anyone getting ready to do this job, needs to read this first. ignore taking everything apart inside the truck. all you have to do is get a long 24" big screwdriver and push up on the old vent then gently pry the bottom snaps out and pull the old vent off. if you worry about the paint just wrap the screwdriver with tape. slide the new vent up into place using screwdriver to be sure the top end snap is in first, then snap in the bottom by pushing it in. it is not hard to do at all and i was able to do both of my vents in 5 minutes from start to finish.
I have a 2006 GMC Sierra and I am having the same issue. I haven’t repaired mine yet but this video certainly helped me think through the process. I appreciate you posting this....hopefully mine will be this easy.
For a 2007 GMC Sierra 1500 single cab new body style they cost $27 I just found out today I have to replace mine after a heavy rain my cab had a lot of water in it at first I thought it was the seals around the door or maybe the light as you said on top but after doing a few tests with a gallon of water pouring it over the top to find out where the leak was coming from it came from each one of my vents so I found this video very helpful I appreciate your help for posting this video it's going to save me a lot of money with labor
Man, what a pain it was for me to finally figure out where my leak was! Like you said at the beginning, i thought it was the cabin light gasket, so I replaced that, but then it continued to leak and shorted out my amp mounted behind my seat! It continued to leak, so I even siliconed around that light and even the rear window thinking it was leaking in through those spots. The leak continued. What a pain. So I finally realized it has to be these cabin vents which i then siliconed on the outside between the cab and bed, as a temporary measure! I had to attach a clear tube to a caulk tube to be able to get the silicone between the cab and bed. What a pain. That stopped the leak. I have now ordered two new vents. Cheap like you say. But i just don't see how these things keep water from getting in the truck. But anyway, the whole idea of the vents is to protect occupants from toxic fumes that could develop in the cab, but if they start letting in toxic fumes when they fail, what's the point of them? I almost wish I could plug those holes up permanently. Thanks for the video.
I'll be going home at lunch to poor some water on this. After months of looking and getting told it's the door seals or brake light, this looks promising!
Good video saves me a lot of time for my 2004 Chevy Colorado!! just remember to take care of the rust with sand paper and joint sealer and a little paint.. ;)
Thanks sharing, this helped me figure out how to replace the vents on my 2005 GMC Sierra. And you are right, I first thought it was my 3rd brake light, which I first replaced the seal on.
So you have to remove the vent before pulling the inner black snorkel piece? I know you can replace it start to finish from the outside without removing anything inside but I have the inside all undressed to help dry things out and I want to clean the cab face real good before installing the new vent and the easiest way is through the inside once that black inner vent/snorkel piece is removed. Thanks Man…!!!
Well, like I said in a previous post, I also thought it was my rear window gasket. So I put silicon outside to seal around the rear window. But that's not what it was.
and yes these vents are important for air pressure regulation. when you close your refrigerator and it don't have a vent it then draws vacuum and makes it very hard to open. But if it had a vent it allows the air to pressurize back to normal and allow it to open easily with no vacuum. These do the same thing. But since you will be in the vehicle it can pop your ears harshly the harder you slam the doors, vehicles arnt air tight so it will eventually just re pressurize through cracks and such.
You need that vent there. Depresurizes cab when you close your doors. And allows air out when ac is set to pull air from outside instead of recirculating it. Aldo this keeps road noise out and keeps exhaust fumes out.
do you know if this applies to extended cab as well? or just the crew cab like yours? also, how do i check if its the third brake light that is causing the leak?
thanks buddy, it actually was just the vents and not the brake light. almost went crazy looking for the source and nearly decided to tear apart my interior ha ha
Chris Yarber these vents are very important they are designed to keep the cabin air tight which means no carbon monoxide poisoning will happen or if its hot outside and you have the windows closed pressure builds up and it has to escape somewhere
