UPDATE
I had to do a little repairing to the rear window this month.
The lower left and right corners were repaired May 2016.
The right (PS) corner held up over the year but the left (DS) corner started to come apart, not as bad as it was, but it would have leaked. So far so good.

 

Yea, mine lasted, I think a year as well. I don't think I was generous enough with the 3M goop on that side.....



This is my 3rd Crossfire, it sat a lot and has been a lot of trouble - but I still love my car.
With the alternator failing (and the replacement dying in two months), the valve cover leak (fixed that right the FIRST time!), and then a weak battery taking out the airbag module (go ahead, try to get 5 or 6 years out of a battery - let me know how lucky YOU are) - I've learned SO much more about these cars.

More to the point, I've fixed stuff I'd not normally attempt on my own.

 

Pizzaguy,
Like the setup for fixing the window. You are right about the battery, 6 yrs is a long time(too long).

 

This is definately the correct products and method to solve this common roadster problem. 48 hours undisturbed dry time is my personal recommendation.

 

Sorry if there is one already posted but l am considering a rag top could someone post a pic of a top that needs to glued so l know what to look for .....thanks

 

I followed the "How To" to do the rear window repair on my Roadster.
I added a few steps to assure easy clean up.
Fortunately only a small length of the glue had let loose.
After carefully spending more than 2 hours I followed these steps:

This stuff is a mess but fortunately I was wearing latex gloves
I raised the bow and first scraped all the old glue from the glass in the place where the repair was needed and made sure it was clean and dry
I placed a folded bath towel and placed it inside behind the glass to give it support against the canvas.
I then applied painters tape and masked all of the outside of the glass where the canvas top meets the glass so that all the excess glue that might squeeze out from the canvas would be on tape that I can simply remove from the glass for a quick cleanup

I first applied the

3M Single Step Primer

3M Single Step Primer

and allowed it to dry as instructed before squeezing the bead of

3M Window Weld

3M Window Weld

I finished by using some strips of gorilla tape and carefully pressed them against the glass and canvas again with the towel beneath the glass for support
I then closed the top completely and latched it.
Now I'll just let it sit overnight and tomorrow carefully remove the strips of gorilla tape and then the painters tape from the glass and see if the repair was successful


The area that needed to be re-glued


Painters tape on the glass for excess glue to easily be removed
Gorilla Tape strips for additional hold while glue sets

 

Inquiring minds want to know.. in my video I show where I ran the tape full length of the repair... where you have done strips.. wondering does that make a ripple effect when it sets up.. PS.. June will make for 3 years worth of "extra" time on my canvas..

 

 

I removed the tape strips this morning and carefully cut the excess glue bead along the edge of the canvas and pulled the painters tape from the glass
The repair came out nicely but I'm gonna leave it in the garage at 60 degrees for the week since I wont be using the car anyway

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrmiata

Inquiring minds want to know
In my video I show where I ran the tape full length of the repair... where you have done strips
Wondering does that make a ripple effect when it sets up
PS.. June will make for 3 years worth of "extra" time on my canvas..

The reason I taped the glass in strips the way I did was because my Gorilla tape was a narrow width and I figured it would get more air to seal this way as well.
I did watch your video several times and it was very useful to my overall way to do this repair. Thank You for that !!
I did close the top completely once finished because when closed the canvas seems to pull tightly against the glass in its natural closed position
I did add the towel as you instructed for additional support of the glass .
As many say here... this forum has valuable info for all of us to research before beginning a task we are unfamiliar with


Finished Photo

 

I have recently purchased a 2005 Crossfire Roadster with 55K miles. Very clean. Her name is Mary Rose. Named her after my mom who has always wanted a Crossfire. When I bought it I noticed around the edge of the rear window some kind of epoxy glue sticking out from under the top. I figured that the previous owner had some kind of issue with the glass, but when I operated the top multiple times at the dealer, there was no obvious issues with the top or window.

At the time of purchase I was unaware of the history involving the window. For the first couple of weeks that I owned Mary Rose, the weather in the LA area was a comfortable 80 or so degrees, cooler at the beach. The top was used frequently and I didn't notice any issues. Then the weather changed and for the better part of three weeks now it hasn't been lower than 100 degrees...at one point reaching 117. And I'm not even near the desert. The heat must have affected the adhesive as one night after washing her, I was putting the top down and saw the top begin to separate from the window. I also saw that there was a lot of water on the tonnou (sp). I was a little heartbroken that my new baby had a defect. A close inspection showed that whoever repaired this window before used some kind of epoxy that dried hard and brittle. It appears that the heat caused the adhesive to crack and was breaking off in chunks. The window separated from the upper passenger side corner to the lower passenger side corner. The rest of the window was still firmly attached.

I started to look up on line about how I might fix it and came across this forum. First, I'm sorry to admit this...but it made me feel a little better that I wasn't the only one with this issue and that there was a history related to this issue. Misery / company thing! lol What really made me feel better is that I saw a number of posts on just how I might fix it without having to spring for a new top. The top I have is not even worn at all! I read about the 3M Window primer and the 3M Window Weld. I saw the different tools each person fabricated to work the primer and Window Weld into the small places. I read about putting the towels under the window to push the glass up and taping the glass to the top to support and add pressure to holding the top and the glass together as the the Window Weld cured. It was easier to repair than I thought it would be. It's better to do it with a friend so someone can hold the top from falling once the pressure drops. Also...two heads are better than one.

Since the rest of the window was holding firm, I only repaired the area that separated. After the Window Weld cured for 24 hours and removed the tape and the blanket...IT HELD! and still is holding. HOWEVER. I also did a water test and found that although the area I fixed did not leak and the bottom of the window showed no signs that the window was loose, there were small cracks in the old adhesive and the water was going right in the car. DAMN!!

A little pissed...I decided to break the remaining seal and separate the rest of the glass from the top, remove all the old adhesive and reseal it with the primer and Window Weld as I had done previously. Since I had already done it once successfully, I just repeated the process and was confident in how to do it. Plus I already had all the supplies I needed to complete it. 24 hours later I removed the tape and the blanket and voila...the window is solid. It's still over 100 here and every day I gently push on the window to test if the fix is holding strong...and it's doing great.

I also did something that I didn't read but made sense to me. I added a little more reinforcement to the glass and the top and also to ensure that water would not get in, I put a small bead of Window Weld around where the window and top meet...and since it is visible, I used a Popsicle stick to smooth it out, and finally did a fine trim of the edges to make it straight and look good. So now, I don't only have Window Weld under the top and between the top and the glass, I also have an extra seam along the edge that serves as a dual purpose, for extra adhesion and as a weatherstrip.

So thanks to you guys who posted how to repair this. You saved me frustration and a lot of money. I'm hoping the repair will hold for a while...but if not, I'm working on engineering a repair that involves using a rubber seal, much like a LokTite two piece locking windshield weather strip, that can be attached all the way around the top and will lock on to both the big seam currently sewn into the edge of the top and the glass. If it works...it can be used on Crossfires and Corvettes, as I hear that the Corvette convertibles have this same problem.

 

 

I live in FL and have had a 2005 Roadster since 2006. The original window glass came loose after about 3 or 4 years and Chrysler replaced the entire top for a $400 copay. However, the new top was not a new design so after about 3 years in the FL heat it once again failed. I used the 3M Window Weld and it held for 2 years and I had to redo every 2 years since, just finished another reglue. Pain in the butt but better than $3,000 or so for a new top. Good luck with yours!

 

If you ever decide to replace it, BAS International is your best source. You can also get a choice of several colors.

 

AND ! They have a LIFETIME warranty on the window separation !

 

And, the tops are around $700 - you just need someone to put it on.

 

 

I live to serve ( thanks )

 

Hi !

Do they come with the rear windows, or if we have to send our hold top ?

Thank you for the very good info.
George

 

The replacement top from BAS comes complete including the window and the rivets needed to install.
You DO NOT need to send your old top.

 

Thank you for the fast response !

I read in here that I could find instruction to replace it my self. Could you direct me to that instructions ?

Thanks
George