Ford Focus II (2004 - 2007) - water run off from tailgate glass each side edge

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
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Sun 23 Mar 2008 22:30
water run off from tailgate glass each side edge - oldlag
In the Honest John review of the mark 2 focus they mention the rain runoff from the edge seam of the hatchback glass are there any fixes, symptom after rain if you open and lift the tailgate hatch , water held in the open seam of where the tailgate glass is bonded to the tailgate runs off into the boot .
This sounds trivial but it isnt as a lot of water can be held there, I wondered if the seam which is like a long gap can be sealed with some sort of flexible sealant (clear obviously) to prevent the water being held in it and if doing so will make replacement of the glass (if ever it has to be done) difficult.
Like I said the Honest John road report of the mark 2 focus mentions this and have one of the last ones (Jan 2008) and I am at a loss as to why Ford themselves never did a fix on this all the time the mark 2 model ran.
There must be owners of mark 2s that have done a fix on this.
assistance please.
Thanks
Old Lag

Edited by Pugugly on 23/03/2008 at 23:06

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Mon 24 Mar 2008 11:11
water run off from tailgate glass each side edge - pete. t
Know what you mean, damn annoying, happened to me again yesterday, I find I have to lift the tailgate up about 12'' or so , let water run down for a few seconds then lift right up, still a chance of a small amount getting in, I'm going to have a further look at this myself soon to see exactly what's causing it, haven't really had chance as I've not had the car long. will let you know if I suss anything out or indeed likewise.
Cheers Pete
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Tue 25 Mar 2008 21:14
water run off from tailgate glass each side edge - oldlag
The 'cause' is obvious what it is is that at each side of the tailgate the glass bonds and there is a long gap up each side of where the glass is bonded to the tailgate - in a sense the bond is there yet the glass runs on past the bond and at each edge there is a channell water collects in..
To me the obvious answer is to fill the long gap each side with a sealant, now it has to be something which can be removed easily should the tailgate glass get broken and need replacing.
I am amazed Ford never did a fix on this , maybe the mark 3 model has a fix on it as otherwise the tailgaet ids similar etc.
I must look at a mark 3.
Any ideas on sealant are welcome.
Incidentally I dont rate this car one bit I had a mark 1 before and it was hugely better until (as it was a TDCI) it developed a love of garages.
This has to be my last FORD especially as the Dealer treated ne very badly when I bought it brand new in mid january 2008. I would never want to bay another one off them or Ford either full stop.
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