The dreaded leaking and cracked rear window frame

[STLPNY]

Well it finally happened the rear window frame has cracked and leaking bad so i make an appointment with the dealer ( Merrick Ram,Jeep,Dodge on long island) that i bought the truck from new 2 years ago now has 21,000 miles and i have the 8 year 85,000 mile extended bumper to bumper platinum to boot. I first noticed the leak and sealed the rear brake light with electrical tape and still leaked bad then i taped the top edge of the glass and bingo no more leak and dried out the seat and carpet. the dealer calls me today and says the leak was the third brake light so i mentioned the window frame crack again and they made out like this is the first time they have heard of it ( i know of 5 people with the same truck and 3 had the rear window replaced and the other 2 have their fingers crossed). the service manager said the the plastic that is cracked is only a trim piece and replacing it would not be covered under warranty. so after some attitude i will pick the truck up tomorrow and take up the fight with FCA but i dont expect much because they never got back to me the last time.
Ram cares are you on here ?

 

[vincentw56]

Go to another dealer. It is 100% covered and the entire window needs replaced. That dealer is trying to BS you.

 

[yankeefan31569]

and there it is again..... makes me sick they havnt recalled this issue

 

[mikeru82]

and there it is again..... makes me sick they havnt recalled this issue

Recalls are for safety related issues. There will never be a recall for this problem.

For the dealer to deny it without even trying to run it through FCA is nuts. He's wrong about it just being a trim piece. Those cracks run all the way through the frame. Take it to another dealership, even if you have to travel a bit. Maybe @RamCares can help out.

 

[STLPNY]

update: it rained this morning so i took it to the dealer and showed the service manager the leak so now it goes back in for the window replacement

 

[Choate]

Why not just caulk it and be done with it. 10 min fix. That’s why they’re not that willing to replace a $1000 rear window. I’m not saying it’s right but it is what it is. Maybe your problem is something else but looks like a cracked window frame. Remove the third brake light then buy a $10 bottle of waterproof caulk and seal it from the outside behind the removed 3rd brake light

 

[vincentw56]

Why not just caulk it and be done with it. 10 min fix. That’s why they’re not that willing to replace a $1000 rear window. I’m not saying it’s right but it is what it is. Maybe your problem is something else but looks like a cracked window frame. Remove the third brake light then buy a $10 bottle of waterproof caulk and seal it from the outside behind the removed 3rd brake light

Because this is a known problem and FCA knows it. They redesigned the window because of the issue. Who wants to fix it like that when they should fix it no matter the cost.

 

[Mpgrimm2]

FCA redesigned the rear window/frame with new parts released in late 2020.

There is an official starcase for this issue from Jan 2021 that can be referenced/found by dealers that actually try....

Another cracked frame thread elsewhere.


Here's a link to the Star Case # S2023000005 describing the issue...

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2021/MC-10187092-9999.pdf

** my 19 Laramie 1500 DT did this during a heavy rain (both sides) and I was able to get mine replaced.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk

 

[mikeru82]

Why not just caulk it and be done with it. 10 min fix. That’s why they’re not that willing to replace a $1000 rear window. I’m not saying it’s right but it is what it is. Maybe your problem is something else but looks like a cracked window frame. Remove the third brake light then buy a $10 bottle of waterproof caulk and seal it from the outside behind the removed 3rd brake light

I could see going this route if these were old beater trucks. But there's no reason to do that on a truck that's still under warranty unless you have a reason you don't like having dealer service tech's working on your truck. Plus, I'm not sure you could get good enough access to the cracks from the 3rd brake light opening.

 

[SD Rebel]

Make sure you get this fixed under your 3yr / 36K bumper to bumper warranty while you still can, from what every Mopar rep I talked with, no Mopar extended warranty of any kind will cover the rear window and frame out of the original factory warranty.

Maybe some 3rd party extended warranty will, but apparently the factory ones won't. If true, that's pissing me off since I will likely need the fix sometime in the future yet I'm only 7 months away from being out of the bumper to bumper warranty with no extended warranty I can count on that I know of.

Maybe I'll just go the sealant route as mentioned, I've read from other post it works well and I don't have to worry about dealership techs making things potentially worse by taking it all apart.

 

[Camelot]

Still a problem on 2021s. Had my rear window replaced a few months ago.

 

[z0n3]

Still a problem on 2021s. Had my rear window replaced a few months ago.

Interesting, they used a new part number on the 21's and newer that should've fixed the issue. I have yet to see a 21 with the problem so you're the unlucky first.

 

[KNGSNK11]

Make sure you get this fixed under your 3yr / 36K bumper to bumper warranty while you still can, from what every Mopar rep I talked with, no Mopar extended warranty of any kind will cover the rear window and frame out of the original factory warranty.

Maybe some 3rd party extended warranty will, but apparently the factory ones won't. If true, that's pissing me off since I will likely need the fix sometime in the future yet I'm only 7 months away from being out of the bumper to bumper warranty with no extended warranty I can count on that I know of.

Maybe I'll just go the sealant route as mentioned, I've read from other post it works well and I don't have to worry about dealership techs making things potentially worse by taking it all apart.

My 2020 cracked after the 36k warranty and Ram still covered the cost and even the rental.

 

[SD Rebel]

My 2020 cracked after the 36k warranty and Ram still covered the cost and even the rental.

That's great to hear, but probably a dealership specific thing or someone went to bat for you. My dealership probably won't do that, especially since I do my own services.

I mean OP of this thread is still under warranty and they wouldn't initially cover it, which tells you a lot about how different many of these dealerships are to each other.

 

[CogitoErgoLevo]

Still a problem on 2021s. Had my rear window replaced a few months ago.

What is your build date?
I read somewhere that it was fixed in 2021s built after December 2020.
My rear window has the latest part number and truck was built in January 2021.

 

[mikeru82]

I'm interested as well. My 2021 was built at the end of March 2021.

 

[RamCares]

Recalls are for safety related issues. There will never be a recall for this problem.

For the dealer to deny it without even trying to run it through FCA is nuts. He's wrong about it just being a trim piece. Those cracks run all the way through the frame. Take it to another dealership, even if you have to travel a bit. Maybe @RamCares can help out.

Hi @mikeru82 ,
Thank you for the tag! Yes, if anyone needs help working with your dealer for this concern; please follow up with us via PM. We are happy to help.

Rob
Ram Cares

 

[Bbaerstance]

I sent you guys a message @RamCares

 

[Saddlerocker]

So, mine is cracked in 2 places above the rear sliding window.
Its not leaking right now as far as I can tell.
Will the dealer still replace it?
Or is it not worth messing with if its not leaking?

 

[KNGSNK11]

Mine barely leaked, even if it didn't I would tell them to still replace it, why wait till it damages more things. They just recently fixed mine and I was past warranty.