Windscreen Woes
 

The windscreen (windshield) on my 2003 STR must have some kind of death wish; a few weeks ago a small stone was flicked up and knocked a pretty good sized star on the passenger’s side which was repaired Friday and nice job, hardly noticeable.

This morning driving down Highway 99 I, like a gentlemen let a truck on the ridiculously short slip road join in front of me and BANG!

A rock thrown up by the truck hits just inches away from the freshly repaired spot. Nice chip in the trailing edge of the bonnet and the windscreen is toast.

Never had to replace an S-Type windscreen so what price range is acceptable and are there any particular details to be aware of?

It'll most likely be bonded, so if you do it yourself, you'll need the right adhesive. You'll need to get rid of all old adhesive and any bits of glass. Then you'll need a screen from somewhere. You might as well go to a windscreen fitter and pay the price. A pro. should see it doesn't leak. Any chance your insurance will pay (after the excess of course)?
Leedsman.
Sympathies, nothing worse than an unexpected big bill.

Leedsman, cheers mate, good feedback. I will go with a windscreen fitter mainly for the warranty and the peace of mind.

Expensive shock for sure but light compared to some of the threads in recent days with pot holes etc.

How much insurance coverage do you carry on the Comprehensive side of your policy? If you have a zero deductible in that particular category, you'll pay nothing out-of-pocket for new glass....

Like Jon said, I'm not sure how your policy is set up, or how bad insurance is on S-types, but on my policy of three cars, the Jag is the only one that has a deductible on glass. Since the windshield on XKs is expensive, I have a $500 deductible. I still would take it to a pro, but just be aware that you might have to pay some out of pocket deductible.

Despite the inclination towards a genuine Pilkington version I decided on a generic XYG brand (Xinyi Group Ltd.) professionally installed. With lifetime workmanship and one (1) free stone chip repair per year, I felt the $236 out the door cost was very reasonable and thus, my decision was fiscally driven.

Although off-brand, the windscreen has the wiper heaters in the park position, rain sensing cut-out and the frit surround for the glass is identical to the Pilkington original. I also did not use my insurance as I have a $500 deductable.


I noticed fervent responses to a Wal-Mart comment recently and I am hoping that buying an ‘over-seas’ item does not spurn the same roasting. :icon_couchhide:

I could care less about the economics or the political aspect of buying overseas products. The days of "Buy American" are over for a lot of products, and will continue as we adapt and accept the concept of a global economy. I'd be concerned about the quality of the Chinese knock off glass. As you can see, they are VERY proficient at copying an reverse engineering. However quality control is still not their strong suit. I have seen windshields fail in short order, both from rock chips, as well as the layers de-laminating on one parked in the sun all the time. But for the price, it's hard to say no.

Time will tell how it holds up.

George

Any idea how much the factory supplier Pilkington version costs??
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A friend of mine used to work for safelite and told me they get a lot of claims from s-type owners, due to the angle of the windshield it gets chipped easily.

I came out one morning and found a huge crack imbedded in the glass all the way across, no chips though. Small, repairable chips can be fixed for free by most insurance companies, it's a law in some states (if not all) that insurance companies have to do this. If the whole windshield needs replaced, as was the case for me, then you only pay your deductible for the replacement.

Thinking the price of an ordinary windshield, I called for a quote, it was $1k. Then I called my insurance company and just paid my deductible, who went through the same company I called for the quote and they were only charged $750.

They claimed a factory oem replacement, however, I don't believe that was the case. When the sun hits the windshield, I can see a vertical line in the glass (the wires) every 3 inches or so. It's a little annoying on a sunny day.

Look at the brand etched in the glass. Pilkington is the OEM supplier. I have a PPG drivers side window. I will post the story sometime for fun.
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Last week, I was helping a friend move and her sister thought it would be a good idea to load up a kitchen chair into my front passenger seat without telling me. I now have a scratch in the side window and a chunk of the tinting ripped off. She thought handing me a beer made us even....

Phaelax, I don't suppose women understand the male love-affair with cars any more than we understand why women totter and clank around on the strange and painful footware they seem to be so invoved with. If we damaged an item of their clothing ever so slightly, she would have a just glimmer of what it feels like. Of course, now I've said something, I shall be accused of being a misogynist, I've bet myself 50p on this one.
Leedsman.

Around $1K assuming automatic wipers and heated glass.