Rough Windshield - Anyone?
#1
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I have the heated windshield on my XE and the outside surface is very rough. I can't even drag a micro fiber towel across it without it sticking. I tried a Nano Mitt medium over it and it made no difference. This is the only window on the car that has this rough surface. Car as 3K miles on it.
Anyone else in a similar situation? Is this a defect? Seems like it to me.
Anyone else in a similar situation? Is this a defect? Seems like it to me.
#3
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Summerville, South Carolina
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#4
#5
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The only way I can clean the front of the windshield is with a squeegee or I get lint stuck. I normally use a squeegee inside and out, but even blotting any water to the windshield leaves material.
I tried to clean the debris with a medium grade Nano Skin mitt. Made no difference. I made an appointment with Sudbury Jaguar to look at it...
I tried to clean the debris with a medium grade Nano Skin mitt. Made no difference. I made an appointment with Sudbury Jaguar to look at it...
#6
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I didn't opt for the heated front windscreen, as I never needed it even in past tough snow/ice storms here in NY state... and I also heard one of the professional reviewers criticize the front heating element designs because some of the cause visibility challenges.
But I do know that a car maker does not want the exterior skin of a front windscreen to be rough or uneven. Wind drag, dirt accumulation, wiper performance, they'll all be detrimentally effected.
If you've used your heated windscreen already, you may have unknowingly driven through something that happily spread itself on your warm windscreen and now is stubborn to come off.
What does your county use on the streets to melt snow?
Here in NYC the traffic agencies have be "experimenting" with brine and beet juice (wha??!!) instead of rock salt. It takes 3 times as much wash water to clean the danged residue off your car---each time you think it's gone, you see and feel these tiny spikes re-crystalizing on the plastic trim, the rear window (hmm... that's heated), the tops of the headlamps (also a warm area). Like cactus thorns.
This is disgusting, because I know that same residue must be plating out underneath the car where I can't reach until Springtime.
This same stuff or something like it MAY be what you're struggling with on your heated glass.
Check the same areas on your car, that I've just mentioned on my car.
I'm curious.
But I do know that a car maker does not want the exterior skin of a front windscreen to be rough or uneven. Wind drag, dirt accumulation, wiper performance, they'll all be detrimentally effected.
If you've used your heated windscreen already, you may have unknowingly driven through something that happily spread itself on your warm windscreen and now is stubborn to come off.
What does your county use on the streets to melt snow?
Here in NYC the traffic agencies have be "experimenting" with brine and beet juice (wha??!!) instead of rock salt. It takes 3 times as much wash water to clean the danged residue off your car---each time you think it's gone, you see and feel these tiny spikes re-crystalizing on the plastic trim, the rear window (hmm... that's heated), the tops of the headlamps (also a warm area). Like cactus thorns.
This is disgusting, because I know that same residue must be plating out underneath the car where I can't reach until Springtime.
This same stuff or something like it MAY be what you're struggling with on your heated glass.
Check the same areas on your car, that I've just mentioned on my car.
I'm curious.
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#8
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Have you tried a degreaser first? Let it soak in and see if there is any effect? If there is a difference, then you know it's a contaminant on the glass and not a defect.
A mild glass polish like Griots MILD polish will also reveal whether you've got a problem with the windscreen or just a gross environmental situation on the glass.
Let us know how things go.
A mild glass polish like Griots MILD polish will also reveal whether you've got a problem with the windscreen or just a gross environmental situation on the glass.
Let us know how things go.
#9
#12
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Time to go back to the dealer. Windshields should be smooth, for many reasons, least of which is safety and visibility. It's not "as designed"; now, whether it is because the car was not prepped properly when it was unwrapped or there is a defect that wasn't caught...in a 40K+ dollar purchase, the retailer should be (and aye, there's the rub) more than anxious to rectify to your complete satisfaction. Worth a drive over there and a discussion with the Service Mgr to set things to right.
Just my $.02. for what it's worth.
Just my $.02. for what it's worth.
#14
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But the dealership isn't obligated to tell you what happened, or what he chose to replace the broken (glass maybe) with.
Before I'm ready to believe that Jaguar let a poor sheet of glass leave their quality-control factory,.. I am more willing to suspect something occurred under the dealership's possession, and the dealership tried to remedy it in a way that fouled your windscreen.
Under those conditions,... why would a dealership admit this to you?
![Icon Frown](https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_frown.gif)
But if you don't have that kind of dealership, (here in NY/NJ that kind of dealer is hard to find) I would take the matter directly to Jaguar, so Jaguar can lead and oversee all your interaction with the dealership when fixing the problem. This way, the dealership is under pressure to be its utmost professional and helpful... because now they have no chance of concealing the issue from Jaguar, and know that Jaguar will be interviewing you about the results.
#15
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NewLester - you make some valid points. I have had issues with the local dealership. JLR NA and I have chatted a couple of times on this along with discussion with the dealership service manager. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt again and if they tell me to pound sand on my windshield, I'll go up the ladder.