Rear hatch restore worth it?
 

well, my car has been sitting all summer due to no $$$ and I was just looking at my rear hatch. the whole car is less then perfect (that's why it's my project) but was thinking I would like to restore my hatch. mainly I need a new seal and I want to get rid of the minor (but noticable) rust on the metal frame of it that is near the seal.

I don't know how to get the glass and seal out without breaking the glass. we tried the cutting tool made for taking glass seals out on an eagle talon hatch my friend had. it shattered.lol. is it even worth doing or should I just get another one? only thing is that these cars are so old is there any in good condition left out there really? thanks, I searched multiple times and found nothing.

Piano wire gets teh glass out.


Just look for a different window/frame. They're cheap if not free.

I was just thinking that most of them out there might be the same condition as mine is all but I think I'm going to keep my eye out for one.

how would I use piano wire? I mean, how do I start it to get it in between the seal and the glass? the glass is great for 24 years old, just the metal frame needs some tlc.

try to get it from a so cal car or az car. way less chance of rust.

The rear window seal actually pulls out without having to remove the glass. I replaced mine with a nicer used one a few years ago. The hardest part is getting all the old adhesive out of the channel around the window. I used 3M Weatherstrip Adhesive to reattach the "new" seal. Mine didn't turn out perfect, but it's much better than it was. I bought a brand new seal and will probably get it redone professionally some day.

Depending on how serious the rust is on your hatch frame, you might be able to sand and repaint it without having to remove the glass at all.

You'll probably need to buy a new plastic joint for the bottom of the hatch frame. Mazda still had them a few years ago.

the rust isn't too serious. mostly just surface rust making the paint all bubbly and just starting to show around the seal. If I could get the seal off with the glass still in it, I should be able to sand the problem areas almost completely if not completely. its the seal thats in the way.

There's a section in the FSM about replacing the rear glass in the hatch frame. If I recall correctly, the window is bonded to the hatch with adhesive then the rubber trim is put in place afterward. Therefore unless you need to remove the glass to get at all the rust, you probably could just replace the seal and leave the glass alone.

My DIY replacement job looks great at the top of the hatch and very good along the sides and bottom, but I didn't really get all the old adhesive out of the "middle" corners, in other words, the corner of the glass near the bottom of the J-shaped rain gutter. As a result, my trim sticks out a little too much right there. Even so, it looks much better than my old dry, brittle, cracking and white trim that was on there before.

I think the Mazda dealership was asking about $80 for a brand new window trim seal and a few bucks for the plastic joint at the bottom of the hatch, so you might want to get brand new stuff if it's still available.

id like to see pics of the rust. any chance you can post a couple?

To answer the question, IMO it's really not worth trying to balance risk vs. end results. You might end up shattering the glass anyway. Rust free hatches can't be that bad to find. I have two extras myself.

They are still available as I have priced them as part of my restoration. I already have the little plastic joint, just need to order the seal. I was simply going to remove the seal, exposing a nice gap between the glass and frame, then mask off the glass and sand/repaint the metal frame. In my opinion, it's well worth the time as I am doing a fully body repaint, so things like that would certainly detract from overall appearance.

^ what I wanted to do but thought I had to take the glass out. I might try fixing up another spare hatch I have with the same problem. has some funky purple tint peeling of it too so might as well. if the extra goes well, then I'll either use that or do the one on my car now. the condition of my extra might be a little worse, I need to go into the basement and check it. thanks for the help guys, When I get some money I might just buy another hatch and have 3!lol.