Few Pits in Windshield

If you live in a far northern or southern climate where it does not get above 32 F or 0 C, you might just try getting some liquid water and applying it uniformly to the windshield. Let it freeze, and that should do it. If you need to you can chip it off and repeat if it is not uniform enough. Or you can try to just coat the pits only. As an alternative, you can get a large economy size box of Jewlers Rouge from a reputable discount store such as Wallmart. Then take the Rouge and simply buff the rest of the windshield down to the level of the pits. Some have tried emory paper or even belt sanders, but they have found them not to work too well. Good Luck!

Thanks McBrue but I'm way out of Eskimoland - temp here can get up to 40C.

There are kits sold at auto parts stores specifically to fill in windshield chips. Another alternative is there are companies that will come to your location and do it for you, at least here in the nyc area. I'm sure a web search will turn up products too.

Thanks Trader4 but I am sure that some products are better than others. I am hoping that someone with experience can offer me advice.

I could say a couple of names. But they're in Italy. Where are you?

(names: Doctor Glass and Secur Glass).

Thanks Cordy. Moro em California e no parlo Italiano ;-)

I have found Loctite and Permatex brands of repair kits.

I have used Permetex one for rock chip... it does fill it but if the glass has some kind of deep crack, it won't completely hide it. It does a good job but eventually I changed out the glass, I can't stand all those tiny pits.

If you can get your glass replaced cheap... I am seeing less than $220 to replace windshield... this is the best. You might even get lower price if you go directly to your glass shop locally.

I remembered one of my friend did that... everyone was quoting him $400 or so for rear glass and he found one local shop would do it for $160. The difference was tinting... he got the plain clear one for his SUV and have a tint shop finish it up. The $400+ was already tinted.

You'll note that the assumption is that everybody is from the US!

I suppose the majority of partipants are from the US. Because it is English-language we must be missing hordes of participants from Germany/Austria/Switzerland and... Northern Italy... ;-)

DAS

To send an e-mail directly replace "spam" with "schmetterling"

You'll note that the assumption from the person with the Teutonic name, who could be from South Africa, West Africa, South Africa, Netherlands, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Lichtenstein, Austria, and maybe

- oh yeah - Germany, seems to think that this discussion in "English" couldn't possibly have participants from "England", but for some reason must be from one of her many ex-colonies.

How dumb is that?

Loctite products, BTW, are available word-wide. =========================

Thanks Tiger. Great advice as usual :-)

Is there much difference in the windshields, e.g. are some thinner, thicker or more brittle than others and is branding common?

TIA

Yes, there can be a difference. Lack of tinting as othes have said and lower quality glass that visually is not as nice to look through (e.g. less clarity, more distortion when looking through it at more of angle, etc.). It is not "major bad" to look through but if you are particular or have a chance to compare two installations side by side you would notice the difference. I can't be sure, but it seems after market glass has cracked more easily although it is hard to make an apples to apples comparison. Also, is the quality difference worth the price difference for most people? Maybe not so they would not realize any "value" by paying more.

With the above said, you can't judge soley on price. Some places that charge high prices are using cheap glass but still charging the higher price. A lot of stealerships don't do glass work and just subcontract the work out to glass shops that send over their mobile unit to the stealership and use the same glass that you could have gotten for less by calling the glass installer directly. I was surprised at the variance in prices when I called around for glass for my Lexus. I ended up going with one of the major US chains and they were considerably lower plus happy to share that they would use good PPG glass if I went with the tinting.

One thing I would recommend is to take your car into the glass shop and let them work in the shop versus a single man coming out and trying to work on his own out of a truck. They are more likely to have a better working space and setup. Also, ask how much experience each installer has and try to pick someone with more experience. Be upfront with the salesperson and say you are very particular and have had bad installations in the past so you are willing to bring it in and wait until a day when their best/most experienced installer will be available to do it. Unfortunately, you don't know about problems from a bad installation until a year or so later when the glass starts showing problems, leaks begin to appear and rust starts to form where they bugged things up during the installation.

Make sure you ask about this cost of new seals, and if appropriate, new trim moulding up front. I think it is best to pay for new seals and don't try to use the old ones.

My $.02...

I meant to add, in the case of using an MB stealership, I guess it would be pretty obvious about the glass they use. Just ask them if they will be installing the OEM Serkurt (sp?) glass. I do know people who have had glass replaced at the MB stealership and they did use OEM glass, so not all stealerships try to use cheap glass.

By your use of the word "dumb" in that way I deduce you are from the USA (or, at least, US-influenced in your use of English), since you can't possibly know anything about my ability to speak. Whatever, it seems you have difficulty in grasping the concept of "majority".

Aside from that, not sure what your beef is. I don't have a problem with most participants being from the US. Do you?

Or did you just get out of the wrong side of the bed today?

DAS

To send an e-mail directly replace "spam" with "schmetterling"

PS. If you stop for a moment to think about it, Happy Trails, old chap, it is not that surprising that Americans are the majority, since for some years the US has been Mercedes's largest foreign market, with UK coming in a close second (and first in Europe).

DAS

To send an e-mail directly replace "spam" with "schmetterling"

Mebbe. In point of fact, the only problem that I have had with my

2002 C320S is the windshield which seems to pit too easily, compared with other cars I have owned. I have had SearchLight patch the pits a few times and have had the windshield replaced once already. One more pit and we go for another replacement. Both are OEM Sekurit glass.

Kal

Quite so. My 2001 CLK Cab has been pretty good so far.

According to some Merc engineers I spoke to here in London the problems came mainly with some models, especially those built abroad, which included some bread-and-butter models, unfortunately, but, I gather, these have now been addressed.

DAS

I have sympathy for many of these newer-car owners. I have a thoroughly reliable 25 yo 240D and those were the days when MBZ really made reliable cars - not any more. Consumer Reports here finds most MBZs unreliable. Honda and Toyota are way ahead.

No! let him or her??? eat the spam (poisonous yuk!!) and leave the lovely schmetterlings. They fly between central California and central America every year. That's much better than poisonous spam ;-)

Thank you XYYYZ for the info.

There is a difference and it is not the tinting... they are all pretty much the same. The difference is the optic... some when you look through them will seem to be a bit magnifying. But other than that, just do it.

Of three I have changed so far or experienced... it is not much difference. Safelite is the latest one I have and this one is a bit magnefying... others is more normal.