Imperfections in FL5 Rear Hatch Glass

[CTR]

I recently had my car tinted and went with 20% all around. It turned out great but I noticed a small discolored area that almost looked like oil in the tint so I took it back to the tint shop. They were just as surprised as I was so they cleaned the back glass on the outside and found a few more spots including in an area they didn't even tint. The two smaller spots are on the center of the rear glass and the streak is on the very top left corner of the black area that is black from the factory. You cannot feel these spots and appear to be buried in the glass itself.

Upon inspecting they also found two small marks on my windshield which they did not even touch!

I'm creating this thread to see if anyone else has these similar marks in their glass. My car is an early second batch (VIN in the 700's) so I don't think it was sitting at the port that long.

The tint shop said they sometimes see these on new cars or when something like acid rain gets etched into the glass. They recommended I contact the dealership and get it replaced under warranty.

 

[AspecR]

Haven’t seen that issue with anyone else but be advised, windshields might be on back order so it might take a while to get replaced

 

[CTR]

It's mostly the rear glass that's the problem. Without tint I didn't notice these imperfections but now it's pretty obvious. If anyone else wants to closely inspect their cars and report back that would be great.

Regardless it's cosmetic so it's not a problem to wait but I feel like it should be covered under warranty.

 

[aspitfyr]

Have you tried soapy water and a straight blade (NOT carbide, please use stainless) on the inside and out? The blade will glide across the glass. I'm just curious here. Having an imperfection in the glass isn't unheard of, but that one in particular is pretty long and makes me think maybe it's some type of residue. The tint shop should have done this already as it's part of the prepping process.

 

[1971Camaro]

[...]
I'm creating this thread to see if anyone else has these similar marks in their glass. My car is an early second batch (VIN in the 700's) so I don't think it was sitting at the port that long.

The tint shop said they sometimes see these on new cars or when something like acid rain gets etched into the glass. They recommended I contact the dealership and get it replaced under warranty.

I'll look at mine.

 

[1971Camaro]

It's mostly the rear glass that's the problem. Without tint I didn't notice these imperfections but now it's pretty obvious. If anyone else wants to closely inspect their cars and report back that would be great.

Regardless it's cosmetic so it's not a problem to wait but I feel like it should be covered under warranty.

If the "residue" is on the outside, it's cosmetic. It could be paint or glue/resin that adhered to the glass.

However, if it's embedded within the glass, it's actually potentially a structural issue as it can weaken the glass there or cause heat-cold differentials that could even crack the glass. It may not be, but you don't want to risk it. When the glass is poured, impurities can get in, or bubbles if not cooled or annealed properly (are windshields annealed?), so those could be a trail of micro-bubbles trapped inside. I've seen impurities like that in glass before, but not in a windshield. It's not as critical as it would be in glass for lab work, but if it's not something that just got stuck to the inside or outside of the windshield, it probably should be replaced.

 

[CaryH]

I recently had my car tinted and went with 20% all around. It turned out great but I noticed a small discolored area that almost looked like oil in the tint so I took it back to the tint shop. They were just as surprised as I was so they cleaned the back glass on the outside and found a few more spots including in an area they didn't even tint. The two smaller spots are on the center of the rear glass and the streak is on the very top left corner of the black area that is black from the factory. You cannot feel these spots and appear to be buried in the glass itself.

Upon inspecting they also found two small marks on my windshield which they did not even touch!

I'm creating this thread to see if anyone else has these similar marks in their glass. My car is an early second batch (VIN in the 700's) so I don't think it was sitting at the port that long.

The tint shop said they sometimes see these on new cars or when something like acid rain gets etched into the glass. They recommended I contact the dealership and get it replaced under warranty.

Tint shop?? Hmmmm. That's all I'm saying about that.

 

[Harryhole308]

I spotted the exact same imperfection in my rear tailgate glass. Looks like a purplish oil spot. Annoying!
I’ve also got annoying creases on drivers seat that were there on collection!

 

[CTR]

Tint shop?? Hmmmm. That's all I'm saying about that.

It’s a very reputable tint shop that does lots of high end stuff. I trust their opinion.

Also as mentioned in the first post there are 2 spots in the front windshield that they did not touch whatsoever.

 

[CTR]

I spotted the exact same imperfection in my rear tailgate glass. Looks like a purplish oil spot. Annoying!
I’ve also got annoying creases on drivers seat that were there on collection!

Thanks for reporting back! I’m glad I’m not the only one but sucks to hear. I suspect that since these windows are exclusive to the FL5 with the special JDM tint it might be related to these cars only.

 

[1971Camaro]

I looked today. it was raining here, so i had to look inside my (tight) garage. I didn't spot anything, but i will look again when i can have the car sitting out in the light.

 

[Clark_Kent]

@CTR I'll take a look as well and report back. I won't be able to look at it until this weekend at the earliest but I'm interested to see if I spot anything.

 

[TypeRD]

@CTR While cleaning my car today and drying my windows, I noticed that both my hatch glass and windshield glass have those whitish discolored spots too. As you noted, they seem to be in the glass itself. I didn’t notice the imperfections until I had my windows tinted. They’re not super noticeable unless looking for them, but it’s definitely a strange and unexpected thing I’ve never seen before.

 

[CTR]

@CTR While cleaning my car today and drying my windows, I noticed that both my hatch glass and windshield glass have those whitish discolored spots too. As you noted, they seem to be in the glass itself. I didn’t notice the imperfections until I had my windows tinted. They’re not super noticeable unless looking for them, but it’s definitely a strange and unexpected thing I’ve never seen before.

Thank you for reporting back! My rear hatch glass is definitely messed up. I cleaned it the other day and found a few more spots. What is your badge number?

The FL5 glass is made in Japan and has that yellowish factory tint which is why this could be less common on other Civics. Maybe it's isolated to a small number of our cars with a bad batch of glass over in Japan?

I feel like this should be covered by the 3 year warranty but I'm a little hesitant to have them replace the glass and mess more things up in the process. The windshield is very minor and I've struggled to show the spots to people so I doubt anyone else would notice. I think it helps our case that the areas that were not touched by the tint (windshield) are showing it.

 

[TypeRD]

Well, my windshield is slightly tinted too, actually. The spots are definitely in the glass and have nothing to do with aftermarket tinting. It’s like the glass has some contaminants in it from the manufacturer. It’s really odd. They don’t bother me much (since they’re not super visisble), but I’d rather they not be there. I agree, it’s one of those things that is perhaps best left alone if the spots aren’t too noticeable. Badge #2888

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