I have searched around trying to find a thread on this situation. I have found enough to know that it may be a common issue. My 82 F-250 has a pretty nasty leak from the top of the windshield which usually lands near the steering wheel while driving. I haven't even popped any trim off yet to hone in on where it is. I saw mention of a butyl seal being an issue. Any guidance or suggestions on what causes this and the best remedy? The truck only has 50K and has set in a building most of its life.

 

Our truck were built using the Butyl tape to install / seal the front glass.
Over the years it dries out and no longer seals. Most of the time it is between the glass and the Butyl tape.
The moldings will have to come off to pull the glass.
There are tools, 1 for the moldings and another to cut the Butyl to glass seal.

Then you can pull the glass, remove all the out tape, fix any rust that is there and paint the pinch weld before the new tape can be installed and the glass installed.
You can still get the tape, I for get the size (3/8' or 5/16") think I got mine from on line or could have been from where I got my paint & body supplies?
I was able to pull the glass myself but needed a hand for the install.

Some will also tell you the tape is out lawed I call BS on that as you can still get it and it is what was used back in the day.
The "kids" went to school to learn the new cars & trucks and they are glued in and yes it would be aginst the law to use the tape on them.
Some don't mind having the glass glued in by a glass shop. Thing is I don't have the heater to heat the glue, the know how on how thick the glue needs to be to have the glass set at the right hight, why the 2 size tapes, so I could not do the job in my garage as part of my rebuild using glue.

A lot of glass shops have mobile units now so they could come to you, pull the glass, you do the needed repairs and call them back for the install.
Again it may be glued in. Thing is if it leaks and they did the install call them back to fix it right. If you do it and it leaks guess what LOL
Dave ----


ps I should point out back in the day I did glass work and why I did my own glass.
I also pulled and installed the rear glass in the rubber gasket on my truck myself.

 

I bet no one is going to want to pull the old glass, too easy to break it. Now they will put in a new glass and seal that.

I had a leak like that on my old ranger, and I didn't want to mess with it too much, so I just pulled the trim and used some silicone sealer on it. Problem is, I had to do it twice. After I put the silicone on it, I could not believe it still leaked, did not even slow it down. That's when I looked closer and saw the double sided tape they are talking about. It's pretty thick. So the first time I had ran a bead between the glass and the top of the tape, but had not put any silicone at the bottom where the tape met the metal part of the cab. So 2nd time I put more silicone in there to cover both areas along the top and that stopped it.

 

I used silicone globbed along the edge of the glass, and it sealed up nicely. However, in another thread about leaks, someone who said he was/had been an auto glass installer warned me against using silicone as it 'trapped moisture' and would cause rust. I never understood how it could trap water, but I removed the bead I put in and replaced with the $30 a tube 3M windshield sealant. Now I have a leak again albeit much smaller than when I started. Take that for what it's worth.