Cowl Water Leak and Linkage Seized

My wipers weren’t working so I took the cowl off and found the linkage was seized on the passenger side, I took the passenger part of the linkage out and ordered a new one so that the drivers side would work but now I’m having issues with the alignment of the motor with the wiper.

But my issue now is that the cowl doesn’t seal to the windshield properly and there is a gap which will allow water into the wiper motor area and possibly into my cabin air filter. How can I fix this without replacing the entire cowl or is there no simple fix ? The weather stripping that sits on the windshield seems like it comes with the cowl. Any suggestions?

 

Is there a way to fix without using silicone to seal it ?

 

There is no fix for that other than using a sealant or replacing the whole cowl. It's probably warped from age and heat. There are some plastic clips on the cowl that have to go under the bottom lip of the windshield if I recall right. Check that first. Usually you don' t get a gap that long. It's usually less than a foot, maybe 6-7 inches. If that is not it you will have to use a sealant adhesive after cleaning the base of the windshield and gasket. Then tape it down overnight with good quality masking tape , well burnished to the windshield ,until the adhesive dries. Your cowl gasket probably leaked for a while and that's why the wiper linkage rusted. You will notice the leak if it is right over the cabin air intake .

 

I agree with you, that’s why my linkage rusted and seized. All my clips are good but I couldn’t find where they clipped in by running my finger under the windshield. I checked locally and I could get a used cowl for $85 but it’s three hours away and I’m not sure how much better it would be compared with mine. That’s the cheapest I could find it, online I’m looking at $300.

I don’t know if there’s a way that I can manipulate it back to it’s original position, I think I might end up having to use an adhesive. What type of adhesive would you reccomend to use ?

I’m most worried about water in the cabin air filter. I don’t think using a heat gun to try and unwarp the cowl will help. I’m trying to think of other solutions but it’s quite a large and long gap along the weather stripping on the cowl lip

 

I wrote about the cowl gasket /cabin air leak a few times. I used some type of 3M "adhesive sealant" that is sold at Advance Auto. I can't remember the exact name of it but it's in a small maybe 4 oz tube and is black in color. It was not silicone. Next time I'm there I'll take note of what I used and update the thread. Make sure the base of the windshield and the cowl gasket channel is very clean before reinstalling. I used a single edge razor blade and acetone to get it clean. There was a lot of debris collected there. I don't think you can reform that by heat, but you could try it. Just don't crack the windshield.

 

Was it a mounting tape that you used ? I think that sounds like a good option. Where did you put the tape, was it just under the weather stripping part and is there pictures in a thread you’ve made ?

 

No. I put the sealant, generously but neatly, in the channel of the cowl gasket, installed the cowl, cleaned of any excess and taped the cowl gasket to the windshield , tightly, with green automotive masking tape over night. Removed tape ...no more leaks. Sorry no pictures.

 

Did you put it in the gap with where the clips are ?

 

Clear silicone.....will adhere the cowl to the glass. This will not allow any water to pas through, compared to weather stripping, which will only "fill the gap". I did this to mine a few years ago and today, after I got a new windshield installed.....will only cost about $3 for a small tube of clear silicone....I have not had any issues with this method.

 

I don't know about your year specifically, but my '13 has a rubbery trim gasket attached to the cowl. That gasket has a U shaped channel that goes over the bottom edge of the windshield. That is where the sealer goes, The whole length of the channel, not just the clip gap. Those clips should be under or behind the windshield.

 

Where did you put your clear silicone ? Was it just under the weather stripping on the cowl ? And does it look any different with the clear silicone underneath.

Mine has the same rubber trim as you, did you it under the two separate side trim pieces as well? And do you know what it’s roughly called so I have an idea of what to look for

 

The cowl panel isn't installed properly. The clips need to go under the windshield.
Silicone or any type of sealant is not necessary.

 

The clips were under the windshield, do you think they just weren’t in all the way? I was pushing them a lot to make sure they were as snug as possible

 

I also had this issue. Remove the wiper arms and plastic assembly, clean the glass and cover plate, put clear silicone on the underside of the seal on the cover plate and install. Smooth out and clean off excess silicone. Not ideal but I didn't want to spend the $$$ to fix a crappy design. Mine leaked into the interior thru the HVAC air opening.

 

I’ve got a few days before the new linkage comes in and I reinstall the cowl

 

@ me later....around 2ish to remind me and I'll take a picture of it for you. I'm in class until then.

 

It's possible but hard to tell without looking at it. You may be able to get just the rubber strip that touches the windshield. It could be deformed.

The cowl doesn't seal against water, it just redirects it to the sides of the truck. It's more for wind and aesthetics.

 

Could you send pics please

 

I tried looking for the part but think it’s sold as one piece

 

In the first pic, you cam see the little bit of dry clear silicone that pushed out and I wiped almost all off....I squeezed silicone up under the original rubber seal to fill in the gap AND adhere it to the glass thus making a barrier.

In the second pic, you can see how the seal is lifted, due to heat and time...there are no issues here, because there is no opening under that area.

All of my clips are sitting fine....the cowl is just old and a faulty design.....I'll be damned if I spend over $150 to fix something that can be fixed with a $3 tube of silicone.