need advice: rear window seals failed, road sand scratched windows *pics*

[nonlinear]

Hi guys,

did a search but didn't find anything on this, so thought i would start a new thread.

I had my car in for window tinting a couple of weeks ago, and they put the wrong shade of tint on the back windows. I brought it in a week later to get the tint fixed, but when I picked it up, I noticed that the front side of both rear windows had several long, deep scratches in the glass (see pics below). Looking closer, I noticed that the seals had somehow pulled away from the window, and it appears as though sand got into the gap in the seal, and scratched the window as it rolled up and down.

Initially, I thought that the tinters had damaged the windows, because I hadn't noticed it before, and I just bought the car in December and don't think I EVER rolled down the rear windows. So I asked the tinters to take a look, and when they did, they told me they had previously noticed scratches on one window (but not both). This is a premier tinting shop in the city, and they did otherwise GREAT work, so i'm inclined to trust them on this.

The car car is still under manufacturer bumper-to-bumper warranty, so I called my dealership to see if this would be covered, and my service advisory tells me the same thing happened to his wife's car, and that it's not covered under warranty. crap. :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: apparently, he said the sand scratched the window, so even if it was seal failure that allowed the sand in, this wouldn't be covered. dang.

I do have full coverage insurance (including glass), but I really hate making claims on my insurance. so, i'm kinda wondering if I can just get it repaired somehow (scratches filled or somthing?), or how much it would cost to replace the rear windows.

So, can anyone tell me:

1) are there any alternatives to replacing the glass, like filling in the scratches or something?

2) are exterior seals removed during window tinting? (i'm wondering if perhaps the seals were displaced during the initial tint install, then sand got in during the slush/snowstorm, and then they scratched when they rolled down the windows during second install. If so, is this something worth pursuing with the tinters, and are they insured to cover things like this?

3) approximately how much would it cost to replace these rear windows with OEM glass?

thanks

http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/4885/window001p.th.jpg (http://img401.imageshack.us/i/window001p.jpg/)

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/5639/window002.th.jpg (http://img202.imageshack.us/i/window002.jpg/)

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/6433/window003.th.jpg (http://img405.imageshack.us/i/window003.jpg/)

[gram]

Is that scratch on the outside? If it is it is not the tinters. They would not take the outside seals off to tint a window (maybe the inside, but definately not the outside)


I would say it's a warranty claim. This happens to a lot of BMW's
BMW covers it...sorry no idea what kind of car you have from the photos.

You can have the glass sanded and smoothed out but it will never look right. I would say this damage might have been caused by the tinters putting to much pressure on the window with the addition of tint as well, again hard to tell by the photos.

To replace the glass is pricey normally...I know on a Beemer it's about $1000 to replace the side windows (saw the same issue on another forum I am on for my car)

[03ozwhip]

not the tinters issue, definitely wasnt their fault. ive seen this MANY times when i used to tint. there arent any tool that a tinter can use to scratch the window. they do have insurance but likely if it were their fault, they would pay out of pocket to replace it. BUT its not their fault.

good luck getting it fixed, the windows are gonna be an arm n leg to replace, imo dont go with insurance as thats a claim and your deductible will likely be the same amount as the windows.

[nonlinear]

Originally posted by gram
Is that scratch on the outside? If it is it is not the tinters. They would not take the outside seals off to tint a window (maybe the inside, but definately not the outside)


I would say it's a warranty claim. This happens to a lot of BMW's
BMW covers it...sorry no idea what kind of car you have from the photos.

You can have the glass sanded and smoothed out but it will never look right. I would say this damage might have been caused by the tinters putting to much pressure on the window with the addition of tint as well, again hard to tell by the photos.

To replace the glass is pricey normally...I know on a Beemer it's about $1000 to replace the side windows (saw the same issue on another forum I am on for my car)

yea, it's definitely on the outside, and the tinters told me the same thing you said. they are great guys, and they definitely stand behind their work, and I think they would tell me if they were responsible for the damage.

this is a GM car. i'm guessing that the seals somehow warped away from the window over time, and sand got in, and then scratched the window as it rolled up and down.

i already had one service manager tell me it wasn't covered, but i wonder if it's worth trying to ask another one.