Changing Rear High Stop Bulbs - Remove Rear Air Deflector/Spoiler?

[kythri]

Any helpful hints here?

I need to replace bad bulbs in the rear high stop, but the air deflector/spoiler is in the way.

I tried using a right-angle/offset screwdriver, but the screws are torqued or just weathered in enough that I can't get them out.

Any tricks here, or do I need to look at pulling the air deflector off?

 

[Yudaman]

Any helpful hints here?

I need to replace bad bulbs in the rear high stop, but the air deflector/spoiler is in the way.

I tried using a right-angle/offset screwdriver, but the screws are torqued or just weathered in enough that I can't get them out.

Any tricks here, or do I need to look at pulling the air deflector off?

Pics might be helpful...
If I had seen this post yesterday, I coulda stopped and took a look. Was headed back home to Medford from Portland.

 

[kythri]

Shucks.

Well, I ultimately figured it out.

There's really no good way to pull the four screws out of the high-stop lens on the lift gate without removing the air deflector (factory or dealer option? It's a Ford part number, you can see it installed here: 2005 Ford Expedition Rear Roof Air Deflector)

The factory manual doesn't show how to R&I it (or, I couldn't find a page showing it in the body manual), so I pulled the three screws that I knew were it, and carefully prised up with a plastic trim tool. There's a couple of threaded studs that fit into some plastic retainer inserts, was paranoid about those, as I couldn't find the back end of them - doesn't appear that you're supposed to be able to.

Sheesh. I swear, the chore that it was just to change out a couple of bulbs, it's obvious that half the stuff on modern automobiles is a design-by-committee, rather than by any kind of technical folks/engineers.

Thanks, though! I'll have to dig around here to see if there's any kind of Oregon meet sometime.

 

[FordandPolaris]

Shucks.

Well, I ultimately figured it out.

There's really no good way to pull the four screws out of the high-stop lens on the lift gate without removing the air deflector (factory or dealer option? It's a Ford part number, you can see it installed here: 2005 Ford Expedition Rear Roof Air Deflector)

The factory manual doesn't show how to R&I it (or, I couldn't find a page showing it in the body manual), so I pulled the three screws that I knew were it, and carefully prised up with a plastic trim tool. There's a couple of threaded studs that fit into some plastic retainer inserts, was paranoid about those, as I couldn't find the back end of them - doesn't appear that you're supposed to be able to.

Sheesh. I swear, the chore that it was just to change out a couple of bulbs, it's obvious that half the stuff on modern automobiles is a design-by-committee, rather than by any kind of technical folks/engineers.

Thanks, though! I'll have to dig around here to see if there's any kind of Oregon meet sometime.

Huh that is new... I have never seen those. I agree though, things are designed to go together quite nicely and in a very specific order, but often it is not feasible to disassemble in that same order... Like with the rear shock bolts on my truck. It was clear the gas tank was added AFTER the installation of the top bolt on the one side...

 

[215Expedition]

Huh that is new... I have never seen those. I agree though, things are designed to go together quite nicely and in a very specific order, but often it is not feasible to disassemble in that same order... Like with the rear shock bolts on my truck. It was clear the gas tank was added AFTER the installation of the top bolt on the one side...

Please don't say you had to remove the tank to get to the bolt on the shock, I'm doing my shocks in a few weeks.

 

[FordandPolaris]

Please don't say you had to remove the tank to get to the bolt on the shock, I'm doing my shocks in a few weeks.

No no, I just used like 3 feet of extensions over the top of the tank in order to reach it with an impact. I can't remember if it was accessible from the close side of the tank with hand tools but it definitely was easiest at the time to go over the tank.