My daughter just bought a 2019 Ford Escape SE 1.4 turbo. 47,000 mi.
Upon inspecting the faulty rain sense sensor, I noticed that the previous owner improperly installed the plastic housing that contains this sensor and the front camera. The housing was separated from the windshield by about 1\2" on one side by dried glue. I was able to remove the plastic housing. What I would like to know is the proper type of glue to use to reattach. The side that attaches to the window has nubs that keep the housing about 1\16th" off the window, so a liquid glue will not work. It will need heavy duty 2 sided pads or some glue with a thick consistency. Does anyone know the proper product to use?
I think a call to your local auto glass shop ( Safelite ? ) and let them do it .
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I would have guessed the attachment method would be to glue separate “holders” to the windshield, masking tape to keep them there to let the glue dry , then attach the sensor/camera unit to the “holders”. Sort of like how rear view mirror in older cars are attached to the windshield. Are you certain the unit is supposed to be directly glued to the windshield? I’m not saying that isn’t the way it was done by the prior owner, but the prior owner may have been engaged in a diy’er experiment, didn’t do the job correctly. Might be worthwhile to stop in at a Ford dealership parts department and ask there.
Well I don’t know but my transponder for toll payments is connected with heavy duty hook and loop. Self adhesive to the glass and the other self adhesive to the transponder. Had a new windshield and they also used the self adhesive hook and loop. Don’t like where they put it so going to move using the connectors provided by the Illinois toll way. I grabbed a few extras.
So yeah best to just visit your local glass shop. Most places don’t have the heavy duty hook and loop.
Are there other sensors located in the housing? If there is any sort of forward traffic monitoring, the unit probably needs calibration and proper positioning is important enough that a Ford dealer or a glass shop like Safelite should be used. We needed a new windshield on our less-than-one-week-old Odyssey in 2019 and the forward traffic monitoring sensors were calibrated by Safelite after replacing the windshield.
Yes, there is a lane assist camera. I’ve had it removed and put back in already. It was still accurate.
If (and this is a big if) if adhesive is the correct fix I’ve found that 3M Auto has the best products for an automotive environment.
On the other hand if you’re not absolutely certain of what is the “correct fix”, let a pro do the job.
Another one for using a glass shop, just call them, it might not be that pricey… don’t know till you call…
It may be a learning experience, but I went with the 2 sided tape. She’s not a paying customer, so it really doesn’t hurt to experiment. If it doesn’t hold I’ll do something different. Worst case scenario is it falls off. One other unfortunate thing is that I don’t think I got it positioned perfectly. I don’t think it will affect the lane assist though, but if it does I will do it again after I know it holds. I also confirmed that the rain assist sensor is bad.
I didn’t see a rain sensor in the picture. A gel pad should be located between the rain sensor and glass, if this is missing, the rain sensor would work.
It appears the mounting bracket for the front camera housing is missing, alignment for the forward windshield camera is critical, you can’t just paste the housing in place.
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I removed the rain sensor and pad before the picture. I was hoping to clean and replace. The sensor didn’t look too good. I cleaned as best I could and it still doesn’t work. The only other module on this bracket is the lane assist camera. It’s sole purpose is for lane assist. I say this because adaptive cruise control and brake assist and collision warning all function withe the lane assist module unplugged. So if I did get it misaligned too much, the only thing that would be off is the lane assist. The lane assist module can be seen by my fingers (silver) in the picture.
I just can’t agree with this solution . A vehicle that you drive is one thing. But this is your daughter so why would you not have it repaired properly ?
How will the lack of sensor function affect her car insurance? My guess is that while the chance of an accident is remote, ineffective front traffic sensors might give the insurer an avenue to avoid payout.
I reattached it last night. I propped it overnight. This morning it was very secure. I test drove it to work. And lane assist function is spot on. Everything is working perfectly except for the rain sense sensor which I will replace when she wants me to. In the meantime the options are set for the wipers to work like a “normal” car with intermittent wiper function.