2018 SR Non-Third Brake Light Water Leak

So for a while now, I've been finding my carpets being very damp after lengthy rainstorms, and naturally my truck absolutely stinks of mildew. Convinced it was just the pesky 3rd brake light that everyone has issues with, I of course did research. I found primarily 2016-2017 trucks having this issue, till I came across Toyota's recall document for the 3rd brake light, with '18 trucks included. Naturally my truck's VIN was not included in the recall, so just as a measure i decided to take it to the carwash and spray the heck out of the 3rd brake light, and the rear of the cab to see if it was possibly anything back there. No evidence of a 3rd brake light leak as far as I could tell, but noticed a substantial amount of water in the very back corner on the driver's side

Now, I have removed my rear storage cubbies behind the rear seats to make room for a dual subwoofer set up in the back.. Noticed the bottom of the enclosure has water damage..

I have yet to remove the enclosure to pinpoint the leak, and am beginning to worry that the leak may have something to do with my removal of the storage cubbies. I know it sounds stupid, as it is an interior piece, but I feel like anything is possible.

Also worrying if they can void my warranty claim because of my removal of the cubbies, if they do find that leak was caused by my tampering of the rear of the cab..

Has anyone else had this issue?

 

Do you have any pictures?

 

Attached are pictures of my sub box rot, you can clearly see it in the first picture, second one is drivers side back corner where I found water after I sprayed the back of the cab..

honestly I’m just lost at this point. Truck was parked all day, rained late afternoon to night time yesterday. Spot pictured above was dry as a bone, but my carpet was soaked

 

There are two "vents" on the rear of the cab. About where the headrests would be centered. These vent the cab to the outside when pressured. You can see them by looking down between the cab and bed. There have been a few threads where people re-sealed these, etc. due to moisture issues. Search for some of the other threads.

 

Since your amp is also located back there, I would remove the Sub and amp until this is figured out. At a minimum pull the fuse on the power line. I had a capacitor catch fire in my ford ranger once. Whole back interior was on fire. My carpet and headliner were black lol.

 

I remember there was a sound deadening thread (dynamat) where the guy took pictures along the way of the complete strip out of the cab. He also covered how he dealt with the vents as they are also a noise source.

 

So as it turns out, both of the vents are popped out from their positioning and not sealed at ALL, thus letting water in. It appears the tabs are broken and I will have to get new ones..

 

I wonder how that happened. Makes me wonder if it’s worth the effort to disassemble and “enhance” mine.

 

Lol I think when Installed my subwoofer box it actually hit them out and broke them I guess! I did get frustrated and kinda forced the box in.. wont do that again.

 

If it doesn't fit, force it. If it breaks, it needed to be replaced anyway. - Murphy’s Law