BMW e30 Windshield Replacement

The windshield in an E30 bmw is held in by a single piece of aluminized plastic until '88 model year and black plastic later. The M3 is the only exception to this and its windshield is bonded in place.
DIY procedure of an E30 windshield replacement takes 40 minutes the first time and twenty minutes thereafter.

You never remove the rubber gasket from the car, only the windshield. The tool of choice is a "bone" so named because it resembles a bone, only made of white nylon about 5 inches long tapered to a near point on either end. Lately, I've chosen to use a disposable 1 inch plastic putty knife which goes faster.

You need to remove said plastic strip to release the glass. Its ends are hidden under a clip made of soft aluminum. Slide the aluminum aside and you will see both ends of the strip. Pry out one of these two ends, I use a small flat blade screwdriver or the bone. Pull outward and remove entire strip. Strips for the earlier cars decay rapidly and look like rusty dishwater in color. Replace said strip. Black ones are reusable forever.

The glass is no longer securely in place, don't drive the car without a strip installed. Run the bone or putty knife around the edge of the glass, all the way around the glass. You will sense the bond between the glass and the rubber give way. When you get all the way around, you can start the putty knife/bone under the edge of the glass and pry the glass outward from the gasket. It does go faster is someone is inside pushing the glass outward while you are doing this, but the helper doesn't have to press hard enough to make the glass fly out. Once you get half way around, the glass can be lifted away.

Installation is exactly the reverse of removal, except I lubricate the plastic strip with dawn dishwashing soap and water. The strip can be easily pressed inward, enough that the bone/putty knife glides along the side of the strip locking it in place. The strip self-centers the glass.

Ed MacVaugh