Like many of my fellow FJ owners, I have suffered the fate of flying road debris, a broken windshield. Since my insurance covers this (less the deductible), I figured that it is time for a little payback. I calle my agent and was referred to their WS replacement team that would give me approved glass shops. I called around to find one that had done a few FJ's before so I wasn't a guinea pig. I found a place that seemed knowledgeable and they assured me that they have done several FJ WS's. So I went with them. I won't mention who the place is but their company starts with Abra body and glass. After explaining that I want an installer experienced with the FJ WS, I was assured that that is what I would get. Well, I started to get this bad feeling as I waited for my appointment day to arrive. Even though I chose to have the mobile service come and do it at my work, I was able to secure an air conditioned, well illuminated, shop for them to work as it was 95 and sunny. I figured that I would provide a much nicer and more comfortable environment for them to do their work in, that they would appreciate it and make sure they do a decent job. Man was I wrong. Here is where the problem starts. First, they had never even seen an FJ before, so I asked them if they knew how to remove the cowl and they said "oh yeah, no problem" we, they pried (bad) and struggled but were having a difficult time. I asked if they had seen the factory instructions on how to remove the stuff and of course they said they had (liars). I happend to have a copy and gave it to them seeing that they were referencing nothing during their struggle. They looked at it as if they had no idea what those funny symbols on the page were (they're called letters and they form words). They cast it aside and continued to pry and struggle. I told them that the cowl comes off in one piece so you don't break the clips. I had to get back to work so I let them continue (my mistake). I came back and they had the cowl off (in 3 pieces) and were removing the old WS. They put the new one in and put everything back together (kind of). Since I was busy, I paid my deduct. and let them move on. Well, once I got some more time, I inspected their handywork and noticed that the top trim was not flush against the WS and rocked up and down (This is bad as it was a new top trim piece). I drove home with a horrible popping noise from the front cowl area. I also noticed that the left trim piece was only being held down by the seal and there was a 1/4" gap at the fender. Since the trim easily came off, I inspected the clips, and of course, they were broken. The pass side trim also had a gap. (of course by this time I am just beaming with pleasure from their "craftsmanship") I proceeded to inspect the center cowl and noticed that they had broken one of the pin clips (through the learning curve I suspect) and mush have lost another as it was some oddball aftermarket christmas tree clip (toyota doesn't use these). I suspect that after breaking two clips here thay realized that all they had to do was push the center of the clip in to release. So the next day I calmly callt eh shop and list my concerns. They reassure that their "technician" would be out that day to look at it. Well, he was a no show and the dispatch called me a 5:00 to say "wait 4 days for the sealant to cure for the popping noise to go away." I asked aboout the clips and there was no response. 4 days pass and I called back with the same complaints. I'll send the "tech" out today to look at it. Well, surprise, he was a no show! So I went to the shop that night about 30 min before closing and of course "no one is here that can look at it, we'll call you first thing in the morning". Next day, no phone call. So, since they are obviously too busy to fix their F***up, I'll call my insurance back. So to make an already too long story short, I am waiting for the adjuster to arrive to look at their recommended shop's handiwork. At least my windshield is not cracked.....for now. The thing that really steams me is the fact that they deceived me by not informing me of their errors. Did they actually think I would not notice their incompetence? So my advise to FJers out there, avoid Abra glass and body. I would have not been angry if they had told me of the broken clips and that they would make it right. Now they are avoiding making it right and avoiding me.
Mikesfj, I see that you are in SLC. If you need another WS and don't find another place local and don't mind a little drive, there is a place in Ogden called Glasshopper. I have had both of mine done through them and they did a good job. They take most insurance also. They were recommended to me by my service manager at Tony Divino Toyota and they do all of the work for the dealership. I don't know how many they have done all together but I know they have done at least 4 as of about 6 months ago. I know that they did at least one for the dealer because they gave me the first windshield I needed that had been ordered for the dealer.
Mikesfj, I see that you are in SLC. If you need another WS and don't find another place local and don't mind a little drive, there is a place in Ogden called Glasshopper. I have had both of mine done through them and they did a good job. They take most insurance also. They were recommended to me by my service manager at Tony Divino Toyota and they do all of the work for the dealership. I don't know how many they have done all together but I know they have done at least 4 as of about 6 months ago. I know that they did at least one for the dealer because they gave me the first windshield I needed that had been ordered for the dealer.
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. The biggest problem with the non-local WS replacment is not the drive, but the scheduling around my work and their typical hours.
My WS is fine now, the part of the install they screwed up on is the lower cowl and the upper trim piece. The monkeys mangled the clips and didn't get the top piece snapped down on the clips properly. They refused to look at it until the sealant cured so now the top piece has a gap between the ws and the seal. I naticipate that if this gets left alone, water/sno/ice will get under there and wreak havoc. Oh, plus the incessant creaking noise that occurs......whenever the vehicle is in motion.
sorry to hear dude, a couple of crackheads replaced mine as well and I had to go through and replace all the broken clips and put it back together right. If it wasn't for my 0 deductible I would have replaced the damn thing myself. One thing toyota could have done if they are going to make a windshield design that breaks when you look at it is make it easier to replace the damn thing. I went down and got clearplex put on right after the windshield install and the sonofa*****es over there couldn't even put that on correctly either, what is this world coming to?
__________________ I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints the sinners are much more fun
When you know someone doesn't have a clue what they are doing or are messing up your stuff, you have to tell them to take a hike. I don't know why people wait around for it to be totally screwed and then get after it later. (some people must have had better experiences with auto related businesses than I have) Obviously the shop wasn't going to stand behind it if they lied about doing an FJ WS before! I'm not mad at ya Mike, it's just a damn shame that you were stuck with a crummy shop. I hate that stuff. Next time when you see someone struggling like that, tell them to stop and get the hell away from your ride! You'll be happier in the long run. Your insurance company wont stand for that (if they're any good). Just show them what happened and they will go to bat for you and get it fixed as many times as necessary until you are happy. That's what you pay for every month. Good luck, man.
__________________ 1 Bored Clerk
Inchworm Gear E-Locker Guard
It would be great if I had a clue, but let's face it, that's just not gonna happen.
When you know someone doesn't have a clue what they are doing or are messing up your stuff, you have to tell them to take a hike. I don't know why people wait around for it to be totally screwed and then get after it later. (some people must have had better experiences with auto related businesses than I have) Obviously the shop wasn't going to stand behind it if they lied about doing an FJ WS before! I'm not mad at ya Mike, it's just a damn shame that you were stuck with a crummy shop. I hate that stuff. Next time when you see someone struggling like that, tell them to stop and get the hell away from your ride! You'll be happier in the long run. Your insurance company wont stand for that (if they're any good). Just show them what happened and they will go to bat for you and get it fixed as many times as necessary until you are happy. That's what you pay for every month. Good luck, man.
Well, the shop had done two before, they just sent out crackhead rookies on this. I was not able to watch them the entire time as this was being done at my work (I have responsibilities to do MY job right also). I will not back down on this but it is tempting to be done with it as I know I can repair it correctly, it is theprincipal of the thing. My insurance will stick it to the glass shop , I just need to deal with a bunch of BS (too many phone calls already) to get it done right. I would prefer to do the work myself, I just don't have access to the tools for the WS replacement. Plus, like you said, this is what I pay my premium for. But now, I'm asking myself, is this what I pay a premium for? I could dump the insurance all together with exception of liab. of course as I own my vehicle outright, but that would be dumb here in Utah as there are so many lowlifes driving around without insurance.
I spoke with my insurance and they are going to back me in getting this fixed right. I am giving the glass shop the opportunity to fix it. They are going to replace the top moulding that they screwed up (their admission) and replace the broken clips. The best thing here is, they sent a new guy (their "best" ws guy) and it turns out that I know the guy from a place I worked at about 10 years ago. This is good as he is being very straight forward and cool about the entire thing. He agrees that the boys that did it screwed up. He was able to get the clips for the inner cowl piece (center portion) but the parts person at a Toyota dealership couldn't pinpoint the part number for all clips for the side pieces. Does anybody know the part numbers for the clips for the side pieces??? FYI, I do have the PDF file for the body pieces and cannot see the exact clips for the side pieces. I will continue to look and call around, but I am at a loss. Thanks in advance for any help.
Ask Matt from TRDSource - he works at the dealership in Claremont, CA, so he should be able to track it down.
Matt is on this forum in the TRDSource forum.
Sandi
Thanks, I think I found the P/N's for the clips I need in the "parts list" PDF that was posted. Since my glass guy is buying them at the dealer, I won't know for sure until he gets them. These are the P/N's I found for the side pieces:
61118-35010 - 2 per side (these are the square clips that are in the fender edge)
61991-35010 - Right (1 per side- these attach the side cowl to the center piece)
61992-35010 - Left (1 per side- same as above but toyota used two slightly different clips)
I will confirm that these are correct, if they are, i hope it helps someone else that is having the same issue.
Your insurance company wont stand for that (if they're any good). Just show them what happened and they will go to bat for you and get it fixed as many times as necessary until you are happy. That's what you pay for every month. Good luck, man.
Linear Mode
