my subwoofer box. That side of the back seat will not lift up all the way! Almost half way up and it hits some sort of hard stop. I’ve pretty much beat the living hell out of it lifting the seat up as hard as I can. Not sure what’s going on here.

I guess I’ll replace the third brake light gasket with some weather stripping?

Won’t be taking the back seat out if I can’t get the passenger side seat bottom to lift up all the way. Guessing the vents could be leaking too? I’m pissed to no end right now and need that damn seat out.
 

Idledrummer

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Hi Everyone,hi have the same issue, even after replacing the vents and third brake light gasket.
any thoughts what else I can check?
lit seems to happen on heavy rains only.
thank you all!
 

Atcer2018

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Hi Everyone,hi have the same issue, even after replacing the vents and third brake light gasket.
any thoughts what else I can check?
lit seems to happen on heavy rains only.
thank you all!
As silly as this response may sound, did you check to make sure the 3rd brake light seal and rear vents weren’t leaking after you replaced them? I made the same repairs as you and did the shark fin only to have leaks. I pulled the rear seats AGAIN and sprayed the truck down with the hose only to find the rear vents still leaked so I caulked them to eliminate the leaks. The third brake light was also leaking as I had over tightened the screws and cracked the plastic. I eliminated the gasket leak but caused another one. If your 3rd brake light housing is cracked I can recommend the Doorman replacement. A quarter of the cost of OEM and the fit and finish is equal to OEM.
 

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I replaced the third brake light gasket on my 14, x2. Didn't work. Clear chalk for bathroom tile. At the bottom of the third brake light cured the issue.

Can't see once it dries, stopped the leak.
 

mdc1990zr1

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I replaced the third brake light gasket on my 14, x2. Didn't work. Clear chalk for bathroom tile. At the bottom of the third brake light cured the issue.

Can't see once it dries, stopped the leak.
I replaced the third brake light gasket with some heavy duty gasket from Detroit something or other, only to find that it didn't seal because my third brake light housing was warped. A member on here suggested I put new LED bulbs in the housing as they run cooler than the original bulbs. So I ordered a new OEM housing and replaced the bulbs with LED and I have been leak-free for a couple years now.
 

Idledrummer

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it is raining now, removed backseat and insulation, and found the water, but not sure it is coming from third brake light, but it is definitely not from the vents. Will try your suggestions. It only leaks into the passenger side. I see some caulcking, maybe from previous owner.20230430_112152_Original.jpeg
20230430_143723_Original.jpeg20230430_143640_Original.jpeg
 
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Atcer2018

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it is raining now, removed backseat and insulation, and found the water, but not sure it is coming from third brake light, but it is definitely not from the vents. Will try your suggestions. It only leaks into the passenger side. I see some caulcking, maybe from previous owner.
You narrowed it down to the 3rd brake light or rear window. I hope it’s not the window. I think that’s the rarest leak.
 

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If it's the sliding window, I believe the drain holes in the track get plugged up. Just a thought.
 
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