Windshield Removal

[foothilltom 33]

Hi guys, hope you all enjoyed your Christmas holidays. I would appreciate some pointers on removing a windshield.

 

I've taken out the 2 sheet metal screws at each end of the lower horizontal chrome trim piece. The trim piece seems to be very much attached to more points along the way that I cannot see. Do I need to remove the cowling over the wiper motor (and therefore the wipers themselves) to remove the trim?

 

I've looked through my Chilton book and another Mustang book and they casually mention that you have to remove the window trim to remove the windshield, but they don't provide any detail. I really don't want to ruin the trim by pulling/twisting ignorantly.

 

In short, a description of how to remove this trim (and any other tips along the way) would be MUCH appreciated.

 

Thanks very much!

 

Tom

[SlimeGold 69 15]

You need to remove the wipers and the cowl cover, then you will find more screws holding the lower trim on. Trim around the windsheild can be tricky getting off. I'm sure they make a tool to remove it but I always just started gently pulling at the bottom and work my way up. You could use a putty knife or the like to help pry it off. A good trick for getting the windshield out is to use a guitar string. You need everything good and warm to soften the sealer around the glass. Push it out into the sun if you can get a warm day or get your garage heated up. You need to make a hole in the " black glue" that holds the windsheild in and thread the string thru from the inside to the outside. With two people, have one on the outside with one end of the string and the other person on the inside. You need to work together and slowly "saw" thru the black sealer all the way around the window. Be carefull because it don't take much pressure to break the glass. Just work it out slow and take your time if you want to save the windsheild. If not just take a knife and go around the glass, sit down in the seat and push out the glass with your feet but it will crack for sure.

[3906pack 10]

As instructed, thats the way to do it but you can use a sprinkling of varsol to prevent the sealer from resticking after you have sawed thru it. leak the varsol around the area while you are doing the cutting. You arent going to reuse the goo again anyway....And the varsol will get the sticky fingers clean. Wonder if varsol will clean bbq sauce off sticky fingers? hahaha

[SELLERSRODSHOP 13]

here's a link with a good pic of how the tool is used to pry out the clips & remove the trim. be careful not to pry on the edge of the glass if you are planning on reusing the w/s, as any edge pressure will crack it in a heartbeat. as far as wire, try to get the stranded wire, it is stronger & cuts better. i recommend glass cleaner or a spray bottle of soapy water as a lubricant. it will help keep the stuff from resticking, but won't dissolve the butyl, which leaves a big mess everywhere. i just retired from 22 yrs installing glass, so if i can answer any other questions, let me know.

[SELLERSRODSHOP 13]

duhhh:blink: ... forgot to paste the link..

 

http://www.buickperformance.com/glassremove.htm

[burritoboi5 10]

Use your BFH duh.........:shifty:

 

Nah seriously though the sire method mentioned above works well.... Just be careful with the sawing method, if you have too much tension on the class you will start chipping pieces off, I would reccomend wearing some good leather gloves like for welding if you have em.

 

Oh if you do break your windshield it only costs a buck fifty to replace so it could be worse.

[russ69coupe 3]

I used the same sawing motion, but I used weed eater string instead. I used a long piece, didn't need any extra help. Didn't need gloves either. Getting the hole started was the hardest part.

Russ

[rks pilot 10]

I used stainless steel cable only because that is what I had handy but worked great as I had about 20' of it so working by myself I cut an 8' piece and was able to do it by myself other wise you cant' reach inside and out alone if you understand what I mean.

[Daves69Coupe 10]

i started removing the windshield last night. I removed all screws and A-pillars out of the car, along with the chrome window trim. I went with the weed wacker wire method to remove the window. I got both sides of the window done and about halfway done with the top and bottom parts of the window. The top and bottom seem to be alot stronger and a lil harder to get thru.

[Daves69Coupe 10]

i started removing the windshield last night. I removed all screws and A-pillars out of the car, along with the chrome window trim. I went with the weed wacker wire method to remove the window. I got both sides of the window done and about halfway done with the top and bottom parts of the window. The top and bottom seem to be alot stronger and a lil harder to get thru.

[foothilltom 33]

Since I started this thread oh-so-long-ago, I thought I'd warn you: go SLOWLY at the end. I took all of the advice here, managed to get about 89% of the way through the job and CRACK! I got a little too crazy and put a little bit of torque on the glass with the weed-whacker line I was using.

 

So a couple hours of meticulous work ended up with me kicking out the windshield in disgust!

 

Good luck!

Tom

[foothilltom 33]

Since I started this thread oh-so-long-ago, I thought I'd warn you: go SLOWLY at the end. I took all of the advice here, managed to get about 89% of the way through the job and CRACK! I got a little too crazy and put a little bit of torque on the glass with the weed-whacker line I was using.

 

So a couple hours of meticulous work ended up with me kicking out the windshield in disgust!

 

Good luck!

Tom