ravidavi

Hey all,
After getting my windows tinted, I noticed that lowering and raising them caused large annoying streaks on the inside of the window. These streaks could be wiped off, but for others this has caused scratching. The solution for me was to remove the door panel and weatherstripping gasket, and fix the latter.
Here is a how-to for this. It's pretty easy, but then again so is brain surgery if you know how. This tutorial shows how to fix the passenger door, but works exactly the same for the driver door too.

1: Remove the door panel according to the instructions in the FAQ. You don't have to unclip the wires from the panel, just disconnect the panel from the door.
https://www.scionlife.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=24781

2: Now you can get to the weatherstripping. It is removed easily by just pulling it up.


3: The weatherstripping has 2 sections that touch the glass. The top one (profile outlined in green) is what you see. The bottom one (profile outlined in red) is what you don't see, but that's the part that can get mangled and cause the window streaking. The following picture shows the CORRECT profile for the weatherstripping.



The next picture shows the INCORRECT position for the bottom portion.



4: Look along the length of the weatherstripping to see where the bottom section has been bent out of shape. Bend it back into the correct shape. Note that the weatherstripping should be bent out of shape in the same places that there was streaking on the window.

5: Push the weatherstripping back onto the windowsill, and verify that the streaking is gone. After everything is good, replace the door panel and send me a pic of your hot sister topless.

Good luck!
Ravi

Harmonic_tC

nice writeup. I had the same prob and i hade to do the same thing. I was actually getting hairline slices in the tint.

soldiercontreras

Oh crap I need to do this ASAP, I have two long vertical scratches on each window.

scionman1480

nice found

dmikon

Shouldn't the tinting places be doing this?

TurboMe

dammn i always get streaks its annoying, im hoping it wears out.

ravidavi

It won't wear out. The streaking is caused by the glass rubbing on the RUBBER part of the weatherstripping since it's bent out of shape. It will happen over and over until either the rubber gets worn through, or your windshield motor burns out from the added stress of trying to push the glass past the rubber. If this happens it won't be covered under warrantee.

Fix it yourself (easy to do) or get a friend to do it. Don't just leave it.

Ravi

ravidavi

Many places might not even know about this. The car is new and they haven't seen many of them. Most tinting places don't remove the glass, they just push the weatherstripping out of the way with cardboard or something. In the process they unknowingly bend the bottom of the weatherstripping out of shape. It's hard for them to fix it afterwards because they don't know what caused it in the first place.

Ravi

Gortok

Is it possible to re-shape the rubber piece without pulling the door panel loose and just putting the window all the way down?

jxl593

hey, i just got my windows tinted a couple weeks ago, im not getting streaking, but there is an annoying sound now when i raise and lower my windows, sound like rubber rubbing against window, could this be from the same thing?

ravidavi

If you look at the "correct" pic, you can see that the bottom piece (red profile) is supposed to curve upward. If it is bent out of shape (the "incorrect" pic), then it is curving downward. Lowering the window only makes it worse. That's why lowering and raising the window doesn't solve the problem, it just makes those nasty streaks on your window caused by rubber-on-glass contact.

Ravi

ravidavi

There's no harm in trying, except for 10 - 15 minutes wasted at most.

Ravi

Rivulent

What tinters SHOULD be doing is soaking the window with water and pushing the tint down between the stripping and the window.

ravidavi

You're right, and they do. The problem is that the stripping is so tight that they have to use something to pry and hold it away from the glass while they push the tint down there. Whatever they use might end up also bending the bottom of the weatherstripping into the wrong position, and they don't even know its happening.

Ravi

fishingexpert87

hey guys, i just got 5% tints all up on my windows, and i have a black 2006 scion tc, so far it looks awesome, i cant put the windows down for 3 days, u guys think that problem is gonna happen to me? inside my car is really dark from these tints, but its awesome cuz i have the under dash light kit!

Stewbie2002

I can't believe this is happening to other ppl as well... My driver's side window has two small scratches in it and streaks occasionally. I bet this is my problem. I have never taken apart anything on my car before, but I might attempt this fix.

Thanks for the info.

SupaWhite

aw...booo... guess I won't even bother with tinting....

ravidavi

Or you could inform your tint guy about this issue with the tCs, and avoid it altogether.

skizzle

the people that tinted my windows tucked the rubber stripping down in the door panel...didn't notice till i went to roll up the windows and it ripped the stripping up out of the door panel....I was pi$$ed off. Had to go to toyota and they did a warranty fix for it on both doors.... consult with your tinter before he tints about this! I've seen this happen to a lot of people....

bahamut_zero

I don't have a sister, but thanks for the information.