How To Repair Pontiac G6 Rear Window Defroster

You probably don't think much almost your rear car defroster until it stops working properly. Usually, the refuse is gradual, with simply part of the dorsum glass getting cleared of fog, snowfall and ice. Then, the problem eventually spreads to the point where your visibility in the rearview mirror is significantly compromised.

What can you do to fix the situation? Here'south a closer look at the rear defroster and how it can be repaired.

Rear Car Defroster Design

Likewise known as a defogger, your rear defroster has to work very differently from the one up front, due largely to the absence of any hot air ducts linking information technology to the vehicle's climate control organization. Fortunately, the solution to this quandary is very simple, and it involves harnessing the 12-volt electric system in an automobile to generate heat.

Instead of hot air, the rear machine defroster sends electrical electric current through a small-scale grid made of a mixture of metal and resin that is fastened to the glass with an adhesive. When activated, the resistance in the metal generates enough heat to evaporate fog. In about cases, it tin can likewise melt snowfall and ice to forbid information technology from sticking to the window.

Vulnerable to Damage

As you might imagine, the defrost lines that brand up this grid are fairly sensitive to concrete impairment. The act of scraping or cleaning a rear window tin sometimes sweep away plenty of the metal to interrupt the circuit, which, in plough, prevents electricity from being transmitted to that segment of the machine defroster. This is why this component oft seems to fail in sections, every bit one part of the grid and and then another gets cut off from the main circuit over fourth dimension.

Paint Information technology Back

There are a couple of ways you lot tin can repair your defroster yourself. The showtime is to make sure that the main tabs on the side of the window — the ones that carry the electricity to the grid — are strongly attached to the defroster itself. You tin practice this with a tab adhesive product. Next, you can right any breaks in the defroster filigree by painting on conductive paint using a stencil, connecting the gaps in the grid and ensuring that ability flows through the entire machine defroster.

Visibility — in all four seasons — is an important function of driving safe.

Check out all the electrical arrangement productsavailable on NAPA Online or trust 1 of our 17,000 NAPA AutoCare locations for routine maintenance and repairs. For more than information on your rear motorcar defroster and how to repair information technology, chat with a knowledgeable expert at your local NAPA AUTO PARTS store.

Photo courtesy of Morguefile.

Benjamin Hunting View All

Having been bitten by the car issues at a immature age, I spent my formative years surrounded past Studebakers at car shows across Quebec and the northeastern U.s.a.. Over ten years of racing, restoring, and obsessing over automobiles lead me to remainder science writing and automotive journalism total time. I currently contribute as an editor to several online and print automotive publications, and I as well write and consult for the pharmaceutical and medical device industry.