Heathed windshield at night

[spare]

I just picked up my e-Golf last week and I had a question about the heated windshield for those who have had the car for a while. I am finding it quite distracting at night with the glare from headlights and taillights... Does this go away over time as your eyes adjust to it? Right now all I can see is the thin wires and strange glare they make as well as I find it fatigues my eyes. I never really noticed any issues when I test drove the car as it was daylight.

 

[srue]

For me it did diminish over time. When I first got my e-Golf, I was the same as you - I really noticed it at night, and often during the day too. I find I still occasionally notice it at night, but it's fairly infrequent. I'm sure my brain is filtering it out as noise because I hardly pay attention to it or give it a thought even when I do notice it. So it hasn't completely gone away, but it doesn't bother me now. Then again, maybe it didn't bother me initially as much as it bothers you.

 

[Rsolaregolf]

I drove a TT for many years at night. I haven't noticed any difference with our eGolf windshield but granted I don't drive at night as much anymore. It's the a#%holes who don't dim their high beams or have their headlight adjusted improperly that bothered me the most. Also Turdodor Prius headlights are the worst for blinding oncoming traffic IMHO.

 

[RonDawg]

I've gotten used to it. I would have to specifically look for the defroster wires to be able to see them. I don't even notice the ones on the back window anymore, and those are much thicker.

 

[Voltron]

Yeah, I have to say this is my least favorite feature about the car. There's definitely some glare at night and in the daytime, distant signs and and objects are definitely harder to make out and "shimmer" in the distance as they move across your field of view.

Does the E-golf even have standard defrosting? I wonder if the standard defroster is strong enough to clear the windshield. When the windshield inevitably cracks from a stone on the freeway wondering if a non-heated model would be an option.

 

[miimura]

Yeah, I have to say this is my least favorite feature about the car. There's definitely some glare at night and in the daytime, distant signs and and objects are definitely harder to make out and "shimmer" in the distance as they move across your field of view.

Does the E-golf even have standard defrosting? I wonder if the standard defroster is strong enough to clear the windshield. When the windshield inevitably cracks from a stone on the freeway wondering if a non-heated model would be an option.

The main ventilation system is the same system as higher trim standard Golf with automatic climate control. They didn't even add a dedicated button for the resistive windshield, you have to turn it on through the menu. So, of course, you can use the ventilation system defrost too.

 

[NoSmoke]

Does the E-golf even have standard defrosting? I wonder if the standard defroster is strong enough to clear the windshield. When the windshield inevitably cracks from a stone on the freeway wondering if a non-heated model would be an option.

And I wonder what a replacement heated windshield would cost. That could be a major expense item is it's replaced once every year or two (as is not uncommon where they toss a lot of gravel on the roads in winter).

 

[Tuningin]

And I wonder what a replacement heated windshield would cost. That could be a major expense item is it's replaced once every year or two (as is not uncommon where they toss a lot of gravel on the roads in winter).

$782 dollars including labor. I had to have mine replaced before lease turn in and there are no aftermarket solutions due to the defroster lines. I shopped around endlessly. Consider that without the defroster lines, the replacement would have been less than half that price.

They're both annoying to look through and expensive to have. I was hoping that they got rid of them with the new SEL's.

 

[ELECTROMAN]

Yeah it seems unnecessary and visually distracting. Maybe I'll change my mind this winter. If the windshield does need to be replaced, is there an non-heated aftermarket option? That would make the most sense. It's my daughters car and it probably won't bother her young eyes as much as mine, so I'm not too worried about it, but I was thinking about getting one for my wife too, so it still might be an issue.

 

[Thorallophon]

meh, hardly notice it anymore. Originally I thought it would visually bug me, but I got used to it very quickly.

I find it very useful as it uses less power than running a fan and ac for twice as long to clear the windshield. That and chipping ice and snow off the exterior is a breeze. I know the fan can do the job, but this is way faster. So as long as you don't follow on the vehicle ahead when they absently hit the shoulder, you should be fine.

The only time I find it frustrating is during freezing rain events. Once the cab warms up, it doesn't stay on, so you're constantly manually turning it on or running the fan at high speed at the highest heat. This always drains the battery faster than you want, and an average 150km trip can suddenly turn into a two leg journey for a quick charge in the middle. blah.

As for replacement with an aftermarket regular windshield, if you really want to go that route, one for a regular golf of the same vintage and trim level would do the trick. So far I have found that shared generic body parts, aftermarket or not, fit my e-golf. I would assume the windshield would fall under that category. Though, not sure if the controller would like it much, It might constantly kick a warning light/message.

 

[Voltron]

Well, my windshield broke because of the sorry state of California roads.

Here's something interesting:
Safelite quoted $1350 for a non-OEM replacement, which my insurance company was willing to pay. Called my dealer and they quoted $863 for the whole job, using OEM glass.

I had it replaced at the dealer, but it turned out they outsourced it to somebody else. Did use OEM glass, though.

 

[2016golfse]

Called my dealer and they quoted $863 for the whole job, using OEM glass.

I had it replaced at the dealer, but it turned out they outsourced it to somebody else. Did use OEM glass, though.

Which Bay Area dealer quoted $863? Happen to know who they outsourced to? Just wondering in case the same happens to me.

 

[Voltron]

Capital VW in San Jose. I don't remember who they outsourced to and I suspect they probably have several suppliers.