Tail light panels are leaking
Tail light panels are leaking
I just discovered that the tail light panels are leaking on my 1991 240SX fastback. I heard slushing sounds while driving and found that quite a bit of water is in the spare tire well. We have had a lot of storms lately. I removed the panels and put 3M strip caulking around the light housings on both sides and it is still leaking. Getting a bit frustrated as it takes a while to remove the panels and re-install them. Before I do it again, I would like your response and help. thanks
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (240bill1)
Do you have a spoiler? Is it rusted underneath allowing water to get in? check your fabric panel underneath to see if it's damp. If the mount holes are rusted water can get in that way too.
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (lbrowne)
yes, I do have a spoiler, but not leaking there. I have seen the water trail down from the light housing.
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vancouverbc
- Posts: 3197
- Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2003 1:30 am
- Car: 1991 240sx
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (240bill1)
you really have to get in with a flashlight when it is raining and see where it is coming from. one of my leaks was over the top of the main hatch gasket. and then the water would flow over the light. took me several years to figure out what was happening.
tutorial
zerothread?id=251375
tutorial
zerothread?id=251375
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vancouverbc
- Posts: 3197
- Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2003 1:30 am
- Car: 1991 240sx
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (vancouverbc)
check all the metal seams. where the sheets of metal come together. lots of this. whole patchwork
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (vancouverbc)
thanks to all! You have been a big help!Bill
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (240bill1)
mine was leaking at the seams above the tailights
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shawn_240sx
- Posts: 158
- Joined: Sat Dec 23, 2006 10:58 pm
- Car: s13 240sx
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (240bill1)
So what did you find the culprit to be an how did you fix?...these threads are useful to us all...and save us from starting a new one. Im saying cuz i have the same issue and was hoping for some advice.Thanks
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vancouverbc
- Posts: 3197
- Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2003 1:30 am
- Car: 1991 240sx
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (shawn_240sx)
they should even make a tutorial on the subject
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (vancouverbc)
I'll take the liberty of helping out with this, my apologies if there's already a write up. I too when I got my 1990 240SX SE almost a year ago had the notorious tail light leak. The kid I bought the car off of, told me about it, but couldn't find it. His fix was to put a little duct tape on top of the tail lights....needless to say it didn't work.
I read up and found that the tail light seals go on these cars. It's easy to replace and you can get the materials at any auto store. The cost will vary but roughly $15-30. Behind the rear hatch cover are a few bolts (don't remember the sizes off hand) that are for the rear light. Be gentle with these, their connected directly to the tail light housing and old plastic can be brittle and the bolts could be rusty, use WD-40 (Any lubricating oil's fine). The tail light may be 'stuck', just work it out gently, as not to break any corners. Once you have it out you can see why it was stuck, around the tail light is a black gooey substance (tar like). That's the seal that goes. Clean it all off (which can be a pain). If your a perfectionist like me you can use brake clean to help loosen it up. Also clean the car, where the tail light sits. Now that you got your cleaned up light you have to re-seal it.
There's a sealant made by 3M called Window and weather stripping sealant (going off memory, I have it in my tool box at work). It comes in 3/8 in. black sticky rolled up cord. They vary in length. I suggest getting 15 feet, in case you mess up or have to reseal again (trust me). Once you have it look closely at rear tail light housing (where you cleaned) you can see a plastic line going around the housing, above that line it where you want to run the sealant. I put two cords in, side to side. I tried it the first time with only one cord and still had a leak (it may be another problem though). Once you have the sealant on the light, simply reinstall the tail light. When you put it back on the car, make sure you press firmly, as to adhere the sealant and have it spread out to make a good seal.
After I did this I still had a leak. The weatherstripping was torn and broken on my hatch so I had to have it replaced. No regular parts store has it, as far as they know its a dealer item. I think the dealer wanted over $200 by me. Their hard to find online, but this site http://www.trademotion.com/spl...14086 has a lot of parts for your car and priced very good. As far as I know it's all OE stuff, the weather stripping was around $105 shipped to my house, it was a genuine Nissan part.
Install on this is very straight forward, pull out the old one and install the new one. I also suggest cleaning around your trim so the stripping has a clean fit. The split in the stripping is at the bottom of the hatch. It's going to be very snug when your installing it, so push down hard. That's it......or is it?
Yup I had a third problem, no idea what it was. My boss told me I didn't seal it right I took up the weather stripping above my tail lights and notice a small rust spot above each tail light. It looked like a little nothing spot, it had to be it. My boss with over 30 years experience disagreed with me, but I thought...what the hell. I put a glob of silicone weather stripping over each rust spot and reinstalled the weather stripping. Later that day I had my brother run the hose all over the hatch, inside the drains, every where. Not a drop
Hope that helps some people, I shoulda took pics when I did my right side. Mebe I'll do my left one for fun, for the sake of this topic.
I read up and found that the tail light seals go on these cars. It's easy to replace and you can get the materials at any auto store. The cost will vary but roughly $15-30. Behind the rear hatch cover are a few bolts (don't remember the sizes off hand) that are for the rear light. Be gentle with these, their connected directly to the tail light housing and old plastic can be brittle and the bolts could be rusty, use WD-40 (Any lubricating oil's fine). The tail light may be 'stuck', just work it out gently, as not to break any corners. Once you have it out you can see why it was stuck, around the tail light is a black gooey substance (tar like). That's the seal that goes. Clean it all off (which can be a pain). If your a perfectionist like me you can use brake clean to help loosen it up. Also clean the car, where the tail light sits. Now that you got your cleaned up light you have to re-seal it.
There's a sealant made by 3M called Window and weather stripping sealant (going off memory, I have it in my tool box at work). It comes in 3/8 in. black sticky rolled up cord. They vary in length. I suggest getting 15 feet, in case you mess up or have to reseal again (trust me). Once you have it look closely at rear tail light housing (where you cleaned) you can see a plastic line going around the housing, above that line it where you want to run the sealant. I put two cords in, side to side. I tried it the first time with only one cord and still had a leak (it may be another problem though). Once you have the sealant on the light, simply reinstall the tail light. When you put it back on the car, make sure you press firmly, as to adhere the sealant and have it spread out to make a good seal.
After I did this I still had a leak. The weatherstripping was torn and broken on my hatch so I had to have it replaced. No regular parts store has it, as far as they know its a dealer item. I think the dealer wanted over $200 by me. Their hard to find online, but this site http://www.trademotion.com/spl...14086 has a lot of parts for your car and priced very good. As far as I know it's all OE stuff, the weather stripping was around $105 shipped to my house, it was a genuine Nissan part.
Install on this is very straight forward, pull out the old one and install the new one. I also suggest cleaning around your trim so the stripping has a clean fit. The split in the stripping is at the bottom of the hatch. It's going to be very snug when your installing it, so push down hard. That's it......or is it?
Yup I had a third problem, no idea what it was. My boss told me I didn't seal it right I took up the weather stripping above my tail lights and notice a small rust spot above each tail light. It looked like a little nothing spot, it had to be it. My boss with over 30 years experience disagreed with me, but I thought...what the hell. I put a glob of silicone weather stripping over each rust spot and reinstalled the weather stripping. Later that day I had my brother run the hose all over the hatch, inside the drains, every where. Not a drop
Hope that helps some people, I shoulda took pics when I did my right side. Mebe I'll do my left one for fun, for the sake of this topic.
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vancouverbc
- Posts: 3197
- Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2003 1:30 am
- Car: 1991 240sx
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (My RB25)
My main leak was the weather stripping(hatch gasket). I guess more accurately it was dented in one corner. Anyway, I used liquid gasket per my article.
I'll add the your info on the weather stripping procurement. The seams above the taillights is definitely a bad spot.
Existing tutorials.
Tail light leaking article
zerothread?id=251375
I'll add the your info on the weather stripping procurement. The seams above the taillights is definitely a bad spot.
Existing tutorials.
Tail light leaking article
zerothread?id=251375
Re: Tail light panels are leaking (shawn_240sx)
I removed the tail light panels this weekend and removed all the old goo sealent. What a mess!!! My hands are trash! Black stuff that I can't seem to get off! I bought the 3M windshield sealent (3/8" cord striping) and reinstalled it. So far, so good. I also put clear silican caulk on the body seems just in case.Thanks to all!!