How to Painlessly Repair Your Vehicle's Broken Pane

Enlightenment So, you've noticed your window isn't there anymore, and Mother Nature is being more intimate with you. Maybe your stereo is missing, or pieces of trash are floating in during your commute. You probably need to check out the cost of window glass replacement. I called one auto glass repair business, but didn't like the amount they would charge to fix the problem. A bit more research via the net and I not only got a market price for a replacement window (one-third what the "professional" wanted), but also found a nearby auto-recycling center with one in stock.

Preparation Make sure you have a good selection of hand tools, a tarp, a repair manual, and a vacuum, as well as gloves and goggles.

Step 1 - Things you'll need and use: a tarp to help in the cleanup, a variety of common tools, and a repair manual.

Follow the instructions in your specific repair manual to remove the door panel.

Step 2 - Your mileage may vary, but most panels have lots of snaps and screws. Gentle pressure, patience, and a manual will help you peel the panel off the door.

You should find a plastic sheet/weather barrier under the panel. Carefully peel this sheet back while avoiding the sticky stuff.

Step 3 - Once you're inside the door panel, gently remove the weatherproofing sheet. Beware the black sticky stuff.

Step 4 - With the weatherproofing removed, various access points are revealed. Notice the lift mechanism, bracket and clips. Step 5 - The white clip should be supporting a pane of glass. It's not, but it will. Use gloves to remove any hunks of glass that might still be together - window tinting will cause that. Step 6 - Be careful when removing the remnants of the pane. I suggest gloves. This shows how tinted window ends up when broken. Use a shop vacuum to get the rest of the cubits out and carefully dispose in the trash. Step 7 - Use a shop vacuum to keep things sharp and professional. Take your time to get all the pieces out. Step 8 - Some of the pieces can be a pain to get out. You can use a screwdriver to scrape any jammed pieces. Step 9 - The weatherstripping needs to be removed so you can slide the new piece of glass into the door. Another instance where gentle patience will help you keep things nice and unbent. Step 10 - Hard to see in this picture, but there's a solid piece of glass in that slot. It took some relaxing meditation and the epiphany to unbolt one more bolt to get it in. Just relax and know that it happened once, so it can happen again. Battening Down The repair manual shows you the placement of the bracket and clips that were bonded to the glass. With the top piece of weatherstripping back in place, make sure the glass is aligned. Does it raise and lower without binding? Great. Snug down the bracket bolts; replace the weatherstripping and barrier sheet. Get the door panel back on and align the window crank lever, if you have one. Mine no longer brushes against my knee when the window is all the way down. Step 11 - Remove the clips so that you can attach the new glass/clips onto the lifting arm's bracket. Make sure the bolts are snug, but not so tight as to crack the new glass. Step 12 - Make sure the glass moves smoothly, without any snags. Replace the weatherproofing and reattach the door panel. Finally, you can enjoy not having things so easily stolen from your truck. Go to the car wash again. Celebrate the power of sand, without all the dirt and debris. Step 13 - All better now. You'll just have to keep it clean!