I have a 2001 Forester that has badly scratched front driver and passenger windows. It looks like chaging them would be a really headache. I would welcome any tips / suggestions. I have replacement windows that a friend gave me.

thanks,

Tony P

 

Taking the door panel off without breakiung the clips is more of a chore than replacing the glass itself....

 

The window switch is tricky to remove, sort of like tetris, and there is a secret screw behind it to remove the door panel.

 

Once you have the door panel out and the plastic barrier out. you can position the window so that you can get to the 2 bolts and pull it up. You might have to remove the mirror post, or loosen the slotted bolts to maneuver out the glass. 

 

It's more of a puzzle piece than any degree of physical difficulty.

Tonyp5143,

 

Search YouTube videos for door glass replacement. Watch 5 or 6 different ones for any make of vehicle, since they are pretty much the same. There will be things to note on how to remove the inner door panel and unhook the wiring connectors to power window switches and such.

 

Most door glass has a rail across the bottom of the glass, or a bracket at each end of the glass at the bottom, that a nut or bolt must be removed from. This detaches it from the lift mechanism. Frequently the glass must be lowered partway down until these nuts/bolts can be reached through circular cutouts in the door. Place a piece of masking tape over the end of the socket before you put the socket on the nut/bolt. This will lock the nut.bolt into the socket when you get it undone, preventing the nut/bolt from dropping down into the bottom of the door. (Do the same when you go to put them back in.)

 

Usually when the glass has the fasteners removed, it can be moved up and down by hand, and then tilted front or rearward to pull it out of its tracks. Once free of the tracks, lift it out the door opening. Good Luck!

WoW, Great advise guys Thanks so much!

Tony P