Cracked 3rd Brake Light After Recall

Hey guys, could use some advice. I had the 3rd brake light recall done in February 2022. Long story short, I noticed what looks like a pressure crack at the top of the light with some moisture getting in.

The brake light wasn't leaking when I took it in. The dealership that did it added the black plastic ring around the outside. I just noticed it, so it's outside the one year period. I also had it done when I lived in Virginia and the truck is in Washington now, so taking it back to the dealership isn't an option. The dealership where I live now quoted me over $1,000 to replace the brake light. They also asked me "When did I add the LED lights" (the service advisor guy doesn't know they come standard) and suggested I hit it somehow. Pics suggest otherwise. Fun fun. I started a case with Toyota and they came back and told me it's past a year, tough luck.

I think this is a pressure crack and it took a year to form, or it happened when they did whatever they did and was hidden under the black thing and slowly crept out to where it is now. Has anyone else experienced this after the 3rd brake light recall? How did you handle it?

Thanks!

 

Unfortunately u have 2 options pay the dealer to replace or tackle it yourself .

 

Had this exact same issue after dealership performed the warranty repair. Repair was unnecessary in my opinion, and it only caused more problems for me.

I replaced the brake light myself and without the extra black gasket. Dealership refused to admit their screw up and also wanted a ridiculous amount of money to replace it.

If your warranty repair was done recently I would insist that the dealership does the work for free. Your light cracked because they over torqued the bolts when they put the gasket in.

 

What exactly costs this much to have this run to $1000? Does the headliner need to come down to replace the light ?

 

Probably as the screws are on the inside and to get at them you have to open up the liner. just saying

 

The dealership claims that they need to remove the headliner to do this job and that is how they bill for it.

Only the rear of the headliner needs to come down to slightly to do the job and it only takes minutes to loosen the rear of the headliner enough to get clearance to work.

Easy and simple job to get done. $1,000 is highway robbery, especially for an issue that the dealership likely caused themselves.

 

It's an hour, do it yourself or go to a 3rd party shop and pay $1-200 for their time. I hate dealerships like this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFYvxA_tdw0

 

Damn that sucks. I'd check to see what a replacement would cost and tackle it.