07 LTZ Rear Defrost Cable Came off

[jasonjordan5]

This has happened to our 07 Suburban 2 times. They soldered it back on the 2nd time and told us to leave the wire/cable disconnected for 48 hours so the solder could set up...havent had any problems since then.

 

[Tcwhite]

Mine just broke at the solder point at 37,000 miles on the yuk. What do you know it waits till my factory warranty just ran out and I don't think that the extended warranty covers it. The thing is I never open the window I open the whole taillgate. I barely use the rear defrost mostly on the front. What gives. I heard someone at the dealership say the rear glass costs $800. I don't have that kind of money just to replace the glass so the rear defrost can work. What do you guys think?

 

[Hardin Thicke]

I believe it's nearly impossible to fix with a soldering iron, but that's all that's really needed. The glass soaks all the heat away from the joint, and you can't get the tab to adhere to the copper surface on the glass. I'd pull the tab out of the connector on the coil cord, and try the goop sold in the auto stores for fixing this problem. Also check with your dealer to see if there isn't a "quiet recall" for this problem.

 

[rahrens]

My dealer stated GM wants them to repair with glue first. If it fails again, they will replace glass. They also stated the wire was rerouted to reduce stress on connection. Glue repair requires keeping window warm for 24 hours or so. Not easy in St. Louis in December, but repair was fast.

 

[watchdog84]

Greetings everyone,

I have a 07 Tahoe and the right rear defroster metal detached from the glass back in November right as it started to get cold here in Chicago. I took the vehicle to the local chevy dealership for repairs and it was covered under warranty. A local auto glass repair shop had come to the dealership and repaired it. I was told not to reconnect the defroster cable until 24 to 36 hours later. So far so good it is still attached and works fine. Hope the info helps....

 

[Hulz07Tahoe]

Same thing here. My 07 Tahoe with 39,000 miles had the defroster cable snap off at the solder joint as well. My dealership service department was giving me the run around about fixing it saying that the repair kit is no good, that re-soldering it wouldnt work, and that I would have to buy a whole new window. I need to check my warranty tonight to see what kind of coverage I have (cant remember). But it just fell off one day, didn't put any stress on it, wasn't cold out.

You would think that GM would figure this out by now...

 

[capt1594]

Rear defrost tabs

Hi, New to the forum here, looking for answers on the rear defrost issue...I have had my rear glass replaced 3x now...the last "repair" lasted only 72 hrs - and the tab broke off again. I live in MI, it's cold! But I never open just the glass, I always open the entire rear hatch. Hopefully GM has a better fix in the future.

 

[Hardin Thicke]

Carefully pull the connector off the tab that's soldered to the glass. Once free, hold both ends of the coil cord, and pull the hell out of it to stretch it. Mine is nice and loose since I did that.

 

[mohspeed]

That's the first flaw I noticed on vehicle before I made the purchase. I was like why would any engineer with a presumely accredited ABET engineering degree think that was a good idea. You think GM engineers would notice that a loose connection like that is bound to become easily detached. Perhaps we could mention it to the CEOs or are they too busy asking the government for a bailout because they can't now afford heated seats in the leir jets.

 

[Hardin Thicke]

Good rant, and I appreciate it! But this is how it's done on many vehicles with a rear pop-up hatch. My Jeep 'Libby does it the same way, and I've experienced no problems with it. IMO, this is a manufacturing defect with attaching the metal connector tab to the glass, combined with too tight of a coil cord.

 

[73shark]

It is very difficult to glue/attach anything to glass. I've had to reattach rearview mirrors in several makes of vehicles. I don't know exactly how these connectors are attached. Probably either solder or a copper loaded epoxy would be my guess. You can get the copper loaded epoxy as a repair kit for the grid lines if they get cut (like when someone installs window tint and aren't careful). It might work as a way to re-attach the terminals.

Bottom line is that the hatch supplier probably had a process problem and didn't get it fixed for awhile.

 

[Rich2007Z71]

Mine just happened last week (16,750 miles) - dealer said very common. Tech was able to fix at same time they were doing heater washer solvent recall. Anyone else have problem with noisy driver front window when it opens - sounds like a high pitch screech? Tech wanted to take door apart and lube the window rails. Of course it wouldn't make the sound because it had been inside and warm. Was there too long already and said next time.

 

[Hulz07Tahoe]

So I've talked with my dealership about this I'm past my warranty coverage (3yr or 36k miles), I have about 44k miles on my 07 Tahoe. Of course they are "highly recommending" that I replace the entire back window and they are insisting that simply re-soldering will not fix the problem.

Is anyone else in this situation? Past their warranty coverage but has had success with a cheaper repair other than replacing the entire back window?

Thanks!

 

[Hardin Thicke]

.......Of course they are "highly recommending" that I replace the entire back window and they are insisting that simply re-soldering will not fix the problem.....

Of course they are. They're going to soak you for a reported $800 to replace the defective glass. Here's what I'd do.
Take the rear glass off yourself. It appears to be an easy task.
Pull the connector tab out of the coil cord connector using a pair of pliers. This is what pulled off the copper strip on the glass.
Get the "glue" they sell to repair damages of this nature. Flip the glass on its back, so the tab will have a tension-free orientation in order to dry properly.
Try it.

You have nothing to loose in trying it. You also need to consider if defrosting the rear glass is worth eight hundred bucks. You can buy a lot of areosol "hot" solvent for eight hundred dollars....

 

[Gambler]

Couldn't you just apply the glue and use a clamp rather than pull the whole window off or no?

 

[Gambler]

Carefully pull the connector off the tab that's soldered to the glass. Once free, hold both ends of the coil cord, and pull the hell out of it to stretch it. Mine is nice and loose since I did that.

They should put out a service bulletin with that idea. I might do that when I get home

 

[Hardin Thicke]

Sure, I don't see why you couldn't A small quick grip bar clamp, the kind with the padded jaws just might do the trick. The idea is to make good contact between the tab and where it pulled off its bed of solder on the glass.

 

[RIZZ]

The same thing happened to me i mite just solder it back on myself!

 

[73shark]

I wouldn't try soldering as you might wind up w/ a pile of pea sized pieces of glass. Tempered glass is highly stressed and a point source of heat might trigger a massive breakage. Better to try the grid repair epoxy.