Tail Light Condensation

[wdninja]

I'm glad to hear that Subaru/Toyota might actually be paying attention to their customer's issues. That said, the design of the trunk/tail light housings, coupled with the gaskets not being sealed all the way around is the biggest issue.

If you have a 2016 FR-S/BRZ/GT86 with the supposedly thicker gasket, the safest bet is to tape or otherwise cover the gap between the trunk channel and the tail light housing, so the water flows right over the gap and off of the car. I'd do that as a preventative measure even if you've never seen any condensation. It's bound to happen eventually until they change the design of the car.

Our gaskets (Gasket Ninja) are made from a high quality neoprene rubber foam almost twice as dense compared to the stock gaskets, so they're more resistant to water and air. Whatever gasket you use, seal it and tape up those gaps!

Originally Posted by PMok

Hmmm I went back and found my old post where I first raised the idea of improving the seal against the thicker gasket that @wdninja was developing... I ended up buying one of his early prototypes and using it on my 2013 BRZ.

Fast forward to today, I recently traded the 2013 for a 2016 and went to swap my old painted tail lights (still using the prototype gasket) and to my surprise, found that the OEM gasket on the 2016 tails are thicker than the ones I remember on the 2013. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised, as with how big this thread has gotten and how many people come in to the dealerships with this problem, surely Subaru has paid some attention. Putting them side by side, the 2016 gasket seems about the same thickness as the Gasket Ninja product. I didn't take any exact measurements though. The adhesive for the gasket still only seems to run along part of the top side though, not all the way around the gasket. So my recommendation for anyone with the thicker 2016 gasket, is to still follow the directions/video that you'll find on the Gasket Ninja website to weather-seal the gasket to the tail light housing, if you live in a rainy area, park outside a lot, or are generally concerned about water getting into the housing.

And of course if you don't have the thicker 2016 gasket, I'd suggest you buy the Gasket Ninja product, yeah it sounds frustrating to have to spend money to fix something that Subaru should have fixed for free, but for the peace of mind and end to the frustration, it's well worth it.

[UchihaFanBoy]

Originally Posted by wdninja

I'm glad to hear that Subaru/Toyota might actually be paying attention to their customer's issues. That said, the design of the trunk/tail light housings, coupled with the gaskets not being sealed all the way around is the biggest issue.

If you have a 2016 FR-S/BRZ/GT86 with the supposedly thicker gasket, the safest bet is to tape or otherwise cover the gap between the trunk channel and the tail light housing, so the water flows right over the gap and off of the car. I'd do that as a preventative measure even if you've never seen any condensation. It's bound to happen eventually until they change the design of the car.

Our gaskets (Gasket Ninja) are made from a high quality neoprene rubber foam almost twice as dense compared to the stock gaskets, so they're more resistant to water and air. Whatever gasket you use, seal it and tape up those gaps!

Does your gasket fit any aftermarket taillights I ordered a pair of aftermarket tails and want to avoid this problem..

[dnieves]

Originally Posted by PMok

Hmmm I went back and found my old post where I first raised the idea of improving the seal against the thicker gasket that @wdninja was developing... I ended up buying one of his early prototypes and using it on my 2013 BRZ.

Fast forward to today, I recently traded the 2013 for a 2016 and went to swap my old painted tail lights (still using the prototype gasket) and to my surprise, found that the OEM gasket on the 2016 tails are thicker than the ones I remember on the 2013. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised, as with how big this thread has gotten and how many people come in to the dealerships with this problem, surely Subaru has paid some attention. Putting them side by side, the 2016 gasket seems about the same thickness as the Gasket Ninja product. I didn't take any exact measurements though. The adhesive for the gasket still only seems to run along part of the top side though, not all the way around the gasket. So my recommendation for anyone with the thicker 2016 gasket, is to still follow the directions/video that you'll find on the Gasket Ninja website to weather-seal the gasket to the tail light housing, if you live in a rainy area, park outside a lot, or are generally concerned about water getting into the housing.

And of course if you don't have the thicker 2016 gasket, I'd suggest you buy the Gasket Ninja product, yeah it sounds frustrating to have to spend money to fix something that Subaru should have fixed for free, but for the peace of mind and end to the frustration, it's well worth it.

Not sure how Subaru dealerships handle this, but Toyota typically want to see the condensation first hand (not just pic because they're implying you're trying to scam them). So if the problem is intermittent find a way to replicate it right before your visit and hope it doesn't evaporate on your drive to the service center.


It sucks to pay to fix this but what's the difference between the aftermarket gaskets and OEM (DIY)?

[dnieves]

Originally Posted by wdninja

I'm glad to hear that Subaru/Toyota might actually be paying attention to their customer's issues. That said, the design of the trunk/tail light housings, coupled with the gaskets not being sealed all the way around is the biggest issue.

If you have a 2016 FR-S/BRZ/GT86 with the supposedly thicker gasket, the safest bet is to tape or otherwise cover the gap between the trunk channel and the tail light housing, so the water flows right over the gap and off of the car. I'd do that as a preventative measure even if you've never seen any condensation. It's bound to happen eventually until they change the design of the car.

Our gaskets (Gasket Ninja) are made from a high quality neoprene rubber foam almost twice as dense compared to the stock gaskets, so they're more resistant to water and air. Whatever gasket you use, seal it and tape up those gaps!

Still tape over the gap with your gasket?

[PMok]

Originally Posted by dnieves

It sucks to pay to fix this but what's the difference between the aftermarket gaskets and OEM (DIY)?

Originally Posted by wdninja

Our gaskets (Gasket Ninja) are made from a high quality neoprene rubber foam almost twice as dense compared to the stock gaskets, so they're more resistant to water and air. Whatever gasket you use, seal it and tape up those gaps!

...

Originally Posted by dnieves

Still tape over the gap with your gasket?

Originally Posted by wdninja

Whatever gasket you use, seal it and tape up those gaps!

[dnieves]

Surprising if you're going to buy the aftermarket gaskets you have to ghetto-fy the car with tape. I'd expect that with OEM

[DannyQ86]

Why would you expect that with oem.. oem quality generally is better quality than aftermarket support. Gasket ninja gaskets do work and are exactly as described. The reason for taping the top as stated is because of the design flaw by toyota/subaru.

[wdninja]

Yes, our gaskets fit every aftermarket tail light that we've seen, as the mounting posts and overall shape of the lip (on the internal-facing side of the housing) needs to be very similar if not exactly like the stock housing.

Originally Posted by UchihaFanBoy

Does your gasket fit any aftermarket taillights I ordered a pair of aftermarket tails and want to avoid this problem..

[wdninja]

Originally Posted by PMok

...

The biggest flaw of the design is the flow of water and debris (pollen, dirt, leaves, dust) constantly assaulting the gasket, whether it be one of our aftermarket ones or stock.

The stock gasket isn't sealed very well, so you have a much higher chance of moisture making its way into the tail light housing. We instruct fully sealing our gaskets the whole way around with a better automotive weatherstrip adhesive, so the gasket and seal are much more resilient to the assault of water, air, and debris, but nothing is full proof if you don't cut off the source of the issue.

On my personal FR-S, I ran just the aftermarket gaskets for a year without taping up the gaps, without any issues or condensation. I eventually taped up the gaps as a preventative measure, and have henceforth recommended the same to customers.

[wdninja]

While I agree that it might be a little ghetto to have to tape or otherwise seal the gap between the trunk channel and the tail light housings, it's a cheap and necessary evil to protect your investment of aftermarket tail lights or gaskets.

If your car is a garage queen and stays out of the rain, snow and elements most of the time, you'll likely never have an issue, but if (like most people) it sits outside a lot (especially in areas with more frequent precipitation), it's a risk due to the design of the car and how it drains water.

Unless you have an epic stereo setup or other show piece in your trunk, it's likely closed 99% of the time anyway, so the feeling of it being ghetto doesn't last long since nobody will see it except you. It's also way better than the embarrassment and frustration of having your tail lights filled with water.

Originally Posted by dnieves

Surprising if you're going to buy the aftermarket gaskets you have to ghetto-fy the car with tape. I'd expect that with OEM

[wdninja]

Exact tightening specs are:

3.25 ftlbs / 39 inlbs / 4.4 Nm

Originally Posted by zman

Tighten the bolts just a bit. (Worked for me) Don't go overboard as it's easy to break them.

[UchihaFanBoy]

Originally Posted by wdninja

Yes, our gaskets fit every aftermarket tail light that we've seen, as the mounting posts and overall shape of the lip (on the internal-facing side of the housing) needs to be very similar if not exactly like the stock housing.

Just ordered a pair !! two days ago.. Thanks !!

[dnieves]

Originally Posted by wdninja

The biggest flaw of the design is the flow of water and debris (pollen, dirt, leaves, dust) constantly assaulting the gasket, whether it be one of our aftermarket ones or stock.

The stock gasket isn't sealed very well, so you have a much higher chance of moisture making its way into the tail light housing. We instruct fully sealing our gaskets the whole way around with a better automotive weatherstrip adhesive, so the gasket and seal are much more resilient to the assault of water, air, and debris, but nothing is full proof if you don't cut off the source of the issue.

On my personal FR-S, I ran just the aftermarket gaskets for a year without taping up the gaps, without any issues or condensation. I eventually taped up the gaps as a preventative measure, and have henceforth recommended the same to customers.

I was reading a review of the 3M weatherstrip adhesive and few people said it dries out, does not retain a strong bond over time affecting its water resistance. One person said he used silicon adhesive (the kind you buy at Home Depot to attach a sink to a pedestal and the pedestal to a tiled floor). He said it's strong and completely waterproof. Have you heard of this? I purchased the gaskets last night and would be willing to test it (provided I get a free replacement in case the experiment failed ).

[dgcam55]

I got my '13 BRZ in early December. Only recently I noticed a small bit of moisture in the upper bits of the tail lights (alot of rain & snow melt).
I used black 1" gorilla tape as previously mentioned, and so far, after a pouring rain all day yesterday with excessive snowmelt on the car from the night before, there is no water in the taillights this morning.

Cheap & simple.
Ghetto? yeah...perhaps alittle bit. But I have the dark galaxy blue color and so the black tape isn't really THAT noticable anyway.