Hello all. I recently purchased my first corvette. It is a 2004 Z06. I looked at this site for several months before purchasing one. I will get pictures when I get my camera unpacked.

I love the car but I have a problem. The rear defroster on the passenger side is broken. The black part that is attached to the glass did not come off, but the metal tab that attaches to the wires broke in half. I called the dealer since it is still under warranty and was told that they can glue this. I am a little skeptical of this holding since it broke during normal driving in the first place.

Has anyone else experienced this? I hope I explained this well enough that someone knows what I am talking about.

This site was a great source of knowledge while I was shopping for my vette.

 

I had this happen right after I bought mine new. I took it to the local yocal dealer who charged me $40 to say they couldn't fix it. So, I went back to my purchase dealer (another city) and they ended up replacing the entire glass on warranty. Fight for this to get fixed. The tabs should not come off. Mine came off while cleaning the window. The cost of the glass is about $2300 from what I was told!

 

Mine has been broken for a year. I never use the defroster so I dont care. The dealer said its not covered under warranty when I was in for other warranty work. I didnt argue cause I wasnt gonna fix it anyway. If the dealer replaced my window to fix it you can bet your azz the window will leak after. No thanks!

 

The tab itself did not break off. It is still on the windshield. The metal spade connector that comes out of the tab broke in half. Since its an electrical connection I don't understand how you can glue it.

 

It has to be soldered, not glued.

 

And that is where it gets tough. Soldering something mounted on glass is tough. I wouldn't want to be the guy who crawled in there and tried to solder it.

I've had the defrosters on other cars repaired but that was where one of the lines was broken and they used glue to perform that repair.

Bill

 

Read on the Z16.org forum that the rear glass will be replaced under warranty to fix this situation! Both mine are broken.

http://z16.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1490

 

My wife's 04' Suburban had the same problem, GM must have some kid working at the plant that can't solder. I resoldered her's back on. lol!

 

I have soldered metal on metal back on rear windows with success, but you have to know what you are doing. It helps if one has taken a certification class for the job ( a long time ago) If anyone without warranty wants to try it, answer these questions first.

First are you sure the metal on the glass is well attached?
Second can you attach a tiny alligator clip from radio shack to the metal bonded to the glass ( this is the heat sink that absorbs the heat spike)?
Third can you get really close to the metal part on the window?
Fourth is there a point on both breaks that will come together, metal on metal, so you can solder?
Fifth, can you access and hold the two pieces, solder, the soldering device and keep your line of sight to do the soldering?
Sixth have you ever soldered?

If the answer is no to any don't bother. If you try it it's at your own risk. And don't expect it to be perfect or as sturdy as the original. I just dont clean too well around the fixed joint You especially don't want to snag the joint with a clothe, repaired or undamaged.

Most dealer techs won't bother with this because its not a swap job. They only know and are allowed to connect and disconnect connectors and swap components.

Anyway I have done this with success on three cars where kids were the culprit and the warranty was long gone.

 

I don't think I could get an alligator clip on there. It broke right before the curve. I wouldn't attempt to solder it anyway. I have a feeling that the dealer misunderstood what I was saying when I called. I'm going to take it in next week sometime and see what they will do. I was just curious to see if anyone else had this and what the dealer did about it. The car is still under warranty so I'm not trying to fix anything myself.
Thanks everyone for your replies.

 

Ita amazing they will replace a $2000 rear glas to fix a .50 cent part.