Quarter window louvers
5/18/11, 09:08 PM
#1
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Quarter window louvers
I just took delivery of my 2012 candy red mustang gt. I ordered it with the hood scoop and the raised rear spoiler. since I could not order the 1/4 window louver without the rear deck plate which I did not like I having to put it on now. the question I have is who makes the best. I have seen them range from $50 to $200. Are there any differances in material that I should be aware of.
5/18/11, 10:33 PM
#2
All depends on the look you are after. There are many options as far as quality of materials, country of origin, quality of paint, visibility (key issue), etc. There are a lot of threads here discussing the different ones available, and the majority of 05-09 discussions carryover to the 10+ cars with only minor changes (most of the manufacturers have both versions available if their part is not "universal" in nature.) I'll withhold stating our obvious favorite, as I'm sure others can chime in on less biased opinions than ours 
5/19/11, 06:09 AM
#4
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I have the SHR ones on the way and my car hasn't even been delivered yet. I'm pretty sure there is a thread around here somewhere with nothing but good things to say about them, and their customer service is top notch. They are a little bit more of an install process, but you can still see out of the quarter window just fine.
5/19/11, 08:53 AM
#5
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If you can afford them, Silverhorse Racing's are the best. They're not the cheapest to install but they are the most beautiful, in my opinion. Plus, you give up almost nothing in visibility and they are easy to clean. These replace the glass, rather than just being stuck on top of it. I should think that the louvers that are simply stuck on top of the glass must make it quite difficult to clean the glass.
5/19/11, 02:09 PM
#6
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I do appreciate the commits. It has got me to thinking. At first I did not want to replace the window. Now however now if I dont and want to remove the louver later what is the paint going to look like under the louver. On the other hand how difficult is it to remove the window and save it for a later reinstall if I so desire it. I did like what I saw at silver horse
5/19/11, 03:37 PM
#7
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You wouldn't want to use the SHR louvers if you're thinking you might want to go back. It's not a casual thing to install them. A notch has to be cut out of the plastic molding on the interior and I'm guessing that would be noticable if you tried to go back to the original glass. I'm not saying it can't be done but it would be a real undertaking.
5/22/11, 09:23 PM
#8
Randy, thanks for the thumbs up - looks good on your car, I love the Kona color...
Just to clarify though, going backwards is a lot easier than you'd think. Since our louvers are very strong, they can normally be removed without damage to the car or the louver just using some good old brute strength found in your leg, and then it's just a 30 minute job to clean up the urethane seal, and re-install the glass. If following our directions on original install making the straight-line trim cuts to the interior, when putting the glass back in you'd really not notice it. I've never gone "back" to the glass on a car here at the shop, but we have swapped out our louvers with new ones in different colors to contrast with the car's paint, so it can be done, and handled pretty easily.
As to the paint under the louvers on the car - if installed properly, you will never touch the original paint, so it will be the same as original for you.
Just to clarify though, going backwards is a lot easier than you'd think. Since our louvers are very strong, they can normally be removed without damage to the car or the louver just using some good old brute strength found in your leg, and then it's just a 30 minute job to clean up the urethane seal, and re-install the glass. If following our directions on original install making the straight-line trim cuts to the interior, when putting the glass back in you'd really not notice it. I've never gone "back" to the glass on a car here at the shop, but we have swapped out our louvers with new ones in different colors to contrast with the car's paint, so it can be done, and handled pretty easily.
As to the paint under the louvers on the car - if installed properly, you will never touch the original paint, so it will be the same as original for you.
5/23/11, 12:00 PM
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If you can afford them, Silverhorse Racing's are the best. They're not the cheapest to install but they are the most beautiful, in my opinion. Plus, you give up almost nothing in visibility and they are easy to clean. These replace the glass, rather than just being stuck on top of it. I should think that the louvers that are simply stuck on top of the glass must make it quite difficult to clean the glass.
BTW did you do the install or go to a auto glass shop and what $ range for the install? Thanks.
5/23/11, 12:12 PM
#10
I'm sure Randy can chime in as well, but for a data point on cost, we charge 250.00 for the install on 2010+ cars here, that includes everything needed except the louvers. I have heard of lower and higher prices from customers in the field, but it varies widely.
With 3M raising the costs of their materials every other week (it seems) lately, I don't know how long we can hold the 16.99 price on each of the required items that we use (urethane and adhesion promoter) for the DIY crowd, but we're trying.
With 3M raising the costs of their materials every other week (it seems) lately, I don't know how long we can hold the 16.99 price on each of the required items that we use (urethane and adhesion promoter) for the DIY crowd, but we're trying.
5/23/11, 01:13 PM
#12
Hawaii, Las Vegas, Boston, Cleveland, Chicago, and some other destinations, if you pay the airfare for myself and a companion, I will gladly do the install "on the house". Nebraska, I've never been there so I might extend the same offer just to see the place, although if it's like Indiana, it might be a lot of corn fields...
5/23/11, 05:45 PM
#15
Cobra Member
Just another vote for the Silver Horse Racing Louvers. I have them, I clearly over paid for install, but they are absolutely the best looking and the easiest to see out of. I love mine!!!
5/24/11, 08:05 AM
#16
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Installation is all over the place. On guy has posted that he got them installed for only $60! In my case I went to four body or glass shops before finding one who would even do it. Most were afraid to remove the glass. I paid $411. This was just for installation because I bought mine pre-painted. Maybe if I had spent a day or two driving to every body and glass shop in the area I would have found someone who would do it cheaper.
5/25/11, 09:10 AM
#18
Cobra Member
Brian, feel free to post some larger pictures of your Mustang. I love Sunset Gold and was very disappointed that Ford wasn't going to offer it for the 2011 model year. I looked at your Garage but those pix don't have the SHR louvers.
6/11/11, 07:54 AM
#20
V6 Member
