86 951 Driver

I have read some about this. I was curious if the real problem is just up at the top or do you actually need to remove the glass completely from the frame and have it all resealed.

Anyone know how much it would cost to have this done? My hatch leaks and I need to find out what I should do?

Cole

Really depends on where your hatch is leaking from I suppose.

I re-glued my upper hatch this summer.

I put new lift struts on the car and the sepperated the glas from the frame at the top.

I took off the upper trim piece. You can see it in this picture. The metal piece that runs across the top of the glass is just trim. It wraps around the frame and glass and is crimped in place. I took a small flat screw driver and pried up the edge of the trim from the inside of the hatch, until it popped off.

This will give you access to the top part of the frame where the glass meets it. Easy to see the gap and put them back in place.

I put some 4000lb psi epoxy on mine and clamped the glass and frame toghether over night. Then just reinstalled the trim piece. No leaks, no wind noise, no creaks etc.

I only sealed the 3' section at the top. That was all mine seemed to need.

I would make sure you have BLACK sealant. Mine was white and you can see it through the glass.

Hope that helps some.

JohnKoaWood

FWIW, I have found that 3M 5200 (Marine Grade Epoxy) works better, cures faster, and is stronger than 3M Window weld. I temp patched my N/A hatch with it, and it is still holding like there is no tomorrow.

I will soon be re-doing my entire 951 hatch using the 5200 do be done with it.

FWIW, the 5200 is UV stable, anerobic (as it is intended to be permanant sealant below the water line) and tough as nails. BUT it isn't cheap (jamestowndistributors.com has 10oz tubes, as used in a caulking gun, for $12.99 a tube) and the hatch will use 2-3 tubes to completely seal and bond the glass in my experience.

whalebird

I did this over the weekend using window weld. I wish I had read this thread. I just did the top section and it is holding fine. I would suggest to get some glass "primer" as instructed by 3M. It's not that bad of a job. Leave the struts off overnight.

86 951 Driver

On my old 924S I just resealed the top part and as far as I remember it fixed the problem. I was thinking of doing this on my 951 hatch, but I didn't know if that would fix the hatch rattle from the glass being loose?

Last time I did this I scrapped off the old sealant and then put some new sealant in and put the top part of the frame back together and tightened it down with some rachet straps.

luftpirate

36 bucks in caulk is worth not having to do it again. I'm kind of dreading this project and Iv'e already bought the window weld. Did anyone use the primer or just clean it real well with acetone?

whalebird

I used the window weld and cleaned it real good with acetone. My hatch seperated 24 hours later with little or no "encouragement". I ripped it all down again and did it all over again. Second time, I used the glass prep "wipe" from a rearview mirror adhesive kit after cleaning with acetone. It seemed to work better, but I have noticed a little seperation now 36 hours later, but in all it is pretty tight. I would definitly use a primer as suggested by 3M, regardless of adhesive. One thing I noticed is that the original seal had a strong bond on the "painted" black section above the 3rd brake light. I broke this free and reapplied the new adhesive here upon resealing the first time. Well, when my opportunity to do it all over again arrived, this section also had a VERY strong bond with the window weld I had applied the day before. I also noticed that the front windshield has the same black paint around the perimeter on all of my cars. I suspect it is there for a reason - to help adhesion, especially in air bag equiped cars.
Point being, that some "texture" may go a long way to aid in adhesion. I have considered geting a "glass etching" kit and etching the sealing surface around the hatch. I am not sure what the primer will do, but I think I would at least use it when I go back into it - which I will do soon. It's not a hard job and I now have plenty of experience.
I hope this helps - good luck and keep the suggestions coming.

JohnKoaWood

Michaels craft store sells window etching acid, and it DOES work for this purpose, I will be using it when I do my final hatch rebuild on my 951, as the 3X effort with window weld has again failed. This time I will be using the 5200 (which bonds EXCELLENT to naked clean glass) and adding a full perimeter clamp to the hatch once sealed, indoors for at least a week.

I aim to do it once and for all, using the nastiest, strongest adhesive I have ever used, and never have to do it again.

86 951 Driver

So do you all just reseal the top trim piece and what not, or do you take the entire glass out to reseal it?

whalebird

I chose to just reseal the top where it had seperated. If i were to break the entire seal...well that would be a HUGE job. The bond on the rest of my hatch was very secure. I'm not even sure how I would go about getting the entire glass apart. My intention is to find a used hatch and properly dismantle it and reseal it - then swap out mine. I felt like just doing the top section was OK for me; you may feel the same.

JohnKoaWood

I have done the entire hatch twice with mindow weld, and had the top edge break loose twice after reseal on my 951, on my N/A I used 5200 on the top edge only, and had GREAT seal with it ever since (4 months now...)

Easiest way to "break the seal" on the rest of the hatch is with a flexible blade knife (cheap kitchen knife) , carefully pry the seperated parts of the frame away from the glass, place paint stirrers between the glass and frame, and guide the knife along the frame, to split the sealant.. take your time, and move the paint stirrers as you go, and in a little time you will have the frame off the glass.

I will be resealing the entire 951 hatch again, using 5200 on the entire perimeter, and clamping the entire thing, indoors, while working a new spoiler and trim solution up for it... should be starting that effort within a few weeks... once I get my car moved to my current residence.

whalebird

That was my next question. How did you get the glass off? i had considered using a thin cable to "saw" it off, but ...
Just FYI. Glass is pretty "flexible, but the most vulnerable area is the edge of the glass panel. So I would reccommend extreme caution when working this project up - be very deliberate with sharp objects on the edge of the glass. It's much easier to crack glass at the edge with a concentrated force from a hard object.

luftpirate

My only concern about the epoxy would be its reluctancy to expand and contract with the glass especially in northern climates eventually leading to it cracking out. I suppose there are some epoxies which are more elastic than others but still maintain their grip.
I'm not saying there is a better product just thinking it made lead to another potential problem. I guess time will tell.

whalebird

there in lies another concern. A bit of elasticity would be good. i do like the window-weld for that reason. The 5200 is pretty elastic also - If i recall from my marine days.

JohnKoaWood

It is elastic, VERY elastic once fully cured, but still tough as nails, and will bond to anything (the thinner the bond the stronger the bond, as with any epoxy, but still tough as nails with some thinkness, as opposed to the window weld which does not like to be more than 1/8 inch thick, and has poor adhesion qualities...

I have used 5200 on my boat, and my cars, it is TOUGH crap, it is intended for perminant installations, I.E. NOT something you ever want to have to take apart again..

I have seen it bond to paint, stronger than the paint will bond the the painted material, it WILL pull paint off once cured... even CARC paint...