Windshield replacement, Do it yourself?? (1 Viewer)

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jynx

Turd Herder
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I did some searching on this and I found a couple of old threads where this question was asked, but it was described as a 3:banana: job. I am curious if anyone has attempted this at home lately? Based on the plentiful nature of threads and posts about how hard it is to get a windshield installed "correctly", I am seriously contemplating trying this myself.

Mine leaks and is not the OEM glass. I suspect a PO had it replaced, but did not keep a check on the installer because I am pretty sure from the water that I have watched leak in, that no sealant was used on the glass. Well this was a problem that he was aware of because there is a nice bead of silicone on the top and sides.

My main issue is that apparently tape was better than paint and I now have several sizable rust bubbles hiding under some tape at the top of the windshield. So I need to do a little body work while the old one is out, before the new one goes in. Since there is no sealant I am guessing that removal would be fairly easy. I want to pop out the windshield and sand, prime and repaint from the a-pillars back to the front of the sunroof, and then either install or have a new glass installed with an OE gasket and plenty of sealant.

Any thoughts on trying to make this a DIY would be appreciated, or a reputable glass man in the Nashville/ middle TN area.

Thanks,

Tucker
 
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I just went through all the same stuff with mine. I will tell you what the very very experienced glass guy at my local Lexus/Toyota dealer told me: It is a very difficult windshield to install properly. It has a triple flange in the seal and he does everything possible to avoid doing them himself. If a 20 year glass guy at Toyota says they are a pain, I would avoid it as a diy job. Just make sur you follow the FSM word for word on the install, and use factory glass and seal.
 
I had mine done and I watched while the guys worked on it. It took 2 guys.

At the start nobody wanted to double seal the install, then I spoke with the owner and he took charge and sealed the inner and outer seals, his employees were afraid to make a mess with all the sealant. They stood back and watched the experienced owner do the job with 1 assistant and no mess to be cleaned.

He applied the inner bead sealant to the gasket while the glass was unmounted and then the outer bead to the gasket before the install.
Also they used this rubber/tar looking stuff in a bottle with a brush/sponge aplicator to cover any surface rust in the instalation area.

So yes, I would have an experienced person do it, or atleast get yourself some help and read up on glass instalations and get a lot of solvent to remove any excess sealant you might have.
 
I had a pro do my install, took two guys. It still leaks. The problem is they just don't use enough of the sealant. Eventually I will need to take care of it so it will stop leaving a puddle on the floor mats.
 
If you just want to fix the leak, you can read the "How To:" in my signature below. $10 fix. I think there is a link to a post with the FSM on windshield install too, in that thread, to give you an idea about what is involved.
 
I did something similiar to firetruck's leak fix and so far so good.
Give it a try first and if it does not work go to a professional.
Do not use silicone it does not work.
 
Thanks guys, I talked to a couple folks I work with today and have a couple of leads on a reputable local guy.

I actually have firetruck's fix bookmarked on my computer because I intended to go this route and I may still go that way for now, but the rust across the top of the windshield and the gaudy bed of silicone from the PO will need addressing eventually. It actually has small pieces of this "tape" all over and I would like to eventually have the whole truck repainted.

Thanks again guys,

Tucker
 
Just an update on windshield replacements. I got one “made in China” off eBay. Maybe $400 shipped. SOR wanted $1,200. It has the tint on the upper section which is actually pretty nice. I got the OEM rubber from my local Toyota dealer in Long Beach. I also got some rubber lock strip with the installation tool off Amazon just in case. My intent was to keep the original chrome strips. I’ve never done any kind of auto glass before.
I basically followed the FSM instructions, which I found somewhere on here.

Keep In mind, I tried to find some one to do this install for me. All star, safe lite, some local shops, no one would do it. So here goes mothing
  1. Removed rear view mirror and visors. Removed wipers
  2. In order to keep the original chrome lock strips in good enough shape to re-install, you have to cut the old rubber from the outside. I used a utility knife around the whole windshield. Between the chrome and the glass. The chrome pieces came out pretty easily and I kept them in order on the ground so I could put them back together I. The right places.
  3. Then I could push the windshield out from the inside to my helper who removed my cracked windshield from the outside.
  4. Next, I pulled the remaining rubber from the frame edges and cleaned the metal carefully with a razor blade, putty knife and some goof off.
  5. I had some very minor rust spots in both bottom corners. I steel brushed them and treated them with rust inhibitor.
  6. Then I set up some saw horses with bubble wrap from the new windshield packaging rolled and taped around the tops of them. I set the new windshield on top of those and applied the new rubber gasket to it. I made sure it was completely pressed on.
  7. Next, I inserted a long length of paracord into the outside groove of the rubber trim, starting at the middle bottom. Leave at least a foot of tail hanging out so you can pull on it later. I went all the way around and crossed it over the first tail and taped them both to the inside of the glass. (Plenty of videos on YouTube for this)
  8. Then I had a bucket of really soapy water and brushed the soapy water all along the gasket where I inserted the rope. Also applied to the bottom edge of the cruisers metal frame. Didn’t want to get my headliner wet, so I left it off of the sides and top.
  9. With a couple of helpers, we lifted the new windshield onto the bottoms edge of the metal (as low as can go) and lined it up as best as we could side to side.
  10. from the outside, with open hands, my helpers applied pressure while I I taped the tails of the paracord and began to pull it out along the frame. There’s kind of a happy medium between the right amount of pressure, and the ease of pulling the cord out. I went from bottom middle to bottom right. Then bottom middle to bottom left, and kept switching back and form to try to keep it even. Once you get to the top corners, it really gets tough. It’s a really tight fit and definitely not a cinch to pull the top section of cord out,
  11. Eventually, the cords meet up in the top middle and come out. I had to really massage the top lip of the gasket from the inside before it set in nicely, but it did get seated in nice and tight.
  12. I didn’t get any OEM sealant. Instead I picked up some black 3M windsheald sealant from Pep Boys (Yikes!).
  13. after masking off the body paint and glass on the outside of the windshield gasket, I was able to stick the nozzle of the squeeze tube in between the gasket and frame of the vehicle, and gently squeeze as I kept inward pressure into the gasket and moved it around the entire outer edge. A little messy at first, but once you get the feel for it, it a piece of cake. I actually went thru two tubes doing the rubber to metal side, then rubber to glass side. No sealant need on the inside of the truck.
  14. I gently massages the outside of the gasket all around the glass to get the sealant to spread nice and evenly.
  15. Then came the task of getting the chrome pieces back in. Soapy water helps immensely! I used a full butter knife to get the long pieces in. Just going 5 to 6 inches at a time. Make sure you center them all, so the corner pieces will cover the ends nicely. The pieces almost seem to “click” into place when they’re in right. I used a tiny flat het to get the corner prices in. I would recommend one of those plastic windshield tools next time.
    After it set up for a while, I pulled the masking tape and cleans up the edges with a razor blade and a touch of good off. (Watch the paint!)
  16. 48 hours later, just to be sure, I deluged the whole rig with a water hose. I even went full nozzle pressure all around the windshield. No leaks at all.
  17. Installed all the stuff I took off. Mirror, wipers, etc.
  18. Done! Looks great and no leaks. Glad I did it.
    435BE361-FCA7-430E-86C5-9CA11F598ECD.jpeg
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Nice work, but that's a 60 series???
 
Nice work!
 
This thread for sure gave us the confidence to pull our windshield out.

We'll post a video of us getting it back in so everyone sees clearly what to and most probably what not to do.

 

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