Back glass and hatches
Pickup Truck Rear Window: Fixed or Sliding?
Pickup trucks come with two very different back windows, and a quote only works if we know which one you have. Here is how to tell, and what to send us.
Tell us which style you have, and send your VIN and a photo. We confirm what fits your truck before we order.
Walk behind a pickup and you will see one of two things. Either the rear window is a single fixed pane of glass in the cab wall, or it is a sliding window: two panels in a frame, one of which slides open along a track. Fixed is simpler. Sliding gives you ventilation, and it is popular on work trucks and on trucks with bed covers or camper shells. Both break, and a rock off a gravel road or a bad bump from a tailgate load can take either one out.
The difference matters for the quote and for the repair. A fixed rear window is a single pane, and replacing it is much like replacing the back glass on an SUV. A sliding window is an assembly. It has glass panels, a frame, a latch and a track, and the broken piece may be only the glass, or it may be the whole unit. Knowing which you have, and exactly what is cracked, tells us what to order. We will be straight with you if a sliding unit is not a glass-only job or if it is something we cannot supply for your truck.
The glass features change the part too. Many pickups have a defroster grid on the rear window, and some have antenna lines or a heated section. Some trucks have dark glass from the factory. A big sliding rear window on a modern truck can also hold a wire for the defroster across the sliding panel, so the details matter. The VIN tells us the version your truck came with. One vehicle can have more than one rear glass depending on its trim and options, and a wrong guess means a part that does not fit.
To get a clean quote, send us four things. First, the VIN. Second, the year, make, model and cab style, like regular cab, extended or crew. Third, whether the window is fixed or sliding. Fourth, a photo or two of the damage and the whole rear of the cab. You can text the photo to us, and we reply within an hour during business hours. The estimate is free.
Until we get there, the main job is keeping the cab dry and the glass out of the seat. A pickup cab is small, and glass pebbles from tempered rear glass bounce into every gap. Cover the opening from outside with heavy plastic and strong tape. Do not drive with the opening exposed for long: exhaust and road dust can be pulled in through the hole, especially with a tailgate up or a cover on the bed. We come to your home, jobsite or workplace, and our workmanship is warranted for the life of the vehicle.
What to tell us about a pickup rear window
- Fixed pane or sliding window
- Year, make, model and cab style
- Your VIN, so we match the right glass
- Whether there is a defroster grid or antenna lines
- Whether the glass is dark from the factory
- A photo of the damage and the back of the cab
The price depends on the truck and on whether the window is fixed or sliding, so we quote it from the VIN after you tell us which style you have. The estimate is free. If your comprehensive coverage applies, we tell you what you would owe before we start.
Questions Drivers Ask
Can you replace a sliding rear window?
Send us your VIN and a photo and we confirm what we can supply for your truck. A sliding window is an assembly, so we check whether the glass alone can be replaced or whether the whole unit is needed.
Is the rear window on a pickup tempered?
Back windows on most vehicles are tempered, which is why a broken one crumbles into small pebbles instead of a single crack.
Will the defroster work on the new glass?
If your truck has one, the new glass comes with its own grid and we reconnect the defroster connections, which a customer review confirms.
Can I drive with a broken rear window?
Keep it short and cover the opening. An open rear window on a vehicle can draw exhaust into the cab, and the glass pieces stay in the seat and the bed.
The Service That Handles This
Broken Side or Back Window?
Call or text a photo and we will tell you straight what your window needs and what it costs. We come to your home or work across Cumming and Forsyth County.