Rear windshield washer fluid

[kkanders]

My 2005 Explorer is leaking rear windshield washer fluid in my roof. I purchased this last year and my vehicle was purchased as certified from the Ford dealership. Do you think this my be covered under warranty? How would this be fixed?

[shorod]

Welcome to the forum!

Does any fluid come out for the rear wiper? Does this leak only occur when you are using the washer? Are you absolutely sure it's washer solvent and not just rain water? Do you have the factory sunroof?

The best way to determine if this would be covered by the warranty would be to read the warranty paperwork and see what it says. Beyond that, you're looking at following the washer hose from the rear and checking for a discontinuity or cracked check valve.

You may want to drain as much from the reservoir as possible, then refill with distilled water (to prevent staining). If the 2005 shares one reservoir with two pumps, disconnect the front hoses, divert them to a container, and run the front washer pump in short bursts (something like 3 seconds on, rest for 10 seconds, etc. to keep from overheating the pump).

-Rod

[kkanders]

Yes I am very sure it is fluid. It is leaking somewhere between the middle back seat and the very back by the passager side of the vehicle up in the roof. No I do not have a sun roof. How do I take off the top panels to get access to this?

[shorod]

I'm not sure for the 2005, but typically you will need to remove the side sills or interior panels that finish the edges of the headliner. If there are items such as HVAC vents or a DVD player mounted to the headliner, you'll need to remove that as well. The smaller items probably just snap in place, items such as a DVD player will incorporate screws and wiring connections.

The headliner itself is probably snapped in to the roof supports or hooked in. Hopefully someone that's removed one from the current generation of Explorer will chime in.

-Rod