Front Door Glass Let's You Look At the World

Today’s tutorial is about front door glass. Pretty simple, right? Well hold your horses because if you have an older vehicle it isn’t quite as simple as if you have a new car or truck.

For those of you who don’t belong to the “Me Generation” you may remember that on many older vehicles there was a vent window that sat right next to the front door window. On newer cars there is just the front door window. So we need to be a bit specific when we are talking about a front door window. Understand?

As you probably know the front door window, and all windows for that matter, is made of safety glass meaning if you get into a fender-bender your glass will not shatter and rain down upon you while you are driving. Safety glass is actually two sheets of glass with a sheet of adhesive in-between that binds them together and prevents shattering.

The glass also must move up and down and does so because you either have a window crank or a window motor that operates the up and down movement. So when replacing a front door window it is not simply a matter or replacing the window but also making sure that it can be operated properly by connecting the window to the crank or window engine (motor) that operates it. Of course, if you are replacing the side vent it is a simple matter indeed, just removing it from its separate hinge and replacing it in the opposite manner.

Is window glass expensive? Not really, especially the front door glass or side vent. Is it difficult to replace? It is a little harder than you would imagine because it requires taking the door panel off to get to the glass and window motor mechanism. If the panel is welded on you have your work cut out for you; if the panel is bolted on it is significantly easier to make the repair.

One would not think that getting the front door glass replaced would cost much but it is labor-intensive and you will pay for a couple hours of labor and that right there is close to $100 not counting the actual glass.

Bottom line: as with all replacement parts with the exception of the transmission or engine or fuel pump, you are better off going to a salvage yard, buying the replacement part, and installing it yourself