# Damp Rear Light Cluster



## Wallsendmag (Feb 12, 2004)

On the way home from ADI Andy (Yellow_TT) commented that one of my rear lights was full of water. Anyone else had this ?


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## talk-torque (Apr 30, 2008)

That'll be orange juice Andrew. :wink:


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## phil3012 (Jul 25, 2008)

I suspect one of mine may be misting up, but keeping an eye on it for the moment.

I'm pretty sure I've read other people have had issues.

I had it on a previous car with a headlight and the trick is to make sure its wet/misted up when you take it to the dealer. A hose or watering can does the trick...


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## the minty1 (Mar 27, 2011)

Mine mists up in the reversing light bit only. I think its a 'feature' as the headlights do it at the led DRLs.

I had the rear light out the otherday for a blown indicator.. quite tricky.


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## Matthaus (Oct 29, 2011)

the minty1 said:


> Mine mists up in the reversing light bit only.
> 
> I have noticed today mine is doing the same, last week I got the wife's hairdryer out and that got rid of it, but has happeneded again today after washing the tt, looks like I am going to have to remove the rear offside cluster out to take a closer look...water is getting in somehow... :roll:


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

My reverse lights tend to mist up as well (usually after I've washed the car).

I intend to see of I can fit some Silica Gel packs in there but haven't got round to it yet.


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## YELLOW_TT (Feb 25, 2004)

It was the full lower half mate indicater as well


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

Andrew, can you let me know what the solution was to this problem?

After carrying out the supplementary earth wire modification, to my rear lights, the offside one soon had water sloshing about inside it.

Assuming that I'd not inserted the seal correctly, or left a screw loose, I removed the light last night, dried it out and carefully put it back together.

Less than twenty four hours later there's water inside it again!

I have a suspicion that the seal may have lost its spring and is no longer effective.


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## davelincs (Jan 1, 2010)

Have you tried silicone grease on the seal, it might help


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## ZephyR2 (Feb 20, 2013)

Had this on a Fiat but you'd expect that. You need to find out where its getting in or it could become a big problem.


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## TT-driver (Sep 14, 2010)

Screwing the light cluster back together can be a bit fiddly. The screws have to 'catch' the original thread, else you might think you've tighten it but it actually isn't. The seal pops loose and gets misplaced as it isn't glued to the plastic...

If I remember correctly the light cluster actually has an opening for letting damp out. Thought it was the white-ish round plastic cover on the left of this picture:










Perhaps it's a good idea to test the seal by trying to blow air into this opening, testing where it comes out again.


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

I'm pretty sure that it'll be the seal and will look into the silicon grease suggestion. If that doesn't work then I may need to replace the seal as the look of it didn't inspire me with confidence!

At least it's not sunny at the moment so it'll not go green quickly but if it gets too cold it could freeze and split the lens!

I made sure that the seal was in place and all the screws were firmly in place.


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## TT-driver (Sep 14, 2010)

And the additional earth outlet is at the bottom, right?


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

It is and it's nice and tight. I've also not had a problem with the nearside lamp (except the usual spot of condensation on the reverse light).

I'll nip outside in a minute and get the thing out again for a look.


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

Ok, well I've braved the cold and have now got to the bottom of the issue - It appears that the bond between the red tail light lens and the amber indicator lens has failed, allowing water ingress.

Here's a couple of videos to clarify the situation.











I think that I'll have a go at carefully applying some plastic weld, after masking the joint but if that fails then it looks like being a new light.


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## gogs (Dec 22, 2010)

The rear lights do seem poor quality given the car, I've had the lights out a few times now to swap bulbs, fit bumpers etc and have found seal can easily be out of alignment, it needs to be fitted securely prior to screwing it all back together, as already said the screws need to be tightened down a fair bit to make a good seal

I've not had the issue so far on my 2008 car but did notice the seal was not seated correctly when I'd replaced bulbs so had to refit it

Sent from my iPhone using the interweb


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## sico (Feb 6, 2003)

What about that lamin-x stuff that would do it? Cheaper than a new light and you can tint it ;-)


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## TT-driver (Sep 14, 2010)

I thought about it too. But I'm not familiar with the material and if it's pliable enough to follow the shape of the cluster.


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## the minty1 (Mar 27, 2011)

peter-ss said:


> Ok, well I've braved the cold and have now got to the bottom of the issue - It appears that the bond between the red tail light lens and the amber indicator lens has failed, allowing water ingress.
> I think that I'll have a go at carefully applying some plastic weld, after masking the joint but if that fails then it looks like being a new light.


Excellent discovery...


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

Just a quick update...

I telephoned Audi today and a replacement light unit isn't as expensive as I expected at £128.65 including VAT. This is for the complete unit (light unit and bulb holder) but they weren't sure if the bulbs are included.

I think I'm going to try my luck with plastic weld (when I get some) but if it fails I will have to buy a new light.

The film is another option but I think that it may split due to the movement between the lens sections.

The old unit could be good for some LED experimentation.


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## prop135 (Aug 8, 2011)

Checked mine this morning. I have the same problem and it appears to be from the same source. Unfortunately I broke the plastic sockets that hold the corners of the light in place.

Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App


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## peter-ss (Sep 3, 2008)

Well, I'm pleased to let you know that the Plastic Weld repair has been a success.

I bought a bottle of plastic weld cement from an eBay seller for £5.



After thoroughly drying the light unit out I carefully masked the area of the joint.



I then applied the plastic weld using a straw from a can of WD40.



I then pushed the lens several times, to work the liquid into the joint and applied further cotes, until the joint was completely filled.



After a few minutes the joint had set and I removed the masking tape.



I refitted the light to the car and gave it a good soaking and was pleased to see that no water got in at all. In fact it was so dry that even the usual condensation in the reverse light didn't appear.



You can only see the repair if you're looking for it so I'm pretty pleased with how it's turned out. In addition to fitting the supplementary earth wires, I've also replaced the blackened side / tail light bulbs so the rear lights look better now than they ever have done whilst I've owned the car!


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## TT-driver (Sep 14, 2010)

Excellent result, nice addition to the earth wire project


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## wlondoner (Feb 10, 2013)

Interesting!

I just replaced my rear passenger side light which has seriously bad condensation with one off eBay and now find that too also has the issue but it seems to be the reverse light and indictor only which seems to be the same issue as many others are having


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## ChadW (May 2, 2003)

Noticed this today on my Right hand side indicator after washing car. Very bad condensation in the rear indicator light area.
Could not see any water present though. Bit irritating not the less.


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## ChadW (May 2, 2003)

Noticed it had disappeared today, so if it clears up it that time frame then it does not really bother me now.


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## Steve in Ireland (Oct 13, 2017)

To resurrect this ancient thread: when I bought my 2006 car a few weeks ago, I knew that there was an issue with water in the driver's side tail light unit.

In fact, when I got it home and looked, there was about 50ml of liquid sloshing around! So, I tool it out, separated the bulb holder, poured out the water, and ran a hair drier into it for half an hour.

It seemed to me that the theory of a split between the colours was likely. I could actually feel a division between the parts, so I dripped a tiny bead of superglue into it. Superglue is runny, so it flows along the split and seals it.

The good news was that no flowing liquid has appeared, even after ex-hurricane Ophelia. There was a little condensation remaining: obviously I hadn't dried it enough.

But then, after a couple of weeks, I got a warning light for failure of the reversing lamp. Ho hum. Take it all out again. But the bulb was fine; it was just rust on the contacts. The reversing light compartment, in the bottom corner of the unit, was where the water had tended to pool.

Quite possibly, it was only the conductivity of the water that was maintaining the electrical contact! You might want to fill your lights completely with water to test this. Perhaps add a few goldfish.


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## Bfince (Dec 18, 2019)

Same as peter-ss indicated in videos. Thinking about tint foil to isolate the crack, any ideas?


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

You can avoid the problem of headlights and tail lights misting by checking that they're filled with the correct amount of halogen fluid, also known in the USA as Blinker Fluid. Be sure it's LED compatible.

This is an often over looked maintenance service and many technicians are unaware of which grade of fluid to use so be sure to ask for 1D 10T.

While your there, be sure they check the muffler bearing, bumper valve, and that your 710 cap is firmly seated.


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

SwissJetPilot said:


> You can avoid the problem of headlights and tail lights misting by checking that they're filled with the correct amount of halogen fluid, also known in the USA as Blinker Fluid. Be sure it's LED compatible.
> 
> This is an often over looked maintenance service and many technicians are unaware of which grade of fluid to use so be sure to ask for 1D 10T.
> 
> While your there, be sure they check the muffler bearing, bumper valve, and that your 710 cap is firmly seated.


 [smiley=thumbsup.gif] quite common nowadays.
Hoggy.


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## tomasfuk (Oct 27, 2018)

SwissJetPilot said:


> ...be sure to ask for 1D 10T...


ID-10TS grade isn't available?


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

tomasfuk said:


> SwissJetPilot said:
> 
> 
> > ...be sure to ask for 1D 10T...
> ...


Hi, Be sure to ask for some elbow grease to lubricate the rubber seals, the ID-10TS fluid will last much longer before replacement is required.
Hoggy.


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