Windshield Removal

[Jibs]

I need to remove the windshield in the Brat, but the seal is OLD. I can't seem to get the seal out, I read through the FSM and it's of little use. I tried to just kick it and I broke it a little. :-\ So how do you do it when the seal is cracked and doesn't want to come out?

[northguy]

The shield should be urethaned to the gasket. If you are careful, you can use a razor knife between the gasket and the glass both outside and inside and it'll kick out pretty easily. I made a tool out of an old windshield blade (specialty glazier's tool) and a piece of conduit that cuts the outside and the top lip in the gasket. Remember to cover the defrost vents when you kick it out to prevent glass from flying in your face next November when you turn on the defroster.

[idosubaru]

Remember to cover the defrost vents when you kick it out to prevent glass from flying in your face next November when you turn on the defroster.

nice! sure signs he's done this before!

 

don't people run thin piano wire from the inside of the cabin to the outside and "saw" their way around the windshield? i know there are a few detailed hints on usmb about windshield removal, i'd check those out. if that stuff is anywhere near as tough to cut through as the rear permanent side glass in an XT6...i wouldnt' want to cut through it. blades couldnt' touch that stuff.

[TheMeatWagon]

Check out the similar threads at the bottom. Here's a good one: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=9559.

[misledxcracker]

did this method with my old escort...

 

get a guitar string (the thinnest one) or a piano wire, and broom handles (or something of that sort)

 

poke a hole in the corner of the windshield gasket and stick the string through

 

screw down the string onto the broom handles

 

and just start yankin'

[Jibs]

All right thanks for the help. Looks like this is gonna be a fun project.:-\

[Turbone]

I've never had a problem taking these out. Just get a sharp utility knife and run it around the window between the glass and frame. It may take a few cuts in places, but when done the window should come right out.

[glfarnes]

I am by no means a Subaru window expert, but I have changed out many windshields. If this is a rubber gasket type that has to be cut out somehow then the guys that are giving advise on how to do that probably know best. If the windshield is the new type that is basically stuck to a bead of mastic that hardens after the windshield is pressed to it, then the way to get it out is to buy a windshield gasket cutter. They are not that expensive and amount to a curved very strong knife that is attached to a knurled handle for pulling it along. They also make a hot knife for the same thing that cuts them out like butter, but I used to just heat mine with a torch and it would pull about three feet before cooling off. No matter how you get it out, you still have a job ahead of you if it isn't cut close to the body. Here is the place to get one. http://www.windshieldsupplies.net/xcart_directory/catalog/Windshield-Cut-Out-Knife-with-blade-p-16137.html

 

Jerry

[r_kirky]

When you buy your new gasket make sure you get one that doesn't require that you transfer the old chromes. Unless the chrome strips are in good condition and you have a lot of patience it is not worth the time, I have seen many experienced auto glass techs spend an hour or more putting them back in. Also when setting the windshield, first run a rope in the groove around the gasket this way you can pull the lip from the inside. Black silicone works best for sealing and I would buy it from an auto glass shop, the stuff from Lowes and Home Depot is terrible. The tool pictured below is absolutely indispensable. Good Luck

[Hank Roberts]

I had to do this with my 88 GL wagon, rear hatch window --- the goop had come loose and it was leaking, collecting water down in the wells behind the rear wheels.

 

Same method everyone's mentioned --- good razor knife, some wire, patience.

 

With the rear hatch, I could just prop the hatch level so the silicone wouldn't run til it dried. I dunno, I guess with a front windshield I'd try to put it facing uphill, on a _steep_ hill, and chock it real good. The silicone will run for a while. Porous masking tape will work ok to keep it from dribbling out, the paper kind, it has to outgass some acetic acid vapor as the silicone sets.

 

It took about three days before I dared move it, it's slow stuff.

 

Doesn't leak, though, after 2 rainy winters since I replaced it.