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Tail light Condensation


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49 minutes ago, wildbillpookers said:

Well I think we are off topic here.

I have been driving for 50 years and have NEVER had vented lights! 

Personally they are a joke for FORD to make money. 

 

How would venting help Ford make more money?  Quite the opposite actually.

I agree with TheWizard on this one - you're just not happy so you're venting (see what I did there?) and you're not going to listen to any rational explanation.

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The replacement procedure for the tailgate light (center light bar) has a note for tightening the bolts or damage would occur. Check if there is damage and you can argue that maybe the tech did not follow the procedure & damaged the light. I am saying this because it is very odd that you had many replacements with the same issue, that is not normal. 

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17 minutes ago, wildbillpookers said:

Okay, maybe I am a little pissed!

I would think that a $55,000 dollar car would not have issues with the lights.

 

Wizard,...........Do you have water in your tail lights or are you good with that?.

Did you spend $55,000.00 on your car?

 

 

My buddies $140k E63S AMG Wagon has condensation in tails. Its an eyesore but if its just condensation and not falling droplets, you are fine.

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32 minutes ago, wildbillpookers said:

Okay, maybe I am a little pissed!

I would think that a $55,000 dollar car would not have issues with the lights.

 

Wizard,...........Do you have water in your tail lights or are you good with that?.

Did you spend $55,000.00 on your car?

 

 

No, I don't have water in my tail lights but then my Edge didn't have the same style of lights.  I do get occasional condensation in my Mustang lights but only after major drops in temperature and it disappears fairly quickly (by the time I get to work in the morning).  I was going to say that I hadn't spent $55K on my car until I noticed you're in Canada.  That makes your $55K equivalent to about $41K US with current exchange rates and I spent $38K on my Mustang so  that's similar.  But it's also not the point.  Your tail lights are the same as on a base model Edge and your price indicates that you must have added a lot of options (considering that an SEL AWD starts at $38K CDN).  Spending $17K on options does nothing for the tail lights so your lights are the same as on a $33K base SE FWD model ($25K US)... not exactly luxury vehicle territory these days.

 

Do your tail lights have openings in the back for the bulbs/LED modules or wiring grommets?  If so, you can attach strings to some of those desiccant packages that come in electronics boxes (they're also available through Amazon) then put them into the lamps through the openings.  You could also try drying them out with a hair dryer on the lowest heat setting.

 

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1 hour ago, wildbillpookers said:

I have more than condensation,......I it looks like I showered inside the lens!

 

If he paid that much for his car, then he really doesn't care if there is moisture in the lights.

 

It doesn't matter how much you paid.   Occasional condensation is normal but it should clear up.  More than just condensation is a problem and it has nothing to do with whether the lights are "vented" or not.  The lights need to be replaced and if it's reoccuring after they're replaced then either the dealer isn't installing them correctly or they're using more defective parts.  A good dealer should be able to fix this once and for all.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I just purchased a 2016 Ford Edge and there was condensation in the back taillight bar.  The salesman told us that was perfectly normal and that all taillights did this.  I had never had a vehicle with the back light across the lift gate, so I did not know for sure, but I thought that was probably BS.

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44 minutes ago, Sharshep said:

I just purchased a 2016 Ford Edge and there was condensation in the back taillight bar.  The salesman told us that was perfectly normal and that all taillights did this.  I had never had a vehicle with the back light across the lift gate, so I did not know for sure, but I thought that was probably BS.

 

Unfortunately this is a normal occurrence.  The condensation should go away. If it doesn't and, or there is an abnormal amount the taillight bar may have to be replaced.   Depending on your in service date or mileage it may be covered under warranty.

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Haha, its a normal occurrence with these Edges alright, but its not supposed to happen.

 

Ours had been replaced twice, and we went a good 1.5 years without it failing, but we got condensation again.  Time to go back before I run out of warranty.

 

Just clarification - we get some hazy condensation now, which is a lot better than the original one that was filling with water like an aquarium.

Edited by foghelmut
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3 hours ago, rerhart said:

I got rid of my Edge. Ford wouldn't replace it. Water was swishing around in it, not a lot, but enough to settle and move around. I hated the look of this so called normal occurrence. Glad they changed it on the new ones tho.

Is it known if the 2019's have this issue?

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40 minutes ago, Chipster said:

Is it known if the 2019's have this issue?

 

The 2019's do not have the light bar. Only time will tell if the 2019's will develop condensation.   Ironically enough Lincoln's version of the edge, The MKX and the Nautilus have light bars across the back. I don't think I have ever heard of a single issue with the Lincoln counterparts.

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  • 2 weeks later...

It seems like this problem has carried over to the 2019 Edge. Noticed that there was some foggy lenses on all four tail lights a couple of days ago. Later in the day yesterday , I thought I would recheck and it actually turned into water drops beading inside the lens. I ended up going to Ford and they said this was acceptable. For an SUV that is not even 7 days into ownership, it's not a great feeling.

 

It seems that the dealership actually has a picture guide to what is acceptable and when it should be changed. I happen to see the images of when it should be changed and it is insane. It's to the point where there is so much water inside that it doesn't seem realistic that anyone would wait for it to get that bad. I found an image that resembles some of the guided pictures on when to change head lights/tail lights.maxresdefault-2.jpg

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This is what's stated in the owners manual:

 

GENERAL INFORMATION


Condensation in the Exterior Front Lamps and Rear Lamps
Exterior front lamps and rear lamps have vents to accommodate normal changes in air pressure.
Condensation can be a natural by-product of this design. When moist air enters the lamp assembly through the vents, there is a possibility that condensation can occur when the temperature is cold. When normal condensation occurs, a fine mist can form on the interior of the lens. The fine mist eventually clears and exits through the vents during normal operation.
Clearing time may take as long as 48 hours under dry weather conditions.
Examples of acceptable condensation are:
  • The presence of a fine mist (no streaks, drip marks or large droplets).
  • A fine mist covers less than 50% of the lens.
Examples of unacceptable condensation are:
  • A water puddle inside the lamp.
  • Streaks, drip marks or large droplets present on the interior of the lens.
If you see any unacceptable condensation, have your vehicle checked by an authorized dealer.

2019 Edge Owner's Manual

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You have drip marks as noted in @omar302 post.

 

This is covered and I have access to the document you reference that the dealer would have looked at.  If your pic is representative of what it looked like at the dealer, they clearly don't comprehend what is covered and not covered.

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No that is not a picture of my lights. I posted a picture that was similar to what was being used as a reference for determining if a swap should occur. I did take some pictures of  the tail lights when it was foggy but it was really hard to tell from the images. I actually did not take pictures of it when it started to bead up because at that point I had just taken it into ford.

 

So with that owner manual, what is the benefits of having head or tail lamps that accommodate changing air pressure? I don't understand the purpose of it. Is this something every vehicle does? If so, I'm curious why not use the same design/technology as the other Fords? I have a 14 explorer and never had an issue with condensation, or any of my cars. This is the first time I had this issue.

 

 

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