Center Sliding Rear Window Shattered

Hi everyone! New here, just signed up, after years of reading through the forums

The rear center sliding window pane in my 11 Tacoma shattered yesterday after I was a little too enthusiastic tossing some pallets in the back. Thinking it would just cost a few hundred bucks to replace the glass, I started calling around - no one, not even the dealer or glass places, will replace just that pane. They all say the entire rear window - all three panes - has to be replaced at at least $700.

Has anyone heard of anyone ever replacing just the single, cheap, sliding glass piece and not the entire window? It's incredible how ridiculous this is!

 

Welcome to TW

I have only heard of getting the full window changed out.

 

It's impossible to change out the center only because of how the windows are manufactured- the framework gets bonded to the outside perimeter of the glass. To change the slider pane only, you'd need to pry the framework apart to the point that it would be so distorted when you went to put it back together it likely wouldn't fit the cab opening.
On the plus side, these windows have been the same since 05, so finding a used one at a wrecker should save you quite a few $$

 

insurance?

 

Unfortunately, insurance doesn't cover anything other than front windshields, so I have to pay the full deductible on the repair before they pay anything.

 

Thanks for the replies, I guess that's what I expected to find out here too. So dumb they built it that way, that glass shattered easier than a cheap mirror at Target. Thanks all!