Heated car windshield has thin wires to heat up the windshield up to a temperature so that it can defrost. Like rear defogger, it has tungsten wires embedded between the two layers to keep the windshield warm enough that it won’t allow condensation on itself.
Heated Windshield Technology
Embedding tungsten wires in the front car glass is much more complicated than in rear defogger. It is natural that you can’t have such thick wires in front of the drive as the rear heated defoggers have. So, to heat up the windshield the most important aspect is to keep the visibility intact.
The most common heated windshields have tungsten wire mesh at the bottom and in the corners, which heat up the wipers and windshield in low temperatures. These elements don’t hamper the vision area as they are in the ceramic area which is a border area where the windshield is fixed with the car body. These windshields are common in Hyundai, Toyota, Lexus, Bentley, Mercedes-Benz models like Bentley Continental GT, Mercedes E-Class, Mercedes S-Class, Toyota Landcruiser Prado, etc.
But some premium brands like Jaguar & Land Rover, have fully heated Pilkington windshields specially manufactured for JLR. These windshields have very fine tungsten wire embedded from top of the windshield to the bottom. These wires are so thin that it doesn’t affect vision yet provide the best heating experience by defrosting the windshield even in sub-zero temperatures. You can check Jaguar XF, XJL, Discovery, and Discovery Sports models for these types of heated car windshields.
Another type of heated car windshield is available, which has 1 or 2 tungsten wires embedded in the whole windshield in the vision area. These are also very thin but heat the windshield enough to stop condensation. Porsche Carrera, and Porsche Cayman are the best examples of such heated windshields.
Advantage of Heated windshield
A heated car windshield is important as they eliminate the use of heated or AC to keep the windshield clean. If your car has a heated windshield, you can just switch on the defogger rather than using AC or Blower, it also helps to save fuel and hence increase the fuel economy of the car. Also, as you don’t need a blower to divert air to the windshield, it reduces cabin noise.
Cost of Heated car windshield
Heated car windshields are not general in India and are mostly used by luxury car manufacturers. Some of the premium brands that use heated front windshields are Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Lexus, Porsche, Bentley, Jaguar, Land Rover. The cost of the OEM windshield for these brands is a bit costly than others.
| Mercedes E-Class (W212) | ₹ 79864 |
| Mercedes S-Class (W222) | ₹ 149568 |
| Porsche Carrera 991 | ₹ 109123 |
| Jaguar XF | ₹ 64289 |
| Jaguar XJL | ₹ 106474 |
| Range Rover Sports | ₹ 96359 |
| Toyota Prado | ₹ 47026 |
Repairing a Heated windshield
If your heated car windshield is cracked or chipped, you should contact a windshield repair expert. Repairing a heated windshield is tricky as the tungsten wire mesh is very thin. It may get tempered while making a hole for the resign. The experience of the technician is crucial for such a repair. Most workshops don’t recommend repairing a windshield with the wire mesh. You can visit Auto Glass Masters workshop for more details.
Replacing a Heated Windshield
Windshields with heating elements need special precautions while replacing them. The primer used at the car body and the adhesive/PU sealant used need to be compatible. Ordinary PU sealant may lose grip over the windshield during heating, it can be fatal in case of a mishap. Auto Glass Masters use special Sika polyurethane for luxury car windshields that are suitable for heated windscreens.