I'm sure the answer, as it is to so many things, is, "It depends (on your skill level, in this case)", but I'm wondering if anyone has ever made their own lexan window. In my case, it would be for the rear hatch window on my Porsche 968 (same rear hatch as a 944). If so, how hard is it, and if anyone has actually done it, could you provide a step-by-step how-to? Thanks.
Are those glued in or molding/gasket?
I did it on Kimini (mid-engine Mini with a carbon shell). The things to know are:
1. Single-plane bends only.
2. Expect to have to mount it with screws.
3. It changes size a Lot with temperature, so use oversized holes.
4. Get the scratch-resistant coating, which makes it fairly expensive.
5. It'll still scratch (Lexan is quite soft) so be very careful about how it's cleaned.
I put a lexan window in the hatch of my challenge car on the original molding
A buddy of mine, who runs a 924 Turbo in LeMons/Chump/WRL did it with a heat gun and a ratchet strap or two.
They won the Chumpionship last year with that car, so it must have worked 
I made some windows for the Porsche 906 I'm building. I used what is essentially a sealed box with a vacuum port. The top has the window profile and recess for the vent window. I made a large plywood box and lined it with aluminum foil and place a gas burner inside. The plexi was secured in a frame and placed on top of the heater. When the plastic started to sag, I switched on the vacuum and quickly dropped the frame down onto the form.
Lexan is much easier to form, but isn't as rigid vs plexi given equal thickness. It's also more resistant to cracking. I think for a rear hatch, I'd just drape the material over the glass and use a heat gun.
Depending on the year and state law you may have to have a defroster.
Just something to keep in mind if it is a DD.
SCCA says Lexan and not regular plexiglass. Front and rear windows need to be 6mm which is roughly 1/4". Side windows can be 3mm. The hard part is the forming of the shape. Needs to get up close to 400* to soften enough to bend and hold its new shape. I make them by sandwiching the Lexan between two windshields, and clamping it down. Pizza ovens work great if you have access to one, but I don't. I use my plumbers torch and heat it very slowly. Too much heat and you bubble the surface. It takes patience to do it this way, but its what I got. Make a paper template of what you are trying to make and then transfer that to the Lexan. Cut it out first. Once the Lexan is installed, there are rules about support straps as well. Lexan can flex and pop up at speed if its not supported. FWIW, last time I bought 1/4" Lexan it was around $10 a square foot.
easy peasy. make a cardboard or paper mold.
lay on lexan. add .25" all the way around.
peel back paper on "inside" of lexan. mask all of window except an inch or two border around the outside. paint black or body color. this step makes it look super professional.
cut out window. drill oversize holes for the fasteners in the surround of the window.
attach window in the center of the opening, top and bottom. work your way to the outside.
no heat or anything required.
did this with my fc rx7 racecar. it is still in good shape 5 years later. I did not use heat. I used rivets. they are still holding up, but there is slight vtackimg around some of the holes.
If I did it again, I would use rivnuts and button head screws with felt washers or o rings.
I cut mine out with a circular saw and made the corners with a flappy wheel on an angle grinder.
I planned to use the existing glass as a template, but couldn't extract it in one piece.
I ended up using the sheet of lexan itself and snuck up on the final shape/size bit by bit with a jigsaw.
No heat or straps required to bend it in place as the 318ti window is only bent in one plane. I started in the center and worked my way to the edges with rivets - not screws. It has survived the Summer-Winter temperature swings with no adverse effects.
A 968 rear glass is a compound curve.
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