Ballpark cost for repairing bubbling at base of windshield

Otter74 · 08-23-2016, 07:19 AM

My Targa has a bit of bubbling at the base of the windshield gasket - spots on either side, and a bit in the middle. Nothing urgent, but I am going to want to address this eventually. What can I expect to pay to have this done? I can look up the cost of a patch panel(s) easily (e.g perhaps a pair of these: http://www.*************/90150308742-sic50308742.html and some patch work in the center) but I have no idea what the labor cost would be, nor the cost to repaint the cowl panel and windshield frame. I'd have the windshield replaced at the same time too, and maybe try to find an uncracked dash too.

I live in Chicago, so shop rates are not going to be the lowest around, but I could potentially take the car to someplace cheaper in the midwest that I can take a train home from.

onboost · 08-24-2016, 12:36 PM

There is really know way to give a guesstimate on something like this with no pictures etc.. even then its tough.
However, we did one of these on a 993 cabrio recently and it was right around $3500. Not including his new windshield. However, his repair got to be pretty extensive as you never know what you're going to find and nor how much you have to cut away to facilitate the repair.

Otter74 · 08-25-2016, 07:53 AM

Here are a couple of photos, one of each side. I think there is a little bit in the middle, too.

onboost · 08-25-2016, 08:35 AM

Yep, you're not going to know what you're getting into until the windshield and seal our out and the area is cleaned up.. as you can see some of the bubbling into the cowl outside of the seal.

mreid · 08-25-2016, 08:41 AM

Those are holes and require new metal for a proper repair. They look substantial enough to require a patch panel, not some hand formed sheet steel. Looks like ~$4k to me (remove windshield, grind and cut out cancer, weld in new, prepare/prime/paint, replace windshield and gasket). Doesn't include dash pad.

Otter74 · 08-25-2016, 11:49 AM

Thanks - gives me a general idea. Is this kind of thing usually caused by a leaking seal?

Dpmulvan · 08-26-2016, 04:33 AM

Looking closely at the photo you might want to remove the fenders as well. Just did my 80 targa same problem. You might get lucky and get away with some grinding and media blast.

onboost · 08-26-2016, 04:55 AM

Sometimes from a leaky seal, sometimes from a prior window replacement where the seal was cut out.
The paint and galvanizing gets cut into deep enough to expose the bare metal, it doesn't get primed, painted or treated prior to the glass reinstall and it just festers. Some shops even miss this detail when doing a complete windows out respray.

Otter74 · 08-26-2016, 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dpmulvan

Looking closely at the photo you might want to remove the fenders as well. Just did my 80 targa same problem. You might get lucky and get away with some grinding and media blast.

What might I be looking for in the fenders? or, rather, where? Everything looks normal as far as I can tell from peering into the jambs.

Dpmulvan · 08-26-2016, 04:34 PM

The area where the welting is. Between the side of the cowel and fender you can't see it from the door jam.

962porsche · 08-27-2016, 03:28 AM

with out pulling the window and striping the the area down it's hard to tell just what is under there .
then no two shops will charge the same price .
if the car came into my shop we would pull both fenders and the hood along with the cowl grille .
bag off the car and blast the area (cowl) down to bare . it's been repainted so we would also just strip the hole cowl panel .
you asked the price but with some maybe's ?

the big question is what is your budget ?
we tend not to like to do blends as they will come back over time so top end repair we would clear the hole roof also . this would also include R and I ( Remove and Install) the rear glass to get a clean job . down side is it adds cost to the job .
even the front window gasket cost will effect the over all cost . you want a cheap aftermarket gasket or do you want a OE replacement gasket from porsche ?
the OE will cost twice as much but last and fit better then a aftermarket one .
one reason we pull the fenders is they tend to rust between the fenders and the cowl . you may not be seeing it yet but it would really suck to spend money to repair the cowl under the glass and down the road you get rust coming from the gap between the two panels .
again it's been repair in the past so just what is under there ?
every thing will effect the cost this is why your budget is important .
for a shop to write a high dollar repair when you only have a little to spend your just wasting the shops and your time .
also what type of shop you go to will effect the price . you take it to a shop like mine were we only do high end cars you will pay a higher labor rate then a collision shop that does peoples every day type cars .

Otter74 · 08-27-2016, 11:40 AM

962,

Thanks for your response. Yes, the car was repainted. I bought this from a PO who had the car about 15 years and rebuilt most of the car mechanically; the paint had been redone some time before he had it, in the 90s. It's a 10-foot paint job (you can see evidence of poor prep in several spots, and a bit of overspray on gasket edges), which is good enough for me for a long, long time - it frees me from worrying too much about it. So when it comes to paint, I could get the repaired area painted properly, but under the right conditions I could live with matte black primer on the the cowl and A-pillars until I got the whole car painted in the future. The car is a Targa, so no need to worry about blending the roof. My primary concern would be addressing the rust (whatever there is) so that the whole area is sound. The windhield has a bit of clouding in the lower corners (delamination? moisture?) but is otherwise OK; I'd probably get it replaced whenever the work was done, and I'd use an OEM gasket. I don't think the car has ever been repaired, other than having been painted. The PO could never find any evidence of it, and the chassis is straight (corner-weighted perfectly.) If I could do it for, say, $2500 (sheetmetal repair, windshield and gasket, maybe paint) I'd do it this fall. I have no idea how realistic that number is.

962porsche · 08-28-2016, 03:25 AM

i would not leave it in a primer .
primer doesn't protect metal from rusting the paint or top coat does that other wise moisture will go right thru the primer .

2500 is a realistic number with paint . how ever you may not be looking at a concours job but a dam good clean lasting repair .
the biggest difference wold be in the quality of the products being used . a shop like mine would use the limco line not the glasurit line and you would not get a OE porsche replacement windshield but a aftermarket one the gasket would still be porsche OE as they just fit much better then after market . but this is just what i would do in my shop i can't speak for other shops .

Dpmulvan · 08-28-2016, 04:32 AM

It wouldn't hurt to go over the whole car carefully, I'm sure there's other areas that will need attention as well. (Back window) (under targa bar where it bolts to chassis) et.

Otter74 · 08-29-2016, 08:06 AM

962,

Thanks for the reminder about primer. What I meant to say was leave it in something other than a final finish until whenever the whole car is painted. E.g. semi-matte rattle can, maybe cover the cowl and the hood in semi-gloss black and have some fun with it, etc.

2500 is good to hear. The existing windshield is aftermarket so another one is fine (the rest of the glass is OE.) If you were in the midwest I'd probably be happy to have you do it. Though hell, maybe dropping it off and picking it up later would make for a couple of nice road trips

I have looked over the whole car, and the PO was extremely familiar with it, and other areas like the kidney bowls, etc. are fine. The PO used it as a sunny-weather fun car, though I will drive it in anything except salt and snow. Where should I check under the back window? Look under the parcel shelf, same as coupes?

I have a Fiat Spider that needs some more extensive rust repair on the floor and I have been on the fence about keeping the car - if I had to choose one, I'd rather spend the money on the 911. I'd love to learn to weld and do some repairs myself, but I don't love it enough to make it happen, as there are other things I'd rather do with my free time, like ride my bikes, drive my cars, do mechanical work on my cars, travel, etc. So I am left with paying other people.