Front & Rear Window Trim (Window Reseal)

by Hawk03 Thu Aug 10, 2023 8:14 pm

I've been needing to have my windshield resealed for a couple of years since I have leak on the top part of the windshield. A couple of months ago I was driving and the top trim blew off after passing a semi. The guy who installed the trim must have used some adhesive to install them. No biggie, they needed to be replaced since I scratched them in the 90's and I have different ones to polish and install. I am going to take it to a shop to reseal the windows but want to make sure I have everything needed to install the trim correctly.

Is the trim fastened by clips? Are the clips available?

by Joe73 Fri Aug 11, 2023 6:22 am

The clips are available pretty much anywhere, auto parts stores, body supply stores, Amazon, etc. But, GM did make the exact same clip in different heights. Pretty tough to explain but I'll give it a shot. There is a difference in "heights" when installed. The height difference comes in from the top of the mounting stud to the small "lip" that actually holds the trim. I take a caliper and measure the area between the two black lines. GM made at least 2 different height dimensions. Some older cars even had the different sizes front to back on the car. If you get the ones that are too high, your moulding will sit high and not look right. On my 73 the clips were the same on the front and rear glass. If you google around, I think I saw a thread on some forum that explained it as well. If you have an old clip, Id measure it and get the same ones. Here's a pic of the area I measure.

Front & Rear Window Trim (Window Reseal) Windsh10

by 76Chevelle2Tone Sat Aug 19, 2023 2:19 pm

Joe,
You've made me nervous with your comment about multiple sizes of clips. The clips I have are about 5mm in the spacing limits you drew. Is that the correct size for our G3s?

by Joe73 Sat Aug 19, 2023 2:58 pm

I dont recall the measurement of mine. Best bet would be to install a clip and make sure the upper most edge of the clip is just below the painted body. That way when the trim goes on it wont be sitting higher than the paint.

by 76Chevelle2Tone Sat Aug 19, 2023 3:22 pm

Joe,
I have a lot of backup parts that are not needed for immediate repairs this included so I won't be able to pre-test them as you describe. My clips are similar but not identical to yours. The main differences are the side tabs near the top are more pronounced on mine and the indentation at the center top is deeper and extends a small ways farther down than yours.

by Joe73 Sat Aug 19, 2023 3:59 pm

Yours might be for the vinyl top ??

by 76Chevelle2Tone Sat Aug 19, 2023 4:27 pm

Joe73 wrote:Yours might be for the vinyl top ??

Beats me. Thank you very much for alerting me to this issue before it bit me in the posterior.

The only thing I saw in your build thread was the following:
Also remember that the moulding clips should sit a pinch below the body surface. I found that my top clip, on both sides of the rear window each sat about even with the body.

by Joe73 Sat Aug 19, 2023 4:33 pm

Yup. Definitely check ALL the clips you have to make sure before you start. Also remember that putting the clips on usually chips the paint. After installing them, maybe do a bit of touch up to stop rust.

by S3TPI Sun Aug 20, 2023 8:47 am

I have a 75 Laguna, originally with a vinyl roof on the front. The front windshield had metal trim clips, and the rear had plastic ones from the factory. I never understood why they used two different clips, but could have been due to the vinyl. The metal clips rusted, and the plastic ones cracked, so I had to replace them. At the time, NAPA had both clips in bags in the trim parts section. The plastic ones worked, but the metal ones did not. I ended up buying metal ones from a GM dealer, and they fit correctly.

by 76Chevelle2Tone Sun Aug 20, 2023 10:56 am

S3tpi
Yeah this seems like another unnecessary mess from GM. But your account confirms Joe I guess in that there seem to be different clips for hard roof and vinyl roof. You wouldn't happen to remember if either of your clips looked like the picture above? Mine are similar but have bigger side tabs.

by S3TPI Sun Aug 20, 2023 6:57 pm

I still have the genuine clips, will try to take a picture of them and post. I think I threw the NAPA clips away because they made me mad. Nearly impossible to get the trim on or off. From what I remember, they looked very similar to the GM ones, but just didn't work right.

by 76Chevelle2Tone Sun Aug 20, 2023 7:06 pm

S3TPI wrote:I still have the genuine clips, will try to take a picture of them and post. I think I threw the NAPA clips away because they made me mad. Nearly impossible to get the trim on or off. From what I remember, they looked very similar to the GM ones, but just didn't work right.

Yikes that sounds ominous if the two look highly similar but nevertheless are incompatible designs.

by S3TPI Mon Aug 21, 2023 4:29 pm

Here is a photo of my clips. It looks to me like the plastic ones should be interchangeable with the metal ones, but I never tried them on the front windshield. The metal ones came from a GM dealer.

Front & Rear Window Trim (Window Reseal) 36838310

by 76Chevelle2Tone Mon Aug 21, 2023 4:49 pm

Thanks for the pictures. I have seen these two types, however there seem to be more than these two. The second one is similar but slightly different than the one shown by Joe. There may be as many as 3 variants on the second clip. One seller said the second type slides onto a stud. Also the first type seems limited to 75-83 GM cars in most listings.

by Hawk03 Fri Sep 01, 2023 9:53 pm

Thanks for the info and pics. Looks like mine are the plastic ones and I think a couple of them are cracked.

Front & Rear Window Trim (Window Reseal) 20230810

Front & Rear Window Trim (Window Reseal) 20230811

by S3TPI Fri Nov 10, 2023 9:31 am

Were you able to find some more of the plastic clips?

by 76Chevelle2Tone Fri Feb 16, 2024 8:43 pm

S3TPI wrote:Were you able to find some more of the plastic clips?

As far as I can tell there is no shortage of these various clips floating around at aftermarket vendors or fleabay. The issue is that apparently there is inconsistency and a lack of documentation as to which clips apply to which models and windows.

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