Condensation seems to have creeped in between my factory seal and is causing my tail lights to fog up! Is there any quick solution to this other than continuously taking them off and wiping them?

Thanks!

Take your tail lights off. Move them around till the watter drains out and drys out. Then seal them :)

Or you could take them to a dealer and get the tsb taken care of. The first time I took mine in they did the tsb, the problem continued, the second time I got a new set of tails. Kind of a hassle but I now have new lights and no problems.

or, you can do what i did, haha get the black out film, and you will never be able to tell that its fogged. but, deep down you know its fogged..so its like a girl that needs makeup.. nice, but you kow how she really is.

i took mine to the dealer three times and it covers with my warranty. Dunno y it always fogged up. damn!

It's a TSB item if you're still under warranty. I've only had one that needed to be replaced (with a new unit) and not a problem since.

WATER IN REAR COMBINATION LIGHT
Bulletin No: 09-014/07
Last Issued: 4/13/200

http://www.finishlineperformance.com/store/pages.php?pageid=4

or, you can do what i did, haha get the black out film, and you will never be able to tell that its fogged. but, deep down you know its fogged..so its like a girl that needs makeup.. nice, but you kow how she really is.

:Eyecrazy:

Be careful with just covering it up. The lights will eventually collect the condensation and it will pool up. After I did the tsb this happened to me and it shorted out the bulbs. Took it back and got new tails. Just take it in and get it fixed. Also I don't believe you have to be under warranty for them to honor the tsb.

If Mazda won't cover it with Warranty, then here is a small DIY solution I posted.. http://www.rx8club.com/showpost.php?p=2287478&postcount=5

i drilled two holes in the corner where the water gathered and it worked to. not the clear plastic casing but underneath.

Be careful though, because in my case the watter also dripped inside the trunk. It would be a good idea to remove the interior panels and check that out. We wouldn't want your car to rot, would we ?

As my car was out of the warranty, after many unsuccesful attempts, I reluctantly had to buy a new original gasket. It was about $40. Expensive, if you ask me.

i really can't believe no one searches before they start a new thread. this has been discussed to DEATH.

Is it possible to just purchase a new gasket from Mazda?

http://www.finishlineperformance.com/store/product.php?productid=16881&cat=302&page=1

Bob

drill a hole and it will b fix

Not trying to be mean... but i have only been a member of this board about 3 months, and it seems every week someone posts this same question.. if you look right now, 2 people have posted the same question at about the same time!

Why oh why wont people take some initiative to look things up themselves?

Not trying to be mean... but i have only been a member of this board about 3 months, and it seems every week someone posts this same question.. if you look right now, 2 people have posted the same question at about the same time!

Why oh why wont people take some initiative to look things up themselves?

and people still keep saying dumb answers. don't drill holes in your tail lights. just get the new gasket.

i really can't believe no one searches before they start a new thread. this has been discussed to DEATH.

off topic.. is all that you exist for is to tell people to search?? :uhh: :uhh:

Is it possible to just purchase a new gasket from Mazda?

Yes, The Stealership sells them for $110.00 a pair. They also have a set for the shinka tail lights too.

You have to take the light assembly off then dump the water out. Let it air out and use a blow dryer to make sure the inside is completely dry. not too difficult.

way to bump an old thread with the same answer that has already been provided.

or, you can do what i did, haha get the black out film, and you will never be able to tell that its fogged. but, deep down you know its fogged..so its like a girl that needs makeup.. nice, but you kow how she really is.

i like where your head is at my friend :)

way to bump an old thread with the same answer that has already been provided.


Yeah but I don't recommend using a blow dryer or heat gun due to the spottage thing. That sucks. I do recommend letting your light assembly air out a day or two, no worries.

Just drill a tiny hole under the tail light, and it will be fine...
last time, my right side tail light can put some gold fish in =.=

i bet you will still get condensation too phil.

I had issues with this. My car was out of warranty, but I was aware of the TSB. I went to Mazda and paid out the nose for the foam gasket. (Like $48 I think) Rear combination light was decently easy to remove. Pulled all the bulbs out and used a heat gun to blow hot air into the combination light housing. This helped some water to evaporate out. Then I'd let it sit 15-20 minutes. Still a little condensation in it, but not as much. Hit it with the heat gun again. Back and forth. Probably 10 times over the period of a few hours. When it looked like all the condensation was out, I stuck the gasket on the back of the tail light, and reinstalled. 6+ months later without any issues.

and people still keep saying dumb answers. don't drill holes in your tail lights. just get the new gasket.


And why not drill a whole, you dont have to bother making a new gasket (or 100 dollars from the dealership) or trying to deal with warranty issues, you cant see the wholes and it fixes the problem in 30 seconds. Sounds like to me its not that dumb of an answer.


And if for some reason you still have water spots then you can take your tailight out and back them off, and yes this works ive done it and everything turned out fine.

Oh and did I mention it is completely free

It's a free warranty replacement, and as already cited even if out of the 48 month B-to-B you can still make a case for free replacement. No big deal at all.

Hole (not whole)

And why not drill a whole, you dont have to bother making a new gasket (or 100 dollars from the dealership) or trying to deal with warranty issues, you cant see the wholes and it fixes the problem in 30 seconds. Sounds like to me its not that dumb of an answer.


And if for some reason you still have water spots then you can take your tailight out and back them off, and yes this works ive done it and everything turned out fine.

Oh and did I mention it is completely free

And why not drill a whole, you dont have to bother making a new gasket (or 100 dollars from the dealership) or trying to deal with warranty issues, you cant see the wholes and it fixes the problem in 30 seconds. Sounds like to me its not that dumb of an answer.


And if for some reason you still have water spots then you can take your tailight out and back them off, and yes this works ive done it and everything turned out fine.

Oh and did I mention it is completely free

because you will still get condensation and water in your tail light. it ruins the reflective coating too. when you have to buy a new tail light anyways, it wont be so free.

just build yourself a new gasket, that's why i did, cost me 5 bucks, and about 10 min to cut it out. then just let the light dry out, and throw it on there, looks good as new.

i just bought my rx8 and im having the same problem but i knew that was a comone problem with rx8s before i got it anyway, i dont know about the gasket thing but i think i know what the problem is with them........
i just pulled it off today to get all the water out and i relised that the little LED lights on the sides have a problem with the wiering as its coming out of the back, its not actually even sealed i meen thers just like a bit of material on it. water can easaly get thrue it so im goin to take the cloth of and replace it with cilicon if that dosent work ill trye the gasket thing. but i think that should do it. but dose anyone know how to pull the actual light apart because it i dont get all the water out it will never clear up and i dont want water marks on the inside ??

poke a tiny hole in the back it worked for me doesnt fog up on me anymore.

blow inside with compressed air. i also hear that putting them in the oven on a very low heat works.

you will not be able to take them apart.

also dont drill holes as mentioned earlier.

Hahaha. Everyone always suggest one of two fixes: Drill holes or replace gasket.

If you drill holes, people tell you that you're dumb for drilling holes and that it might leak water into your car.

If you replace gasket, people say the problem still persists.

So which is it, folks? The search function does no good to anybody if there isn't an answer to be found.

I did the gasket. Did it all myself. Atleast a year later and zero issues since.

Nary a leak since the new gaskets were installed well over a year ago now.

Go with the gaskets, you can always drill later if needed (which again it shouldn't be).

Condensation seems to have creeped in between my factory seal and is causing my tail lights to fog up! Is there any quick solution to this other than continuously taking them off and wiping them?

Thanks!

You must to fix or replace the tail light gasket, if you want you can do it by yourself, in case the car is out of warranty!
you can use any kind of water resist silicone
please everybody try this out!!!!