BigJ23

Hey everyone. I have a 2000 flareside ext cab 5.4 V8. I'm in Ft. Lauderdale FL and it started to pour down raining when I was going to the store. So its raining real bad and I dont feel like getting soaked so I turned the truck off and sat in the truck and tried to wait till it slowed up. Then I heard what sounded like water falling!!! I turned and looked behind me and there was water falling from the roof of the truck!! WTF??? The headliner wasnt wet. It seemed to be coming from the rear window. Has anyone else had this problem and if so how to repair. I dont want my subwoofers that I have under the rear seat to up, if you know what I mean!!! Also how do I take down the headliner to get a better look at where the leak is coming from? Thanks family!!!!

Good old Bill

Other members report high mount stop lite.

Kattumaram

My '97 had a leak around the upper-left corner of the windshield. The water was getting under the weather trim at the top of the windshield and running down the inside trim around the A-pillar.

A similar leak is very likely around your rear window, or, as Bill suggests, around the high-center stop light.

I filled the space between the trim and the body with siliconized acrylic caulking. That type of caulking is water-based and takes a day or two to cure, but it's tough as he*l, dries clear, sticks like fury and is easy to clean up.

Lenn

... or if you have a sunroof, the drains could be clogged.

BigJ23

Thanks for the response! How do I take down the headliner to get a better look at where the leak is coming from?

Kattumaram

As I recall, the headliner in my '97 was held up by the overhead courtesy light assembly. All the inside trim snaps in place. Once the trim is away the headliner panel will come down with the removal of the light assembly.

I'm looking for some concurrence with this observation from other members who may have worked the same fix.....

aaronl

Do you have a sliding rear window? They are bad about leaking around the top.

jhelrey

I had the same leak in my 97... It was not the sliding window that leaked, but the top of window period. I cleaned up everything, tapped off the plastic, etc... and used black 100% mold/mildew resistant caulking and filled the gap in between the plastic and the glass. I then used my finger to smooth it out. I left the bottom open incase water did get in, it could drain out. No leaks! Even pressure washing it results in no water inside the cab. This was done by sitting in the bed of the truck, silicone on the outside.

$5.00 fix!

rm56

I saw your post about your rear window leaking. Did you remove the plastic outside trim and upper brake light? Or did you just seal in between that trim and the rubber? Mine is leaking on the upper passenger side. The strange thing is when I climbed in the bed the rubber is ok on that side but sunk down on the drivers side. Water must be migrating over to the pass side. Do you have a link to a new rubber OEM seal? I don't think just using a bunch of sealer will solve my leak. I called Ford, waste of time. I have a Chintons manual which is a joke, says to take it to a shop with "special tools"! Don't ya just love buying a "service/repair" manual and it tells you to pay someone else to fix it. Thanks

pickupsrule

I replaced my headliner so I had to take the old one off.
Kattu is right. As well as I remember, you take the screws out of the sun flap things and remove them. Then you take the screws out of the overhead light and remove it. Then you take the screws out of the clothes hanger things and remove them. That's it. Carefully pull the trim pieces off as they are held with clips and simply snap. Also I think I recall the rear windshield is just held in place with glass caulk adhesive and a lot of it so that is probably where your leak is. Once you get the headliner and inside trim off, have someone run a hose on the roof of the truck and try and see the water coming in. I would bet it is running past the caulking. If so, the rear window should be removed (most people break the outside trim piece doing it), the rear window cleaned, and all the caulking removed and replaced with new AUTOMOTIVE GLASS CAULKING. If you get lost, a glass shop can do all that for about $ 200.00 or less.
I would try the suggested silicone caulking tips first. I have used a lot of the Black Silicone caulking on cars but be advised it is a lot cheaper if you buy the big tube at a home improvement store. I mean a LOT cheaper and it does not harden like the small tube does (I cover the big tube end with the plastic tip, wrap plastic wrap around that, then wrap some aluminum foil on the whole tip).