lexdex

I had about 7 or 8 nasty vertical streaks on the rear window of my 2010 RX 350, possibly from wiper fluid or hard water, or maybe tree sap. The marks were consistent with having used the rear wiper washer.

Anyway, scoured the 'net to find a solution and ultimately used glass ceramic cleaner which worked like a charm. HOWEVER, I saw a few posts suggesting a razor blade - similar to scraping paint or other grime from home windows. I tried that in one spot on the window, but it damaged the tint slightly - the area where I used the blade is slightly lighter than the rest of the window. This surprised me for two reasons: I've done this lots of times when painting windows frames - i.e. using a razor to remove spots on the glass - with no problem; it's baked in factory tint, not a film.

The mark isn't particularly noticeable to anybody who doesn't clean the car, and I wouldn't call it a scratch per se as light shines through it no problem. In fact it's quite tough to see on the inside of the vehicle, but under bright sunlight I can certainly notice it outside the vehicle. What I'm saying is most people wouldn't notice it BUT I KNOW IT'S THERE!!

It's probably not worth worrying about, but I'd love to know if there's an easy fix that won't make the problem worse. Has anybody had this happen, were you able to fix it, and if so how?

RXSF

my guess is that it wasnt caused by the razor...I have done that many times to remove sticks on my RX and I dont think it has changed the tint. subscribed to see the outcome of this

lexdex

Yeah, I was a little shocked by it. I started in a tiny area - looked fine - then expanded area and that's when I saw the discolor. The discolor happened under no other streak but the one I razored. Used a razor from Lowes that fits in a bladeholder - specifically for removing paint from glass, or caulk or other gunk from porcelain, etc. The 2010 owners manual specifically says privacy glass has tint baked in, i.e. not a film.

To be clear, the razored spot just looks a tiny bit lighter. At first, I just thought it might be because that was a super clean part of the window (post razor), but then when I did the rest of the window with glass ceramic cleaner, the mark did not lift as expected. I'm about 95% sure not a scratch though, because headlights shine through the discolored spot just like any other part o the window - a scratch would reflect the light strangly.

Cruiter

All the RX glass except for the w/s is supposed to be coated with something from the factory to make water bead off. Something like Rain-X but it's permanent. It's possible you might have scrapped some of that off and that's what you might be seeing. But best bet is show it to your dealer.

RXSF

i think only the front doors have water repellent glass

lexdex

Hmmmn. Interesting theory re the water repellent. I find that if I buff the mark with a microfiber, for a split second afterward the mark seems to disappear but then it seems to sort of reform before my eyes. It almost looks a little oily. I think the other poster is correct though - only front door glass is water repellent on a 2010 from what I saw on a quick google search.

I've never used after-market water repellent, but the dealer might have when detailing the vehicle before delivery - this particular vehicle was a dealer demo model, so it was detailed before I picked it up.

If it is repellant, would the the glass ceramic cleaner I used wipe this repellant away?