In this video I show you the method I use to repair a rear window defogger tab that was snapped off. As always please refer to the shop manual for the proper procedure.
come fix your car…
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I call total BS on this also. Tried it on a Ford Focus, Chevy Express and a Kia Forte defroster. Tabs tin easily but no Stick to glass buss bar. Even tried a 300W iron made for stained glass
What soldering iron do you have? It looks like it heated up very quickly
Great video. Greetings from across the pond in England.
What you don't show is if the connection actually works
Awesome video. Love all your videos
Did you have to prep the glass in any way
I can do that!! thank you
Glue kit does not work electrical current sometimes doesn’t go through thanks for the help I just did this worked great
Thanks again you’ve saved me a lot of time with several projects and with this issue I asked several people about soldering the tab back to the glass and no one knew how thanks again
thank you Eric, will try this later to fix my rear defroster..
how many watts is your soding gun
Been watching you for years. Got one on how to fix a broken rear window defroster grid line?
That is insanely simple! Thanks for this. One of mine did exactly this (04 Jeep liberty) and it's freezing here so defrosting is a must!
Brilliant fix – I have the same problem but am worried the glass might crack with the heat. Yours was fine think I'll give it a go.
I have used the glue kits twice with no luck
Can’t get the solder to stick to the tab. Possibly the wrong solder? I’m using wire solder.
The glue didn't work
Thanks!!
What if the pad is missing or partially missing. I have a truck and where the tab was originally, now the pad is missing because the tab was ripped off. Can I just solder it to.the remaining pad that's there? Or do they sell a product, that mends the pad before you install the tab?
Hope my question isn't confusing, I know what I'm trying to say but, it's hard to put it to paper lol
Well i'm glad that i googled this problem on international languague) I have both my defroser contacts fallen off and tried to search answers in my language where the only "solution" is glue which is not solution at all considering comments about it. Also some people solder but they say that it's not strong enough and that the only option is to buy a new rear glass and that's heavy! I mean, maybe i'd already went this way if i could find new glass not from some chineese manufacturer but from ariginal factory, but there are absolutely none. So thanks for a video, i'll take a try when next summer begins.
Wow I did not know solder would stick to glass like that all by itself.
Love it! I'm gonna try this, thank you!
I tried this on a 2003 GMC Yukon, which looks very similar to the vehicle in the video. The approach in the video did not work for me. The tab would not adhere to the window, no matter what I tried. BUT, I had previously tried (and failed) to repair the tab with Permatex's "Rear Window Defogger" adhesive (765-1982). The tab stuck to the base on the window using the Permatex, but it clearly did not conduct electricity as intended. I was able to remove the tab after using the failed repair easily using heat (small torch). Because the problem was with conductivity, I used a wire brush on a Dremel to clean the contact patch and tab base. I believe that I over cleaned the area and actually removed the contact patch (seen in the video). So, I am now trying to attach the tab to the copper base on the defogger. This is where the tin/lead solder failed to adhere. This probably would have worked if I tried this first or was more careful cleaning the contact patch on the window.
This gave me courage to try it on my 2011 Jetta.
I’m about to go out to my Jeep and try both sides😮 thanks for the great vid.👍
Thought I was going to have to use the glue on repair kit. This was super easy and nearly free. Thanks.
This happend to my car and scraped the window to much.. to fix it I used copper then used solder on the tape. Good luck
Hey, how much do you charge for this repair?
Worked for me. I sanded what was left of the window pad which was right over my head. I tried to tin the pad but could not get the solder to stick leaving me with a pool of resin on the tab. I put a big ball of solder on the broken tab. I used a screwdriver to hold the tab up on the window pad. Got my biggest watt soldering gun and the solder melted between the two about 20 seconds after taking the completely hot soldering gun to it. Took away the gun and held it in place for 10 seconds to let it cool. It stuck and had electrical contact with the other tab. I am going to put a light coating of a two part epoxy so the soft solder is not the only binding agent to the window. Easy peasy and make sure you have a drop under the workspace so molten solder dosent burn your car's carpet.
Thanks! Worked great. Wish your video came up first, wasted time watching some other idiot repair them and halfway through his video he admits he did it the wrong way.
Adhesive tab kit never worked for me. Thanks for the straightforward instructions and I should have just soldered from the start.
All the glue on applications from permatex and others are nothing but trash, the only way to do this properly is to solder it, but I would like to make one suggestion to your viewers and that is to put just a little bit of flux on that after you laid the solder on the clip this will ensure a really good connection and a strong hold.
Oh and thanks for posting this
I purchased the loctite glue kit and it sucks I didn't know I could solder this tab back into the window which I'm going to do tonight!
Nice. Going to try this right now on a 2012 Suburban 🙂 Love the OG SMA vids 😉
Where can I get that coil wire for C5 corvette 2001
Glue kits are garbage. Don't waste your time and money.
Hell ya, spent $14 on that shit adhesive… fell of the next day… than I wondered if there was a better way. Saw this vid and was blown away that I didn't think it could be this simple. Thanks for the great vid.
So what happens when the ground falls off too? Is that supposed to have a tab as well? Thanks
Great video! I wish it was that easy for me! Now nearly at my third hour of trying to get this to work and it just friggin won't 🤯🤯🤯
Well, my solder is more interested in blooping down and burning the interior fabric, f fords.
My 2018 Expedition Max had the solder fail. It seems to be a thing with Expeditions:( They wanted $175 to fix it!!! Some dealers are replacing the entire rear glass……$1300!!! I am going to give it a go, thanks for the info!! The sad thing is that I hardly ever use it! But, when I look in the rear view…..there it dangles!!! errrrrr Going to sub as a thank you for the info! Be safe.
Looks easy enough. I used the conductive glue. Barely lasted a year solder is probably way better
This video popped up on my feed at a great time! The tab popped off on my suburban a month ago. And had no idea how to fix it! Love all your videos.
does it have to go back to the same spot or anywhere as long as it is on wire element inside the glass?
Simple and easy. Thank you…
My tab broke off and after looking at it I was wondering if I could solder it back on. It's good to know I would've tried to do it the same way. I like the tip about adding a little solder before hand.
Did anyone respond about the glue kits to repair it? I have a soldering iron but I have no idea where it is and I don't want to go buy one for such a small task. If the glue kits work i think I'd rather try that.
Thanks for info buddy. That’s what I’m going to do.
I just realized my connector was off. Looked in YouTube and saw your video first. I'll try it as soon as I find my soldering iron. Ha! Thanks for the posting.
Great video. Because I am a true beginner. 👍🏾👍🏾