Occasionally when I look in my rear window through my mirror, I get distorted image of the other vehicle. It appears when the car behind me is a bit further away. When the car gets closer the problem is not as noticeable. I am wondering if I have a defective rear window or mirror. Is any one else noticing the same issues? This had never happed in my CL-S.

 

I never noticed this. I will pay more attention to it tomorrow.

 

Thanks, my friend who is a mechanic confirmed that I have irregular rear window. I will be making appointment tomorrow for replacement. Does anyone know how what are the implications of changing the rear window? What I should be watching for? Thanks...

 

I don't know of anything specific to be watching for; however, I can say that you want to make sure when they put the door panel back on that it is snug, tight fitting - watch for any scratches or other damages around the area they work on as well as rattles. They may miss one of those little plastic things and it will rattle and drive you nuts.

 

Don't let them touch your window, live with it. A mildly distorted image on your rearview mirror is at worst a minor inconvenience. A rear window replacement can bring all kinds of issues that will never be resolved, e.g. leaks, trim fitting problems, both around the window and in other adjacent panels which may need to be molested to access the window, leaks, rear window defogger, radio reception isssues if antenna is involved and who knows what else.

My advice comes from many years of experience dealing with the "technicians" at different dealers - including a rear window replacement for a faulty deffoger that brought me nothing but problems that were never resolved completely. Don't let them touch anything in the interior/trim department either, they will screw it up. I just let them do the mechanical stuff - brakes, suspension, etc.

 

Wow I got that one wrong. I thought you were talking about the window in the door. Not the rear window. I agree with 1hot nsx - leaks and other problems are likely.

 

Thanks for all the input. I am not sure yet, what I am going to do. But defiantly I will have the dealer check out the rear windshield (I have a appointment for tomorrow). If it is absolutely necessary to have it replaced, I will go the dealer that has the best service to have it done. .

 

If a mild distortion makes it an "absolutely necessary to have it replaced" then have it done. Again, my advice is don't do it - the dealer will say YES, let's do it - you have to have a perfect car, this is not acceptable, etc. etc. The reason? They make money by replacing your rear window. The likely loser is you if any problems develop from the window replacement. Whatever you decide in the end . . . best of luck to you.

 

Way out in left field here, but have you tried giving the window a thorough cleaning inside and out? I once had a similar issue and it turned out to be a leather/interior conditioner on the window. The "fastidious" employee at the carwash grabbed the wrong rag and wiped my rear window with Armourall (I never went to that car wash again). I would definitely agree with Vik and 1NOTNSX in recommending that you exercise caution before having your rear window replaced.

 

if you do decide to replace ur back window, make sure the dealer gets a brand new factory window. there have been a few threads on here where dealers would call up junkyards for parts.

 

Thanks, I will tell them that I need to see the part before it gets put on the car, if I decide to have it done.

 

Just got back from the dealer. It seems that all of the RL's have this distortion. I did look at 3 New RL's, and all of them had this distortion. To check out if your car has the same thing, park your car, look through the back window from driver’s seat far away moving your head up and down focusing on one object. The distortion appears on the second strip from the bottom and run’s across. He did say that he will bring this to the attention of the Acura next week when they visit the dealer.

 

Hmm. I never noticed this, I will check it out.

 

yep, i have noticed the distortion as well, especially after i got my windows tinted. i thought it was the tint but after very close inpection, the tint was layed on the glass very well. the distortion is very noticeable towards the edge of the glass on the sides and towards the bottom edge.

i have been told by many techs to not replace the front or rear window unless completely necessary. they all say it will never be as good as the factory seal. small chips and cracks on the front windshield is best repaired. i am assuming the same advice goes for the rear.

my 2 cents - don't do it and dont think about it, eventually it will not bother you.... just like those damn rock chips on the front bumper.

 

I agree, you have to get use to it. I would be interested in heard from others, if they have the same problem.

 

I looked for it today and found it. About 1/8 of the way up the the rear windshield from the bottom. It appears as if there is a "seam" in the sight picture when looking through the glass. Not a big deal at all for me, but I was able to find it when I looked.

 

This is interesting; it looks like we all have this distortion. It is taking me some time to get use to it. But for 50K car, I think that something like this is unacceptable. I wonder if Acura knows that this problem exists on RL’s.

 

This is interesting; it looks like we all have this distortion. It is taking me some time to get use to it. But for 50K car, I think that something like this is unacceptable. I wonder if Acura knows that this problem exists on RL’s.[/