I also posted this in the car care section, but wanted to get as many responses as possible. I used the rainx windshield compound to get out some spots on my windshield. It worked ok, left some stains, but left many scratches. It was then suggested to use the zaino glass polish with 00grade steel wool. The spots definitely came out but the glass looks like one big swirl mark. Little scratches everywhere and in circles. It looks terrible in the light and you can see them when driving. What can I do to get rid of them? Do I have to replace the glass? How much does a windshield for a 2000, no hud, cost?

Scott

 

You used steel wool on your windshield? :eek:


[Modified by Godspeed, 11:46 PM 1/26/2002]

 

Eckler's has a polisher on page 158 of there catalog :yesnod:

 

I think the windshield is :seeya . Try the polish or ask some glass shops if they want to try to polish an area. At this point you have nothing to lose. Let me know I ould like to polish mine as it is sand blasted & :U

 

Ditto@!

 

Try a search on the forum archives. I'm guessing about 4 or 5 months ago someone had his windshield professionally polished and was really happy with the results. I feel quite sure you will be able to get this fixed.

Try this link: http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=178317

I found some other threads, but none looked like they had much solid information. Good Luck.

 

Sorry to hear about your scratched glass. I've been in the residential glass business all of my life, and usually most (uninstalled) glass that gets scratched, gets tossed in the trash as the cost to repair the scratch are more costly than the glass itself. A corvette windshield is a whole different story. I got a quote of $1000 for a new windshield for my '99. :U I know of several companies that sell Scratch removal systems to people in the glass business and their product works pretty good. The "Rareox" that Ecklers sells works pretty good, but it is time consuming as hell. We've used that product for over thirty years, but on small scratches in small areas. It can cause a bit of distortion if you focus on one spot for too long. Your whole windshield should take 8+ hours (and at least a case of Beer) to improve. I guess that is better than paying your $500 insurance deductable. Another product that has been well received in the glass industry is from a company called Glas-Weld Systems. They are in Bend Oregon. Their scratch removal system is not cheap, but it does work good. Their number is 800-321-2597. They could sell you a kit or perhaps could recommed a local shop that uses their system.

Good Luck. :cheers:

 

Sorry to hear about your windshield. I had a crack in mine about 2 weeks ago, and I asked the guy how much it would cost replace it. He told me ~$600 for an OEM replacement(no hud). He also told me that insurance pays closer to $1200 through them(markup for no apparent reason). If you cannot polish out the scratches, I'd try to call a few places and see what they quote ya. Good luck.
Dave

 

Try Brasso brass polish. I've used it on the exterior of many windshields to lessen the pitting from sand and it works great. I have even used it on my Vette. The abrasives are very mild and break down as you rub so it doesn't leave swirls or scratches. :yesnod:

 

I've heard of using 0000 steel wool but would not recommend even that.

Anyway, the Rule-of-Thumb for polishing glass--if you can feel the scratch(s) at all rubbing your finger nail over them they are too deep to polish out--period. To do otherwise would change the optical characteristics of the glass since it could not be polished to a perfectly uniform thickness. Even small changes cause a "lens" effect.

I think you are in for a new 'shield.

Some time ago I asked the Forum for advice on removing very stubborn water spots and got all kinds of suggestions, many I was unwilling to try for the very reason you discovered. (btw, one person said ammonia "etches" the glass, but we always used it for professional window cleaning when I was a kid. If the guy was correct, however, Brasso has ammonia in it--yet another suggestion I got, as have you here).

For future reference... in talking with Maquires, whose varied products I've used satisfactorily for years, they suggested using their plastic polish (as for motorcycle windshields) and said to polish each area for 30 seconds. Doing a Vette shield you'll soon discover this is quite a while on each spot, taking some time and arm resting (okay, I'm a wimp). But, after several administrations, it has helped my ws considerably, even though it is still not "as new."

All the best, in any event. :yesnod:

p.s. remember, everyone here doesn't necessarily know what of they speak! It pays to be cautious before doing something potentially destructive to your car!


[Modified by Avanti, 12:49 AM 1/27/2002]

 

OK Listen to Me! I speak from First Hand Experience! what ever you do........... Do not let anyone attempt to polish the scratches out of the windshield! :nono: I had this done 4 months ago :yesnod: It is a Freakin Disaster!!!! :cry My windshiels now looks like a freakin halogram! There are horizonal lines across my windshield every 1 1/2" starting from the bottom of my windshield to about half way up! I would have rather lived with th scratches :yesnod: than the mess I have now. I am taking the guy to small claims court in 2 weeks to recover the damages. It is a nightmare I would not wish on any one.

My advise is take a large rock and throw it as fast as you can at the windshiels and hope it puts a crack or nick in it. Then call you Insurance company and get it replaced.


[Modified by Mag Red Monster, 8:04 AM 1/27/2002]

 

[QUOTE]My advise is take a large rock and throw it as fast as you can at the windshiels and hope it puts a crack or nick in it. Then call you Insurance company and get it replaced.
[quote]

Might get a new hood too, if you do this :lol:

This is the guy that posted in the Link I listed above, so it looks like it didn't work out for him. Again, good luck.

 

Mag Red may me on to something, but as posted above, watch that hood :D :cheers:

 

Yeah...I surely don't want anyone to go thru what I did. Hopefully the leasing company won't notice a thing. Man ....but at night this windshield is a freakin nightmare! And rain makes it even worse! :crazy:

 

Is it just me or do these windshields scratch easy? I always keep my wiper baldes and windshield clean. Last week on a long trip in dry weather some abrasive (sand road grit etc) must have gotten on the wiper blades when driving in dry weather. Accidentally I hit the wiper stalk and the wipers cycled (dry) about 5 times. Didn't think anything of it. When I washed the car a few days later I noticed scratch marks following the path of the wiper blade, (perfect arc). Not real deep and I can not feel them with my fingernail. However, after reading this thread I think I'll just leave it alone and not make things worse.

 

:eek: :eek: :eek: won't be "polishing" the windshield any time soon...

 

my mother and step father have owned auto glass companies for ever. having work that business for several years, i can tell you your windshield is done. there is no polishing all those scratches out. trust me. Though probably meant as humor, MagRed Monster has a good solution: throw a rock at it, collect on insurance....seriously!!! :reddevil

 

NO I was dead serious! After the guy that polished the windshield came back and looked at my concerns, his onlu words were " well if I do anything else, it would just be worse!" As he was leaving I told him.............why don't you just throw a rock at it so I could at least claim it on my insurance. In Ohio.....you have to pay your deductable.......no free replacements here :cry like there are in some states.