NHTSA Complaint #11639844 — 2017 FORD ESCAPE

Prior to May 2022, both of the quarter panel mounted tail light assemblies on my 2017 Ford Escape SE started taking in water due the seals on the tail lights failing. Soon after those started failing the same thing began happening to the tail light assemblies on the hatch. I have replaced all 4 tail lights with OEM parts sourced from a salvage yard. All parts sourced from the salvage yard had a perfect conditions rating per the salvage yard. Fast forward to November 2024 and I began to notice the seals on the quarter panel mounted tail light assemblies begging to fail. Since then, the passenger side tail light assembly has began taking on water, with the driver side soon to take on water as well. Water and electricity do not mix. The tail lights are available for inspection upon request and I have included pictures. Driving at night or in low light conditions with my tail lights like this puts me and other drivers at risk due to water potentially shorting out my lights/electrical system and making my lights harder for other drivers to see. The problem, to my knowledge has not been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center. The vehicle component has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. First appeared prior to May 2022 and again, after replacing the components, around November 2024. I have appealed to the Ford motor company about this and no recall or programs are in affect for this issue at this time. I have also consulted with other owners of the same vehicle with the same issue and there are multiple online forum threads about this issue.