The rear cab, under the seat in the storage bins and about 10" up the back wall on the damper padding is soaked and moldy! What I thought was going to be a vaccum and clean to remove an odor has turned into finding a major leak problem.

I searched on here and it looks like people have had similar problems only to diagnois it to the rear window. I have yet to come to a conclusion. The third brake light doesnt appear to be the culprit, but then again I never had this issue until I installed the aftermarket Recon third brake light.

I see theres to vents on the exterior of the cab in between the bed, seems like water could be entering there based on the areas that are soaked.

If someone has the ultimate fix please humor me! I guess I will begin with removing the rear seat, cuby stoarge carpet and rear wall damper padding. Then spray water and see if the leak is visible.

Any tips?

 

"... I never had this issue until I installed the aftermarket Recon third brake light." Cause and effect. If possible, have someone run a garden hose stream over the CHMSL. That's how I tracked down my leak. A bead of silicone seal fixed it right up.

 

Well I shouldve clairified it was some time ago that I installed the light, maybe a year or more. I dont think its the culprit, despite Recons poor weather stripping!

I removed everything down to the bare cab and water tested. I can only get water to come through the manual sliding rear window when spraying water on an angle. At this point I can only assume this is the source of my water. We have had a wet season, but Im not 100% the sliding window is the only culprit. It wouldnt explain how the storage carpet area was soaked in some spots but not others...

At this point I only see three options and they all assume the sliding window is the only leak source.
1. Replace the slider with solid glass $$$
2. Try to replace the gasket for the slider $$
3. Caulk the window shut $


If I could know after caulking the window shut there would never be a leak again I would do that.... But I think going to glass is the only sure way to eliminate a slider leak!

The rear wall damper padding may be salvageable, once it dries from cleaning I will know. The floor carpet/liner is very questionable, after cleaning it still holds the odor. Im going to look into replacing that, maybe its not too bad.

 

I wanted a second opinion so I took it to a glass business. They couldn't find any leaks. I ran it through a car wash and nothing! Im glad theres no leaks visible, but Im baffled on how water ever got inside.

Anyone have experience with this phantom leak? How else can I find a leak?

 

DOUBLE CHECK THE LIGHT?

Rear window Leak...Most times this is cause by th 3rd brake light not being sealed properly. Best bet is to remove the lightand squirt RTV sealant and remount the light. This is all that your local dodge dealer will do for this fix. Save yourself time and do it yourself. There is also a TSB regarding the rear window seal, but this is far less common than the 3rd light leaking.
Another problem is when the lower window track on the slider type gets plugged up. Members have remove the window, drilled to corners of the track and RTV'd thin tubing in the corner for better drainage.

 

Thanks BOW. I have yet to get any water since removing the interior carpet and seat. I was also thinking of sealing the third brake light to insure any potential leak. I do wonder about sealing it, will the RTV make it difficult when the light might need to come off?