Osteoman

Well I spoke to soon when I posted a while back that my tint wasn't scratched. I noticed several vertical scratches in the tint on the driver's door window. I had Solargard installed by my dealer prior to my purchase. My question is this. If they installed the tint shouldn't they be responsible for fixing it (ie. installing the mole-skin) so that it wouldn't scratch. Remember a part of the car scratched it. I didn't cause the scratch (I would never expect them to fix it if I did). But given the fact the car itsself scratches it's own tint. Would not the dealer be responsible for this? And since I have since figured out that my dealer's service dept. is not good. If I took my car to another dealer do you think they would help me, given that this is a dealer installed option and not something that came from the factory. Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

JoganJani

You are right. Bring it into dealership and have them re-install it with the felt this time. Talk to the service/sales manager to explain the problem. I'm sure they'll fix it. $200-400 is not much for a dealership to keep the customer happy.

racerchris

Funny, we just noticed this on our tint, same door. Also, ours is white with parchment. Hmmm, maybe there is something special about the driver side door window? (or maybe it's the color )

rets

Osteoman,

I guess most of dealers or tint shops, who have installed tints into 04TL, are responsible for the scratched tints, that's also why the life time warranty is so important.

Your tints were done by your dealer, other dealer won't be able to handle its repair/fix 'cause this is not Acura's tints. Maybe you should phone and ask if they do have long-term or lifetime warranty. Your dealer has to fix it no matter how bad their service are.


BTW, my stupid dealer is using Solargard, too, they claim it's unnecessary to install any felts and they have no scratched 04TL since Oct... I wish them "good luck".
:o

Tajam

OR just purchase your felt from flnsx, Installing the felt was very simple to install with the instructions made by flnsx. It only cost me $18, im sure the tint guy will make you pay a whole lot more.

rets

Tajam, I'm sure you're talking about this one... in order to put them on, how easy are they?

http://members.aol.com/setecsolutions/mole.html

flnsx

Hey!

That's my kit! It's VERY easy to install. Ask some people that have bought the kit already. I just sent out another shipment today.

Less than an hour on all four doors.

P.S. Thanks for the VOUCH Tajam! You da man!

moeronn

Looks like the price is $25 now?

rets

What's original $?

flnsx

I ship with priority mail. It costs me $4 but you get it fast!

GTFISH

FLNSX,
I just sent you $$.
Thanks for putting this together.

criss

FLNSX,

Just sent you an order. I am having it shipped to my office (that's why it's unconfirmed) as things will disappear when delivered to my home.

If that is an issue let me know and I figure out what to do on Monday. Heading to FLL for the weekend in 2 hours :smokin: :smokin: .

flnsx

Chriss,

No problem! Thanks for the heads up.

I send them all out today. GTFISH that goes for you too

Thanks guys!

GTFISH

Thanks

Xpditor

On Saturday, I decided to tackle the moleskin. I was going up to Boca for the weekend but I didn't want to experiment there because all my tools are down here in my garage (Ft. L).

So, I did the driver's door first. Some things were not as clear as they could have been. Like the little spring latch on the door behind the handle. The instructions said to "push it". To me, that meant I should push it in. Eventually, I figured out I needed to get behind that tiny little lever and slide it sideways toward the center of the little door. Then, it popped off easily. (I think this has been clarified in later kits on my suggestion)

The screws were all a piece of cake except that the deep recessed one on the armrest has to be done by feel since you cannot see what you are doing.

Popping off the door panel is scary. Just the noise it makes is scary. It sounds like something is breaking. As you said, I had one or two of the white plastic grippers come off in the metal door. They were tough to get out but a set of needle nosed pliers gripping the center part worked well. I thought I might break one, but I didn't.

I trimmed the moleskin at an angle to match the angle of the wiper at the pointed end. Although I wiped the wiper with alcohol, then dried it well, it didn't seem like the moleskin wanted to stick well. As you suggested, I did pinch the moleskin to the track firmly with thumb and forefinger several times. I didn't put the window down until today. That is about 72 hours in our Florida heat. I looked in the front where you can actually see the moleskin, and everything looks fine. That driver's window is the one that will see the most traffic. The others? Hardly ever. Since I have Sun Pass for toll booths, it won't be going down as much as it used to when I had to throw money at the collectors.

Bottom line is that it was easier than I expected if you take your time, follow the instructions, and use the right tools. I put all the tools I would need and the moleskin in a plastic wash bucket and took them with me to Boca where I finished the other three doors in less than an hour. I used the bucket to rest the door panel on. It was just about the right height.

I recommend it to anyone before they tint. If you do it yourself, you know it's done right. For $25, it's cheap peace of mind.

rets

xpditor42, thanks for your explanation. I always wonder what the secret flnsx has... he only provides $$ details without having additional installation details. If you wanna see it, you have to pay for it... :o

flnsx, if my tint guy doesn't do the good job, I may need your help very soon.

Thanks.

Xpditor

The instructions you get with the kit are very detailed and include color photos of each step. Just go slow and follow the instructions. Make sure you have about an hour and a half and a good place to work. The moleskin stips are cut to measure at 1/2" and are a little longer than you need. You have to trim it once it's on. You cut it off about 2". Once installed, it looks like it was always there.

One other tip. flnxs cut the moleskin himself from a one inch roll. Ergo, one side is a little wavy and the other is straight. Put it on so the straight side is up and matches the top side of the wiper blade. It's not a critical issue; it just looks more professional. This is the side that hits the window first.

rets

Good tips, thanks.

Lore

Would someone mind posting the instructions/pictures somewhere so those who are interested in the DIY kit can see what is involved before jumping in headfirst?

Xpditor

That's up to flnsx but, to me, I paid for the instructions mainly. The cost of the actual moleskin is nominal. But, you have to buy it in bulk and they only wholesale it. Flnsx has a company and bought in bulk to make up the kits for us. I'm sure he's making a few bucks and I don't have a problem with that.

Let me tell you of my experience.

Tools required:
medium phillips head screw driver
needle-nosed pliers (maybe)
scissors
alcohol
rag
flat-bladed prying device like a putty knife (optional)

You remove a cover behind the inside door handle. Behind the cover, you remove two screws.

You remove a deeply recessed screw from below the arm rest.

You remove a grommet and screw from the rear of the door panel.

You gently pry (with fingers or pry tool) the upholstered door panel away from the metal door. It is attached with 8 plastic clips held by friction. It takes some effort to get the first ones loose. After that, they pop right off. They are around the sides and bottom of the door panel.

When they are all loose, you lift the panel up as it hooks into the top like this: /^\ . Then, you pull the panel away from the door about 6" and rest it on something about 12" high. There are wires attached to the door panel but you do not disturb or disconnect them.

You then have full access to the inner wipers and can see clearly what everyone has been talking about. :think: The lower wiper is the culprit.

You clean it with alcohol and a rag to make sure there is no silicone or other contaminate on it. Then, you peel the backing off the moleskin and apply it to the wiper blade. It is cut to the same size: 1/2". You pinch it on for good contact and trim the end.

Then you put it all back together in reverse order.

Sometimes, the white plastic friction clips will come off the door panel and stay in the door. You have to pull the little suckers out with needle nose plyers like a recalcitrant wisdom tooth and then slide it home easily on the notch in the door panel where it came from (plain to see). You "hook" the top of the panel back onto the track at the top and then push in the 8 push pin clips. Then you replace the screws you took out. Be careful not to cross thread them. You can't see what you are doing with the deep recessed one on the bottom of the arm rest. You just go by feel.

Difficulty rating on a scale of 1-5 stars: ** (two stars)

Feeling of pride and peace of mind you get on completion: Priceless!

GTFISH

Chris,
Still haven't recieved my moleskin I paid for almost three weeks ago. What is up? You return my emails...