S2 windscreen replacement - help needed

[besidethewye2]

Hi everyone

I have a 1995 S2 - long and sorry tale of issues with an attempted repair at a garage (another day, another post) - but one outcome was they broke the windscreen.

I read the posts and contacted Autoglass who said all the right things and give the impression of knowing what they are doing.

However, after months of messing about, the second attempt was today and they came with only two side trims, not the top trim and nothing for the corners. The windscreen isn't quite the same - at least the area for fitting the mirror (and nothing pre-attached).

They were thinking they might reuse the top trim but it was never going to work. They have gone off again saying they will come back with all the trims (top, left, right and corners).

My questions (and there may well be more) -

- will the A pillar seals survive swapping out the windscreen (they are far from pristine)? It looks as if they need to come off and I imagine they won't go back easily
- I have read threads about fixing the mirror - is there anything I can do to make sure they get that bit right?
- what's the order for taking the trims off the A pillars to get the access they will need?
- any special tools or advice I should be making them listen to?

Thanks and much appreciate any input

Patrick

[dapinky]

Hi Patrick,

To address some of your questions, the 'A' pillar seals should be replaced as part of the windscreen replacement procedure - there is no chance or removal without damage. They are made in such a way that even a slight cut in the outer skin will allow water to enter and soak into the sponge.

It is accepted that replacement of the seals is part of the process for the insurers.

Now that you have a 'registered' account on here, you may notice an extra tab at the top of the page (when logged in) which gives access to the official workshop manuals, and the complete process is covered in there. It may well be worth printing off the relevant section and handing it to the repairer...... some of the process are time-critical to allow the adhesives/primers to set correctly - it is unlikely that they will get a good finish on your driveway at this time of year in a single visit. When I had mine done, I arranged for the car to go to their premises so it would be kept inside overnight to do it right.

Section BK15 of the Workshop manual is the start of the relevant pages you need to refer to.

[simonbuk]

Can i ask where you got your windscreen replaced and the cost ?

[besidethewye2]

Dave

thanks for that - much appreciated.

I couldn't see how the A pillar seals could come off so it makes sense they need to be replaced.

I will print the manual section and get that over to them.



On another subject - your note about Plymouth Banjul (I assume) - has that been or is it in planning? I did that trip a few years ago in a London Taxi - it would have been easier in a Freelander.....

Cheers

Patrick

[dapinky]

On another subject - your note about Plymouth Banjul (I assume) - has that been or is it in planning? I did that trip a few years ago in a London Taxi - it would have been easier in a Freelander.....

Yay! - we all love a good thread hijack off at a tangent......

It is an old signature - I've done it two years running (Freelander each time)......

..... basically, Clemo has taken over the running of this event from Julian (unfortunately, now RIP) having been asked to continue "the madness". We have done a selection of 'silly trips' over the years (mopeds round SE Asia - many times, tuktuks round Sri Lanka, cars to the 'stans etc etc. As part of the taking it over, we were going on a recce 3 years ago, but 2 days before the set-off I was summoned to attend the hospital, do not pass go, do not collect £200.

So, I had to go the following year...... then Angie decided she wasn't going to just sit at home when I go off on my 'silly trips' - she was coming too....... so 2 weeks after getting home, I found another Freelander and set about sorting it for the trip.....

.... when we got back in February, I was so pleased that I hadn't broken down in what is considered to be one of the most unreliable SUVs out there, that i have now bought one as my daily driver.

I would expect a black cab to be one of the best vehicles for these kind of trips as they are pretty robust, and will go anywhere...... then again, by the time they get sold, they are pretty well scrap anyway (like most of the vehicles on the trip).

Angie loved it so much that she is coming to drive a tuktuk in April for 3 weeks in Sri Lanka!!!

[besidethewye2]

Sounds good - glad things continue despite Julian's early and sad demise!

Just before we left I was talking to a technician at Carbodies (I think) and he made sure to tell me 'the London Cab was not designed to be used in the desert' - and he wasn't wrong. I reckon another day would have killed it - dust was the issue - in everything and the electrics in particular. It was also uncomfortable and slow. Ours had a mere 468000 miles on it when we started. We did get the meter running so had a record of the costs of a taxi trip from Cornwall to The Gambia.....

Turns out there was a long history of people taking cabs across the desert - who knew?

Would be good to compare notes one day (I need to take a trip down to Lawrenny so not a million miles away)

Cheers

Patrick

[besidethewye2]

"To address some of your questions, the 'A' pillar seals should be replaced as part of the windscreen replacement procedure - there is no chance or removal without damage. They are made in such a way that even a slight cut in the outer skin will allow water to enter and soak into the sponge.

It is accepted that replacement of the seals is part of the process for the insurers."


Turns out that is apparently not accepted by Autoglass. The latest is that they will only source parts from their own supplier and they don't have the A pillar seals so they won't fit them.

This is harder than it should be!

[dapinky]

Patrick,

Once it gets to the stage of Autoglass being a PITA, it is usually best to contact your insurance company and tell them the problem. They are the ones who will ultimately be paying the bill.

If they become aware that replacement of the A Pillar seals is part of the recognised Lotus procedure, they ought to accept the cost liability - even if it means you needing to supply the units to Autoglass..... although, to be honest, I would probably see if they would agree to paying for the parts themselves, but getting me to fit them afterwards. It isn't a hard job to do, but it needs some degree of care to do neatly, which a mobile fitter may be less willing to do.

[besidethewye2]

Dave, thanks again.

I will get the seals and make sure they are carefully fitted.

It is a load of grief I don't need, particularly as the screen got broken in the garage where she was in for an engine warning light (turned out to be a broken wire on the cam angle sensor, they didn't find that, I did when they gave up).

Looking forward to getting back on the road.

Just at this moment he car turns over but there is no power on the ignition, not had time to chase that down yet.....

Patrick

[Saltire]

When I had my S2 windscreen replaced about this time last year (National Windscreens), I had this discussion too. I have Jamie’s one-piece front seal, and I didn’t want that thrown away, so I stripped out the inner A pillar trim pieces, the A pillar Jamie seal etc. Then the only extras the fitter actually NEEDED to replace the screen were the side and top plastic runners which are bedded into the sealant behind the screen itself. NW couldn’t supply these. You can get them from Mike Hopes at SWLC Performance. At the time I did mine, he didn’t have the side pieces, so I bought two top pieces and cut one to make the sides. I refitted my Jamie seals later.

A couple of other things to watch out for: My original screen had an obscuration band at the top between the sun visors to prevent dazzle from the sun. The new one didn’t, and I had to make one with some anti-dazzle self-adhesive plastic sheet from Amazon.

Finally, if you take the inner top (“leather”) screen trim rail off yourself, make sure the fitter understands the need to reattach the interior mirror sufficiently far down the screen so it doesn’t foul the trim rail, otherwise you won’t be able to adjust the mirror properly. Ask me how I know

For me, National Windscreens did a great job - but then my fitter had done an Elan screen before. I also took the precaution of briefing them beforehand and agreeing who would do what, and how.

Good luck!

[besidethewye2]

Thanks Jonathan - that's all really helpful.

Moral of the story seems to be that hands need holding, despite the confident assurances!

Patrick

[Tuga2112]

Moral of the story seems to be that hands need holding, despite the confident assurances!

thats basically the standard on today's society.

we are becoming very american... "confident" does not mean "competent"

[Saltire]

Thanks Jonathan - that's all really helpful.

Moral of the story seems to be that hands need holding, despite the confident assurances!

Patrick

The other thing that occurs to me is that the Elan interior mirror is quite heavy. NW advised me not to clip the mirror back onto its plinth for 24 hours or so to give the adhesive a chance to go off. I used a small mirror with a rubber sucker for a couple of days or so. And the new screen didn’t come with a mirror plinth - though we all thought it would - so don’t lose the one you’ve got!

Don’t believe the fitter if they offer to do the fitting at your premises. The bonding primer needs time to cure, and it does so faster if it’s indoors. Take the car to their unit.

And finally,I printed out the relevant pages from the workshop manual (in the “Manuals” tab at the top of thi page) and took a copy with me to the fitters. It’s a very helpful write-up

[besidethewye2]

That's good advice - they are certain they can do it at the house.

I will see if I can talk them around to a slow, careful job at one of their sites.....

I just got a couple of A pillar trims from SJ Sportscars - anyone had any experience with those? The mouldings don't look all that great to my untrained eye.

Cheers

Patrick