Sliding vs. Solid Rear Window

Slider is more advantageous

This is definitely only my take on this, but in my mind a rear window which can be opened is so much better than the solid version, and it is plainly because it can be opened.

There are times where you really are thankful to have that option on your truck, and while it may be not a daily thing, you better have it than not when needed.

An extra window

A window that is possible to be cracked open in the back means that you have one more additional window in the pickup, and that’s only a positive thing if you ask me.

The interesting thing is that it’s not like any of the other four; it doesn’t come in contact with the incoming wind like a regular front window would, therefore you don’t get such of an aggressive surge of fresh wind blasting right at your face whilst driving.

If it is hot inside the cab, opening the driver’s window in combination with the rear will air out the space really quick and keep it that way, as the air has a route to escape through the back.

It’s a great alternative to the AC – just because it’s available, doesn’t mean it can beat a fresh breeze, right?

Easy bed access

An operable rear window essentially creates an access point to the bed, and that friends brings a whole new set of great benefits.

Besides the obvious possibility of literally crawling through the opening (if there’s ever a need for it), you’ll be able to see, reach and take many of the things out of the bed without the need to exit the vehicle!

This window option also allows you to haul longer items, if that’s your sort of thing: lumber, pipes, whatever – if there’s ever a need to carry something which doesn’t quite fit in the bed, you’ll be able to stick it through right into the cab and get it done.

But it’s still not perfect

Even though it may seem that i can only boast about just how great the thing is, a sliding rear window still has some bad aspects i must mention.

The worst one is clearly the ease of break-in. Now don’t get me wrong, this does entirely depend on the quality of the window, but some of them become a literal point of entry for the burglar – all they may need to get inside is a piece of bent wire, that’s it.

Sure, there are some things you can do to the mechanism to stop that from happening, though regardless, it’s somewhat of a design flaw you should be aware of.

Another one, albeit not as detrimental of a fact is that it can be inconvenient to use.

If you’ll have a crew cab pickup truck with a rear sliding window that’s operated manually, you might not really use it at all.

Because the truck is longer, you wouldn’t be able to use it from the driver’s seat, therefore you’d need to crawl all the way back to open the slider up. That extra effort could mean you won’t use the window for what it’s made for at all.

Fortunately, many modern pickups can be built with a power rear window – to operate it, all you would need to do is hit the button on the dash and off she goes.

A solid window isn’t bad either

Even though i think that a sliding option is almost always going to be a better choice to go for on your pickup truck, a solid window in the back is not a flat out poor decision either.

To begin with, a solid rear window is less expensive. If, for example, the one you have on your vehicle is cracked, broken and you’re thinking of replacing it with either a new sliding or solid version, the latter is more economical.

The same can be said if you’re building out a new truck – a solid rear window will generally be of lower-price.

Money aside, i think a solid back window just looks better. It’s a flat piece of glass that doesn’t have anything budging out of it – in case that you’re the kind of owner who tries to make his pickup look as best as it can, you really can’t go wrong here.

To wrap it all up

It’s a fact that there are folks who never had a sliding rear window on any of the pickups they owned and never had a need for one, but in my honest opinion, i would rather have that opening option available in times of need.