3rd Brake Light Safety Recall?

Just dropped my truck off. They said they do it all from the outside. How can that be. They have to go in thru the inside to get to the light. Right ?

 

Nope, they’ll check the inside for signs of leakage by looking behind the seats and headliner. If no signs of leaks they leave the light alone, put silicone sealant around where it meets the cab then cover that up with a new trim piece.
If you do have a leak then I believe that they replace the light then do the above procedure. I didn’t have any signs of a leak.
Here’s my before and after.

 

Thanks. I saw that earlier in a post. Just wondering.

 

Hmmm, just had mine done this morning. Looking at the new trim piece it looks like the light would have to come off to install it. But what do i know.

 

Anyone else waiting on backorder carpet and padding? I'm going on 3 weeks without my truck and with no eta on parts.

 

A picture tells a thousand words!! Looks like they probably put a bead of silicone around the existing fixture, and that new trim piece/flange slides over the existing fixture and seals against the cab.

 

So the $$$ question is for those of us where the recall doesn't exist (Canada eh?) would you buy the part and DIY or sit and wait hoping for sunny days and future campaigns..

 

Just order the part yourself and swap it out. I've got mine sitting on the back seat of my truck. If it still leaks I'll take it in for the seal, but I doubt it will. Going to get around to it soon I hope. Link in quoted post below...

 

Has anyone done this themselves? If so, a quick DIY write-up would be awesome. I'm hearing 2 versions of the replacement. Some say it can be done without removing the existing fixture, some say the light has to come out a a new seal/flange is installed. Based on the picture above, there's definitely a new flange of some sort that's installed with the seal and silicone.

 

I was to far to see what was going on but they had both back doors open throughout the service.

 

Well, you wouldn't have had to remove a $3,000 topper to replace defective OEM design, if it wasn't defective, right? If the Techs are not mechanically inclined to slide a bed cap back a few feet to get to the work, they probably shouldn't be diving into removal of the headliner for the inspection they are supposed to do.

 

I was told they are supposed to pull the headliner every time to inspect. I doubt that is done when there is no visible signs of water intrusion, but I bet they bill Toyota for the hours.

 

About time, 5 years, they owned up to this bad design.
Now they need to address the plastic t coolant pipe.
I don't have either problem, yet, btw.

 

That is a good thing, I watched a vid where a guy said they could be hard to get to (on back of engine IIRC) and are prone to failure (it would be an expensive repair if not covered).

 

$1800 others have posted.

 

Ouch, that would suck. I'm guessing that would make a mess blowing coolant everywhere. It could strand you on a road trip for sure. I misread I thought you were saying it would be addressed. Agree that it should be, they won't unless there are enough cases that they have to.

 

Might not even be addressed. Only reason light was because it was a safety issue.

 

Again it comes back to not a factory item so not their concern more yours because you installed it / had it installed. It's not even a matter of ability but what toyota will pay for them to do and removing your topper is not one of the things covered in the recall. At least not that I read. Check on post #109 for reference.

 

So what needs to be done when you have to change the light bulbs. Does this mean you need a new gasket kit every time you change the light bulb?

 

Yup my 17 was in for oil change this morning and sure enough the storms we had got a leak, they had to order a new light assembly and headliner. Of course they tried to sell me $3700 of other services recommended! No thank you!