Rear pop out windows swap

[ClubWagon]

I found a set of pop out windows on an E350 that a guy is parting out. I need to pull them out of the donor van. Then when I get time I will swap out the fixed glass in my E350 for the pop outs. Mine is a 96 and the donor is a 95. Anyone have any tips or tricks to offer?

 

[Timjim]

Hardest part is gonna be removing the frame from the door. There is butyl tape under there. Thin blades, maybe even guitar string.

Make sure you totally clean off the old butyl before installing them on your rig. You will see a channel in there, you could use marine silicone as well. Just keep it clean and neat.

 

[Bbasso]

On such old doors the butyl tape shouldn't put up much of a fight... but you need to clean all of it off.

 

[normal_dave]

Here's an old post I saved- "luckily I keep my feathers numbered, for just such an occasion"
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/forums/f19/how-to-guide-replacing-rear-windows-with-pop-outs-10090.html

 

[philos]

It's an easy job.


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[Pinnacle Campers]

I just pulled a set recently, once the bolts were off I prayed them out mostly by hand.
Don't forget the backing plates for hardware inside the door.

 

[bdog1]

Let them get good and hot in the sun. Helps with the butyl tape. If you have factory interior trim you have to cut it out for the latch, or swap to an opening one. I trimmed mine then hot glued in window screen before reinstalling.


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[Pinnacle Campers]

Let them get good and hot in the sun. Helps with the butyl tape. If you have factory interior trim you have to cut it out for the latch, or swap to an opening one. I trimmed mine then hot glued in window screen before reinstalling.


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I have an upcoming pop out install and I have been debating doing this. There was/is a thread regarding over on the SMB forum, maybe it was you, seems like they used duct tape to apply it to the interior plastic. I was thinking plastic friendly caulk, hot glue works too.
Got any pics? Link? Pic of the cut for the hardware?
My current rear screen goes across the rear door opening held in place by Velcro, and the rear doors can close on it which works but isn't ideal....
For the OP, I seem to recall leaving the nuts on the studs and pushing on the nuts from the inside, even using a tool to keep from damaging my hands?
Mine was a freezing day, they just popped off all the way around.
Your methods are highly dictated by climate and individual circumstances.

 

[Jsweezy]

Make sure your order one of these before you start this swap. It will save you a huge headache of worrying about your paint.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BWBSMV4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[ClubWagon]

Thanks for the sportsmobile link normal_dave! That thread has a lot of good info to reference from. Thanks for everyone else's tips too! I'm planning on going over to pull the windows on Wednesday. I'll post back how it goes.

 

[Wbp]

It seems harder then it really is just make sure you get all the parts. I used mineral sprints and razor blades to clean up the frames and they cleaned up pretty easy. They are worth having good luck.

 

[ClubWagon]

Well that was almost too easy! So I ended up getting the windows, which are in great shape with factory tint, the window trim with the notch for the latch and the bottom door panels for both doors. I also picked up the interior engine cover that has the console with the flip out cup holders. Which is totally awesome because now I have two functioning cup holders! Since mine is a 96 none of the 97 and newer consoles fit my van. I did pick up one of the newer styles a couple of months ago and my plan was to figure out a way to attach it to my engine cover. I think I will still try and make it work since the newer one has more storage space, but atleast in the mean time I have one that will slide in place of my broken one. I ended up getting all of it for 70 bucks! Which I thought was a great deal. So here is how the window removal went. Basically it's just a few steps. Pop off the top window trim. This was the most difficult part of the whole process. Those clips really hold on to the trim but once you get the first couple loose it comes off fairly easy. Next I unscrewed the three screws holding the latch to the door frame and then removed all the nuts around the window frame. Then I just used a stiff 1" wide scrapper to pry the window frame away from the door frame. The butyl tape didn't fight at all. Probably because it was a 22 year old van. So hopefully getting my old windows off will be just as easy since it's 21 years old. Getting the backing plate for the window latch was no trouble either. You just pop the bottom door panel off then remove the door speaker. This gives you perfect access to pop it out. That's all it is to removing them. Looks like the worst part of this whole swap is going to be cleaning off the old butyl tape from the window frames and then cleaning it off my door frames. It's not really hardened it's just REALLY freaking sticky! So now I just need to get some new tape and I'll be set to pull my old windows out.

 

[Bbasso]

Glad to hear you had an easy swap and scored too.

 

[ClubWagon]

Thanks! Yeah, it worked out better than I thought it would. Just need to clean them up a bit and get some tape ordered.

 

[Bbasso]

Order butyl tape?
Check your local auto body supply stores, I usually find it there.
I prefer 5/16 round butyl tape for the pop out windows.