Rear windscreen cover

benjie

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Just after some advice. I've noticed that 1 bar of my heated rear windscreen doesn't work and it's quite annoying. I'm with Admiral for insurance and they say they'll cover the replacement of any window, but I wondered if it needs to be cracked or does a failed heating element qualify it for a replacement? Sorry if I sound stupid, only ever had a windscreen replaced once in my driving 'career!'
 
Don't smash it! the rear screen is not laminated like the windscreen, and will shatter into a million little squares, which end up EVERYWHERE! you will be finding bits of glass for months.
 
Hahaha you sure am quite handy with my trusty hammer would make light work of your situation
 
I've just managed to find (after loads of looking, they don't make it easy to find) the policy on windscreens. They'll repair broken glass. So might need you to come and do your job! Having aid that, I'm torn because I don't want glass everywhere!
 
You get in the car with the hover ready put a cover down and ill go when you say hahahaha

One of them mate has to be done or just have to live with it
 
Report it as smashed, but ask the Autoglass man to take it out without breaking it. Simple!

Or find the break and put a dab of conductive paint on it, available from Halfods etc for repairing heated rear windows....
 
He won't be too happy if he arrives and sees an intact window though will he?

He will still get paid, he wont have to mess about with shattered pieces...... why should he not be happy?
 
Some interesting responses.

Glass cover is for broken glass, or damage. What is construed as damage will be down to interpretation of the facts, or what the insurer identifies. A broken line can be repaired.

The talk of smashing it with a hammer (on a public forum) is conspiring to defraud. Everyone is quick to moan about how insurers are having it away with rising premiums, yet the willingness to scam them out of the price for a faulty window is not frowned upon.

In any case, the insurer will have an arrangement with their nominated supplier. In this case, you will get what you're given: a non-OEM part and by that I mean not genuine Audi; there are very rare exceptions to this, and anyone who talks about parts being "stamped" are talking out of their backside.

Let's say you did accidentally reverse into a hammer, yes, the toughened glass will go everywhere. The task of cleaning up the millions of fragments aside, the chap sent by your insurer's nominated supplier might do your car some damage which will not become apparent until it's too late (and prolly well out of the warranty period). Many people have bought cars and inherited these problems, ergo: are faced with the cost of repairing them, or, like some people in this thread appear to be so accustomed to will scam their insurer for the cost of repair. Also, if the glass is intact, 90% of the 'insurance approved' national company fitters cannot remove an unbroken glass without damage to it, the car or themselves!

Frankly speaking, the sooner windscreen cover is dropped from FC policies, the sooner we can get rid of this attitude to claim for vanity.
 
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I was wondering how long it would take for the other side of the story to be mentioned.

Can you detail how to repair a broken element on the rear windscreen glassman?

A break in a hotline can be repaired by 'bridging' the gap with a conductive paint. However, if that gap is too long (more than a couple of millimeters) it may prove to be beyond repair. I've not used the product myself, but I've spoken to a few people who have, and the general consensus seems to be that they're not great. I think bridging a <=1mm break will have a better chance of success.

Is it one of the upper/lower ones, or one in the middle?
 
It's about 2/3 of the way up the windscreen and it goes from the edge of the window to about 1/3 of the way across. I'll take a photo the next time I need to use the rear window and put it up, see what you think (if that's okay?) I'm working on the car this weekend so I might whip off the trim around the window at the weekend and see what I can see.
 
In 4 years of Audi ownership I have never used my rear screen demister. Car is parked outside.
I wonder if you have a water leak inside the car if you have to keep using yours?
Or do you go dogging? ;)
 
Really? I use mine daily in winter - have on every car I've ever owned, especially when icy at 6.30am on a Monday morning! I never use it.. March to September ish.

Glassman - My friend has a voltage checker (can't remember the proper name for it) and I'm seeing him at the weekend when we get together for our monthly car geek meet-up, so I'll have a look then. what's your opinion on this stuff... http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/electrically-conductive-silver-paint-n36ba

Oh, Zafi, I don't see what my 'evening habits' have to do with this?!!
 
When it's icy I pour warm water over my screens, front side windows and mirrors, then drive off. I never use deicer as I find the inside of the screen ends up getting condensation on it as soon as I set off. Warm water warms the screen so it stays clear inside and out.
 
I use mine to clear the condensation on the outside, I find in this weather it keeps coming back for the first few minutes. In cold winter I get condensation on the inside due to short journeys, wet weather & how I park my car at work (back away from the sun) The warm water solution would be too inconvenient for me as I'm in a flat.
 
Ah, mine is an avant so I have a rear wiper.
I also have hot water close at hand at home and work, a 30 mile cross country enjoyable blast between the Yorkshire Moors and Yorkshire Dales :)
 
I have an avant too, but I'm very picky about my windows. The slightest streak of water anywhere and the wipers are on. In this weather I put the rear wiper on, but the condensation comes back v quickly, so I put the rear heater on to warm up the window and stop the condensation.
 
I think I would be checking the spare wheel well and footwells for water. The only time I ever had that happen on a car was after a poor windscreen replacement resulted in a water leak into the passenger side footwell.

My wife's car was misting up and when I checked there was about 5mm of water in the spare wheel well. It's normally kept in an airconditioned garage but due to my selfish use of her bay for a couple of bikes I had apart at the same time it lived outdoors for a few months, then started misting up.