rear defrost wont work

[mjtr21]

well the other day the right side tab came off the window. so i went to advance auto parts and bought the kit and reattached it and it worked for a day. then the other side came off so i tried soldering it and it wouldnt stay on. so i went and got that kit and reattached it. now it still doesnt work. the little indicator light comes on and the fuse and relay are both good. and as far as i know there arent any breaks in the grid. it worked just fine until the left side tab came off. is there a module or something i can replace? please help.

[grfnkl]

Pretty much when one of those tabs come off you are SOL. I never got mine back on or working properly when it came off my car. I try soldiering it, using special glues everything. It would work for a little bit then fry right off. You could test the connect points to see if their is any juice getting to it. There is a module somewhere in the back seat area that can cause an issue of the defogger to overheat and melt off the backwindow. I tried finding it on my car but had no such luck. I found this out through a search in the Olds Alero Forums. Where it's located is not exactly the same as the grand am but it can't be too far. Good luck, since i tried for months before giving up, and no shop wanted to even touch it since they were afraid the back window was gonna blow out.

[mjtr21]

yeah i know i had it working then the other tab came off and now it hasnt worked since. and were getting some bad weather tomorrow it would be nice to have haha. yeah i was wondering if anyone knew if there was a module or not because with the aleros they have a module for it because the radio attenna is integrated with the rear defroster isnt it? i didnt konw if the grand am had one.

[mjtr21]

well i figured out that my tabs arent conducting any current. my brother mustve ruined them when he tried soldering them on. and when i tried that kit from advanced auto and i had to sand down the tab i think that ruined it too. so does anyone know where i can get new tabs?

[xeroinfinity]

I think you'll need a window if you cant get the connector ends reattached.
I'd double check that all of the grid has continuity.

What exactly was that kit you bought, just a grid repair ??

[mjtr21]

now would i need a new window? i figured out that the connecting tabs are my problem. there is nothing wrong with the grid or the window. i checked visually and with a multimeter.

[xeroinfinity]

If the connector wont stay attached to the window and is not making contact with the grid you'll need a new window. The grid is baked on to the glass.
Does you insurance cover acts of god ?? lol

[mjtr21]

haha i dont know ill call tomorrow to check. jk. well i think that adhesive in that kit from advance auto is what was stopping it from conducting current. so i cleaned the grid part off and cleaned the tabs. so earlier i went out and turned on the rear defrost and held the tabs on by hand and it sparked and the defroster turned on. so i guess i will take it to my mechanic and have him solder them on. i dont trust myself i will probably shatter the damn window.