broken quarter glass

My rh quarter glass, the big one ,not the vent window got broken a few days ago. Anybody know of pics or a video showing replacement? The Gm repair manual is no help. Thanks.

I removed one, probably 6 or 7 years ago. Here goes, as I remember it. The quarter glass and the vent piece come out as one piece. On the inside, you have to remove any trim or panels around the window. You will then have to remove about a dozen nuts.

The unit is held in by a glass adhesive / butyl stuff. It is 25 years old which makes it extremely hard to remove the glass from the body. I believe I used a combination of a utility knife and piano wire to cut into the goo.

It is not an easy job. I have a 50% success rate. Luckily it was from a parts car.

Someone who has more knowledge of this than me, will probably chime in.

Take your time and good luck.


Tom

I never removed out but slowly press around the window glass trim around the flip out window. On almost ALL wagons I looked at forsale or at the junkyard the window is loose there, that's where they leak and the qr gets wet inside and rusts because of it. Once its un bolted I bet you can get some wire through there. When you press on the trim you will see the window sort of moving in, then out to find a weak area., The busted one is busted but if you find a new window, check to see if that area is loose, it may or may not be a good starting point for removal.

A heated knife blade helps cut the adhesive but that darn stuff can re-adhere if hot enough, don't know if there is room on the wagon windows to use one but I have used it on opera windows of other cars.

I have removed and installed a number of them. I use a vibrating cutter (Harbor Freight sells them) with a custom made knife blade (ground down narrow end cutter). There are 6-8 nuts around the perimeter that must be removed after the interior trim, and headliner. I use the vibrating tool and keep the blade close to the metal body. Be careful, because the blade may be long enough to scratch the paint around the glass. You also have to be careful around the post for the vent window. The Caprice window is different from the RM window, and can not be interchanged. Practice on your broken glass, and you will do better with the donor car glass. DO NOT USE A WIRE, it will damage the reveal. You can not get a hot knife in place to use it. The only thing that works without damaging the reveal is the vibrator tool. Trim the backside of the reveal until it is even, and about 1/4 inch below the original level.

When installing the donor part, make sure the metal lip is clean and if there is any bare metal, you have to use urethane primer. It is good to use the primer around the entire flange. Be careful, because the primer is extremely thin, and will run easily. It is applied with a fuzzball on a stick applicator. When you apply the urethane, use a little extra if there are any low spots. You will probably need 2 1/2 tubes of urethane. Push the perimeter of the panel tight against the body, but do not tighten the nuts on the inside excessively, or you will warp the chrome strip. If you try to take any shortcuts installing the glass, it will leak.

Fred, can I get a photo or a link to the vibrating cutter? Thanks.

You can get them at Harbor Freight. I reshaped a blade to look like a shark's tooth.

Still working on getting my window replaced. I have one located near Lynchburg VA. I should have it in a few days. I now have the old one (what was left of it) out. I still have to remove the remaining urethane from the metal. Any tips on how to get it off? Thanks.

papa wrote:

Still working on getting my window replaced. I have one located near Lynchburg VA. I should have it in a few days. I now have the old one (what was left of it) out. I still have to remove the remaining urethane from the metal. Any tips on how to get it off? Thanks.

heat gun and a scraper,.. its a lousy messy time consuming job,..as fred said tho,. make sure you put some primer over any bare metal,..it took two of us to remove and reseal one of mine that was leaking..

You do not have to remove all of the urethane from the metal. If it is firmly attached, you can leave a thin layer of it. You can slice it with a sharp box cutter. If it is loose, you have to remove it, and treat the metal, then paint it. Allow the paint to dry thoroughly, and use the urethane prep before installing the glass, especially on bare metal. Urethane prep is extremely thin, and you want to be careful that it does not drip on anywhere you do not want it, it is permanent.

You will probably have to cut a flat surface on the inside of the glass reveal. You can do that with a box cutter as well. The original surface of the glass had a 1/8-1/4 inch channel for the urethane. Try to cut it just a little further than the top of the channel. You can often see the line where the top of the channel is. You can not remove the urethane from the channel. You will put a bead of urethane on top of the flat surface. It bonds exceptionally well to the old urethane in the channel. If you get a little deep with your cut, just apply an amount of urethane to fill the space.

A few things to remember...buy fresh urethane, use the prep fluid, do not over tighten the nuts on the studs, they are only there to hold it in place until the urethane sets.

Check the window you bought for damage to the edges of the reveal before you proceed.

My new (used) quarter window should be in the back of my wagon , waiting for me when I get home tonight. Someone picked it up for me in Lynchburg VA yesterday.

Maybe snap a few pics of the process to help anyone else unlucky enough to have to do this.

Hope it goes smoothly.

Will do. I was impressed with how smooth the cut was when I got the window that I called back and asked what kind of tool was used to remove it. I want one. I also ask them to remove the other side for me. You know how it goes... if you have a spare your chances of needing it drops drastically.

papa wrote:

Will do. I was impressed with how smooth the cut was when I got the window that I called back and asked what kind of tool was used to remove it. I want one. I also ask them to remove the other side for me. You know how it goes... if you have a spare your chances of needing it drops drastically.

Careful, having a spare of only one side drastically increases the chances you'll have to replace the other! ;-)

It's been an ordeal, but I finally have a quarter window in my wagon. The donor car had been painted with house paint, with a roller. Paint stripper took it off without a lot of work. My car sat on a carport for several weeks and was covered with pollen. After installing the window the car got a good cleaning.I am now reinstalling all the interior moldings and trim.

You are fortunate that the paint stripper did not damage the rubber reveal.