Many months into a fairly substantial restoration I came across some new leaks. These were coming from the mounting holes for the rear vents. Slowly dripping into the rear fender wells in a heavy rain. All of these parts had been removed for the respray, polished and replaced with new factory seals. Turns out they were still leaking. The two snap in fastners had been reattached with automotive epoxy, which separated again in the disassembly process. The biggest problem is the seal that goes around the louvered vent panel It seems to have shrunk and separated from the vent panel. Does anyone have any experience stretching it out and reattaching?
Rear Vent leaks and seals
- Thread starter BrianNOLA
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- Thread starter
- #2
BTW, the other leaks were the new factory windshield gasket and the new factory side window belt moldings. Also using the new factory seals. All have been carefully removed and cleaned and are now sealed with the skining type black butyl rubber.
Fj80oregon
GOLD Star
You can super glue them back in place on the back side grove, not sure how good it will do with old rubber. when you buy new louvers they are pretty inexpensive under $100 for the set, the new louvers the gasket is poorly attached and I reapplied glue to keep them in place when installing. I also use a little butyl on all the snap in clips for panels and it seals really well.
- Thread starter
- #4
Thanks. I was hoping not to be gored by tariffs. Has anybody tried the aftermarket ABS versions?
For Lexus LX450 /Toyota Land Cruiser 80 Rear Louver Quarter Side Window Vent Set | eBay
For Lexus LX450 1996-1998. For Toyota Land Cruiser 80 Series 1991-1997. The Side Window Vent is ingeniously crafted to allow fresh air into your vehicle while keeping rainwater out. 1 Pair Of Side Window Vent Mounting hardware Included.
www.ebay.com
I posted several months back about this same issue = multiple new OEM louvers the seal/strip around the louvers was COMPLETELY detached when they arrived new. I reattached them with silicone but then pondered that there are holes in the louvers so some water probably getting in there anyway.
Remove the air flapper thing behind the louvre and apply a bead of silicone. The plastic louvre is kinda just cosmetic. Also your leak might be coming from the sliding glass at least that was the case on my truck.
- Thread starter
- #7
The leak was definitely around the lower bolt. I removed the flap assembly and the plastic duct behind it. Any water coming throught the flaps is re-directed back out of the vehicle by the duct behind it, which goes high above the opening, into the rear post. The duct overlaps the body and snaps in. The flap assembly screws down over it. I did make a continuous seal between the body of the LC and the plastic duct to make sure water could not get behind it and into the truck Use butyl rubber caulk for the snap-in screw receivers that the screws holding the flap assembly go into. Stop short of sealing the perimeter of the flap assembly to the plastic duct, in case it ever needs to be removed again for service. You don't want to seal water into the duct in case any water gets through the flaps. Water can only drain to the outside the way the plastic duct is configured. If the flap assembly is sealed to the duct at the bottom, water can build up inside the duct. When the new louver vents come in, the two snap in fastners and the lower bolt will also receive butyl rubber.
I had the exact same thing happen after buying a pair of louvres on eBay. The weather strip was just barely tacked on in a few places at the edges and detached as I was installing. I tried tacking it back on with shoe repair glue but made a mess. Both of the studs fell out as I did R&R, and I'm a pretty careful mechanic.
I replaced from a more reputable source and didn't have any issues with installation. It could have been a bad batch or improper storage, but I suspect they were not OEM.
I also think, 95% sure, that the quarter window rubber weather stripping is designed to lip over the louvres. I've seen people do it the other way, louvre on top, and I wonder if that's contributing to leaks.
