[barth7]

I have a 94 968. It has some delamination of the hatch glass. I was wondering if, other than the spoiler, this is the same as an 88 944. I think it is, but wanted to double check. My buddy in Nashville (Todd Patterson, some may know him) has an 88 hatch he said he will swap with me. I have been a little afraid to have anybody mess witht he current one. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/sad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[968rz]

I know you can put a 968 hatch on a 944 I would think you can go the other way.

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[sasilverbullet]

If I'm not mistaken - the 944 S hatches in the later years were the same. If it has our spoiler, then they're the same.



If I might give some suggestions - I just went through the 'hatch delamination' issue myself - I had a glass company try and remove the glass from the frame - they broke the glass! USAA insurance paid for a whole new hatch from Porsche - $7,200 for the new hatch. I'm glad USAA is rich!



I had called several parts places looking for used hatches - the consencis is that remember that a used hatch is just that - a USED hatch and will probably still have the same problem to some degree that yours has. Prices were about $800 for a used hatch.



The trick in my opinion is finding a hatch that's in real good shape.

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[barth7]

I had heard the horror stories of hatches getting shattered and that is why I haven't done anything with mine yet.



His hatch does not have the 968 spoiler, but I would switch it over. Very true about the used hatch being , well, used. I had thought of that, which brings me back to getting it redone. If I do that, I will make sure my insurance and their insurance are in agreement to what happens if something goes wrong.



I don't know what I would have to pay my friend, but it would be more along the lines of labor, swapping him my hatch for his.

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[Jason Judd]

I don't know if it will help, but at the end of this season I'll probably replace my hatch with Lexan...It is a '95 and isn't delaminated at all.



I might just sell it and get a busted up hatch without the glass.



If you all are still in the market...and in the NorthEast...I'm sure we can work something out at that time.



Jason

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[TheMirror]

The late 944S2 hatches are the most direct changover candidates, as they have the same spoiler mounting hardware as the 968. The earlier, rubber spoiler ones do not, so you cannot fit the 968 spoiler onto rubber-spoiler 944 hatch....without some serious modifications. Love to know where you found used hatches at all for 968s, much less for $800! Pickings are slim out here on the west coast.



Cheers,

-Mirror

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[sasilverbullet]

Some place in North Carolina, let me see if I can find the name...

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[Harvey]

[quote name='barth7' post='32752' date='Mar 19 2007, 07:46 AM']I have a 94 968. It has some delamination of the hatch glass. I was wondering if, other than the spoiler, this is the same as an 88 944. I think it is, but wanted to double check. My buddy in Nashville (Todd Patterson, some may know him) has an 88 hatch he said he will swap with me. I have been a little afraid to have anybody mess witht he current one. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/sad.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



[/quote]



I had some rear hatch glass delamination and fixed it myself...and it's held up for a couple of years with no change. What I did is written up in the Forums in the DIY section or somewhere. Because of the cost of a new hatch, I bought a "spare" hatch from a 951...which doesn't look the same but I was told that it would fit on...or at a minmum, the glass was the same. For $7000....I can afford to consider this alternative. But, so far, all's well.



Harvey

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[jpk]

Make sure you really have a delamination problem before you go trying to fix it. From your picture, it looks like you have the same problem I do; it's just a tape or film of some kind that is used to mask out the edge of the glass where it meets the frame. On my car, it's worst across the top and down the passenger side.

If the glass is truely de-laminating from the frame, you should be able to wiggle the frame and see it move in relation to the glass. I can rack the hatch quite a bit side to side and there is no movement of the frame relative to the glass.

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[Cloud9...68]

I've been reading about the notorious rear hatch delamination problem on these cars for years, but I remain baffled as to exactly what this is. Could somebody please describe the symptoms of the problem? It sounds like the glass pulls loose from the hatch, but given the problems people have had with trying to glue the window back on, it sounds like the hatch frame itself must be warping. Is this right, or is it a problem with the glass? If it's the glass, why haven't more people taken advantage of one of the very few weight reduction opportunities on this car and replaced the glass window with a lexan piece? Thanks.

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[prj24149]

DCAutomotive.com is the Porsche graveyard in North Carolina. They have a good selection but don't know if they'll have a 944s2 or 968 hatch.



I also have the same delamination problem across the top. So bad, water would come in onto the rear seats in the rain. I did a cheap fix and used black electrical tape to seal the gap between the frame trim and the glass.

Since the frame trim is black it's not too noticeable and it has lasted for almost a year now. Not the ideal fix but cheap until I can get the time and money to do it right.

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[sasilverbullet]

Cloud...Here's what the glass pro guy said:

1. Bad design - every time you open and close the hatch it's pulling on the seal.

2. SUN - beats down on the seal and slowly deteriorates it.

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[Etnier]

[quote name='sasilverbullet' post='33102' date='Mar 23 2007, 05:13 PM']1. Bad design - every time you open and close the hatch it's pulling on the seal.

2. SUN - beats down on the seal and slowly deteriorates it.[/quote]



I firmly believe that regular application of silicone lubricant will greatly mitigate both of these problems.

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[sasilverbullet]

Not according to the glass guy - you have to shield the sealant from UV rays.



btw - my new hatch has a little different design on the area around the top of the seal. There's a strip of metal there that my old hatch didn't have.

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[Cloud9...68]

Thanks, but I must be dense, because I still don't get it. If it's just the seal that's deteriorating, why are people shelling out megabucks for new hatches? What am I missing?



And again, what are the symptoms? prj24149's was leaking water - is this a typical symptom, or are the initial signs of the problem much less severe?



Fortunately, I don't commute with my car, so it stays in the garage during the week, limiting its exposure to the sun, so hopefully mine will have a long life, but I still would like to understand this problem better. Thanks.

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[Etnier]

Cloud 9: you and I both misread sasilverbullet's use of the word "seal'.



He means the adhesive that bonds the glass to the frame.

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[Cloud9...68]

[quote name='Etnier' post='33132' date='Mar 24 2007, 05:09 AM']Cloud 9: you and I both misread sasilverbullet's use of the word "seal'.



He means the adhesive that bonds the glass to the frame.[/quote]



Ah, OK, that helps. So it does sound like the delamination problem's root cause is a warpage or distortion of the hatch itself, otherwise people wouldn't be replacing them to cure the problem. Is this the type fo thing that if you catch the problem early, a less drastic fix is possible, or is the replacement of the hatch frame the only real cure?

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[Harvey]

The hatch frames are very fragile....that is not terribly sturdy...and they can twist a bit if not closed carefully and evenly....not one side at a time...and not slammed. Also, the original adhesive deteriorates over time and sun and I've just replaced the adhesive on mine...not easy to do. Also, taking the glass out of the frame is not simple nor easy and there's always the chance of breaking the glass. I have a spare 951 hatch if I ever need it. I'd probably try to replace the glass and keep the 968 hatch frame. The 968 hatch frame is so flimsy I can't see it being much of a problem of straining the glass....on the contrary. Open/close carefully. Many glass shops won't guarantee this repair can be made w/o breaking the glass. You weigh your options and take your chances.



It's a weak design point on the 968 but can be remedied. Mine's been solid for a couple of years after the DIY repair job (listed in 968 Forums).



Harvey

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[barth7]

Pretty sure mine is "delaminated". It leaks water in. Scares me a bit.



As for protecting the adhesive, I had heard of some people painting the outside of the glass black over the adhesive after a fix. Souns alike a pretty good idea to me.

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[sasilverbullet]

barth7 - if you check at your local glass repair shop - there is some special 3m 'paint' that is flat black and will stop the UV rays...normal paint will NOT block the UV rays.

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